Tuesday, Mar 11, 2003
Tuesday, Mar 11, 2003 |
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By Vijay Lokapally
The fiery pace trio spearheaded by Javagal Srinath decimated Sri Lanka in the Super Six match at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Monday. Srinath, who was adjudged Man of the Match in a jubilant mood after claiming the wicket of Sanath Jayasuriya. India won the match by 183 runs. — Photo: V.V. Krishnan
At least the whole of South Africa believes they can. This was a clinical annihilation by India of an opponent that stood devastated under a sensational piece of fast bowling in perfect conditions for batting. After Sachin Tendulkar, who else, inspired India to a formidable total against a disjointed Sri Lanka, the pair of Javagal Srinath and Zaheer Khan dealt lethal blows to effectively strip the contest of any competitive flavour. The Sri Lankan innings was a mere four overs old and its batting stood in a shambles and India did not even need a fourth bowler to wind up the opposition. Two veterans guided India with classy displays. Tendulkar did his customary bit with the bat and then `man of the match' Srinath produced a back-breaking spell that left Sri Lanka with no option but to try and last the overs — a victory was ruled out once it lost the cream of its batting. Srinath dedicated his spell to his friend Hemant, who passed away recently. If there was a collective performance by India, in keeping with its potential, this was one. It was laced with incredible professionalism as India made a mockery of an opposition, which adopted a defensive attitude before a ball was bowled. The decision by Sanath Jayasuriya to bowl first was perplexing unless he was influenced by the fact that the early moisture may have caused discomfort to his batsmen. But the Indians played havoc in the afternoon, thanks to the awesome target that the batsmen set Sri Lanka. If there was any devil in the pitch, it was soon exorcised by the magnificent form of Tendulkar. You just can't bat better than him as the master has shown a penchant in this tournament to pick the stage to excel on. Poor Sri Lankans were punished regardless of where they put the ball. It was clear from the beginning that India was going to dominate the match. It did much more than that, finishing the issue as if a victory was a matter of right. Nothing went wrong for India this day, not even Virender Sehwag's inconsistent strokeplay. It was to his advantage that Tendulkar was in a far more attacking mood and the Sri Lankan attack wilted under the calculated assault by the openers.
Javagal Srinath is ecstatic after trapping Aravinda de Silva lbw for a duck.
Sehwag batted as is his wont — swinging wildly, missing a few and connecting a few. The shots he connected flew from the bat and when he missed the batsman looked so ungainly. But then technique cannot be a virtue for a batsman who plays by instinct and it helped the team when Sehwag continued with his mixture of orthodox and unorthodox strokeplay. It fetched him three sixes, one from a dazzling cut off Prabhat Nissanka, who was ravaged by the Indians. Sehwag's knock suited the requirements of the day even as he it gave the rustic cricketer the confidence to improve in the next game. Tendulkar was impeccable in whatever he did. He has come to establish the World Cup stage as his domain and the ease with which he stepped into a zone from where he just toyed with the attack spoke of his quality today. The hallmark of Tendulkar's innings was that it did not contain one hurried stroke. His treatment of the ball was a sight for the purists and there was not a false shot, barring the one that proved fatal. It was indeed a great privilege to watch Tendulkar produce another gem with the crowd, irrespective of its loyalty, appreciating the master's work under conditions that were ideal for a thrilling game of cricket. The pitch played true and so did Tendulkar to gift the team another masterpiece, just the kind that would make the ultimate difference. Today, the difference was mammoth. Sri Lanka was nowhere in the picture at any stage of the match. From the time the Indian openers belted a century-plus stand to the positive approach adopted by the rest it was destined to be a one-sided encounter. The Sri Lankan problems only multiplied as Tendulkar put India on the right course. In divine form at this World Cup, his desire to plunder runs at will has been the greatest source of motivation for the team. Once again Tendulkar showed his liking for shots off his pads but indulged in a few cracking drives. He was cruising to his 35th one-day century when a careless shot left him short of the mark by three runs. It was quite an uncharacteristic stroke from a batsman who had shown remarkable judgment of picking the deliveries to score off. On this occasion, he was tempted to play the paddle, an unwise shot, when he had the straight field at his mercy. The tame end to a swashbuckling show was ironic. There was a responsible essay from Ganguly too but the Indian innings was all about Tendulkar and his obsession to play key knocks in key positions. In contrast was the Sri Lankan response — spineless and appallingly out of character. The depth in batting only allowed Sri Lanka to delay the rout as Srinath sliced through the top order in a spell aimed at achieving part of unfulfilled goals, the prime one being to play a leading part in a title winning campaign.
Dream start
Srinath began his dream assault by snaring the adventurous Marvan Atapattu to a good catch in the covers by Mohammad Kaif. Two balls later he foxed Jehan Mubarak. It was ripe time for Zaheer to make it a humiliating walk back for Mahela Jayawerdene, who failed for the umpteenth time in this World Cup, having forgotten the basics of batting completely. The Sri Lankan was in a disarray when Aravinda de Silva was trapped by an inswinger as Srinath reached the peak of his spell. It was this dismissal that broke the back of the Sri Lankan resolve. The rest was a forgettable experience for the Sri Lankans. Jayasuriya was snapped from an ambitious slash at covers and Kumara Sangakkara joined the procession by slicing the ball to point. Russel Arnold had no clue to Zaheer's change of pace and Chaminda Vaas, who had been the pick of the Sri Lankan bowlers, fell to a fine tumbling catch by Tendulkar, who looked mighty pleased with his acrobatic show at mid-on. The Lankan tail failed to bring respectability to the team's reputation which stood in tatters under a rejuvenated Indian dominance at this World Cup. Sri Lanka did little of note in this match, which it would eminently love to forget. The changes in the team made no difference to the morale and the bowling was exposed to the hilt with Prabath Nissanka and Dilhara Fernando looking pedestrian all the way. The spin trio of Jayasuriya, de Silva and Arnold proved timid against the fleet-footed Indians. It was not Sri Lanka's day at all. There was small consolation in the comical hitting by Muralitharan when everything had been lost, enough to regale the despondent Sri Lankan supporters. Sri Lanka now travels to East London to meet Zimbabwe on March 15 in a do-or-die contest while India meets New Zealandat Centurion on March 14. Amidst the big mass of supporters at the Wanderers sat a bunch of South African kids with their faces painted with the Indian tricolour. As they waved the Indian flag, they seem to have identified the team to back for the title. India, after today's display, is the team to beat now! ----------------------------------------- Today's match Australia vs New Zealand Port Elizabeth, 1-30 p.m. ----------------------------------------- SCOREBOARD
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