The Hindu : Vaas and Lee usher in a refreshing change

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Mar 22, 2003

Sport

Sport - World Cup

Vaas and Lee usher in a refreshing change

By Vijay Lokapally

DURBAN MARCH 21. Brett Lee and Chaminda Vaas have distinguished themselves in a World Cup where the batsmen have also enjoyed testing their skills on some challenging and some docile tracks.

These two fast bowlers, having developed their wicket-taking art, stood out for their consistency and ability to provide crucial breakthroughs.

Vaas bowled his heart out for Sri Lanka, bringing in versatility to his line and length, which only improved as the tournament progressed. "I worked on my length as much as I did on pace,'' said Vaas, after Sri Lanka beat Zimbabwe at East London in a must-win situation.

The left-arm fast bowler enjoyed his work as he concentrated on foxing the batsmen with a well-crafted line. "His slower one was lethal,'' said Roshan Mahanama, who praised Vaas for his potential to raise the level of his game when faced with quality opposition.

The ball with which Vaas snared Ricky Ponting in the semifinals at Port Elizabeth was a gem. It reflected on the wily Vaas' ability to think and bowl, unlike most fast bowlers who think only after bowling.

In contrast has been the image of Lee, a magnificent athlete and a very effective fast bowler, the kind who rattle the batsmen with speed even in limited-overs cricket.

Lee was in direct competition with Shoaib Akhtar of Pakistan to take the spot of the fastest bowler in the world, but the Pakistani beat him to it in the match against England.

But it was Lee who was consistent and that counted more than just the speed he generated.

What was it that separated Vaas from Lee? Very little, according to most of the commentators. The common opinion was that both brought a refreshing change to bowling attitude. The emphasis was on striking at the beginning than playing the waiting game.

"Such bowlers are much needed in today's defensive mould,'' was the opinion of Robin Singh, who was known as the cricketer with the most positive mind.

The transition for Vaas was smooth because he knew there was no other role for him and he worked tirelessly to achieve the position of a strike bowler. It was not that he did not deliver in the past too but at this World Cup he appeared to be enjoying his role.

As Arjuna Ranatunga said, "Vaas has managed to remain fit and worked on his bowling without making any compromise on his pace.'' Not that Vaas was a tearaway fast bowler but he sure could shake the batsman with a snorter when needed.

Difficult period

When Vaas visited South Africa four months before the World Cup he was not able to make any impact. He was clobbered all over because of his poor line and length.

It was a difficult period for Vaas but then he returned home and concentrated on the basics of bowling. The Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka had appointed former fast bowler Champaka Ramanayake as the coach and he worked with Vaas to enable the left-armer regain his confidence.

"Vaas was a revelation for those who had seen him struggle. To me, he was the key figure in Sri Lanka coming thus far. He has been a most dedicated member of the side,'' said Mahanama of Vaas.

Vaas changed his defensive attitude to an attacking mould. He shortened his run-up and altered his grip. It worked wonders because he got the ball to swing in from the edge of the crease. It was a line which left the batsmen in a daze and his quality came to the fore when he claimed wickets in all crucial matches.

With a tally of 23 wickets against his name at an impressive average of 14.39, Vaas stood out among the elite bowlers of the tournament.

He was well supported by Muttiah Muralitharan and Sanath Jayasuriya but Vaas was a force by himself all through the tournament. When most thought Muralitharan, with his magic, would be the matchwinner it was Vaas who played that role.

His crowning moment was easily the two maiden overs he bowled to a marauding Sachin Tendulkar when the field restrictions applied. And another maiden over to Andrew Symonds, the 36th over of the innings, was a gem.

Fast, faster ...

For Lee, it was just a matter of bowling fast, and faster. Every wicket that came his way only strengthened his belief that he was born to bowl fast. Every stump that went cart-wheeling saw Lee come back stronger, making the life of the batsmen miserable.

"Speed can be a crucial factor in any grade,'' was the opinion of former West Indies great Andy Roberts when he spoke to Zaheer Khan on India's last tour of the Caribbean Islands. So, Lee worked on speed and in the process managed to pick up 20 wickets at an average of 18.15.

The game is enriched by characters like Lee. It is to his credit that he has emerged as a strong ally to Glenn McGrath, the perfect bowler.

Lee has undoubtedly bowled the best, and not just the fastest, with some judicious use of the yorker. He greeted Aravinda de Silva with a lethal yorker which did not fetch him a wicket only because of the calibre of the batsman. He could bowl the yorker at will, as one saw against the New Zealanders and the Sri Lankans.

Lee clearly was Australia's main weapon even though the shadow of McGrath lurked in the background to take over when the situation required. Lee obviously did not believe in the nature of the pitch.

He was quick in the air and it did not matter if the pitch was slow, like the one at Port Elizabeth. He followed the philosophy of Akhtar, who also pays little attention to the state of the pitch.

"I'm quick in the air,'' Akhtar had declared before he was smashed all over the park by the Indians at Centurion.

The success of Shane Bond was built on his tremendous talent to work up pace in any conditions. Bond too used the yorker sparingly, often pushing the batsmen on the backfoot.

His dismissal of Sourav Ganguly was classic. He bowled to the India skipper to a field which you would get to see in a Test match — three slips and a gully. He tested him with a few short pitched balls before slipping in a lightning yorker. Quite possible the batsman may not have spotted the ball.

He deserves to figure in the elite group of fast bowlers in the company of Lee and Vaas.

The Indian trio of Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra brought a new look to the attack. The essence of aggressive bowling was quite noticeable as the three shared 49 wickets.

The Indians rarely looked so well equipped in the pace department and matched the exploits of Lee, Vaas and Bond with a collective strength that helped the team immensely in playing to its potential.

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