Dav Whatmore: Reviews a controversial Test Match
There have been some unsatisfactory comments made in the aftermath of Sri Lanka's fantastic victory in the First Test Match in Galle
Dav Whatmore
01-Mar-2001
There have been some unsatisfactory comments made in the aftermath of Sri
Lanka's fantastic victory in the First Test Match in Galle. Much of the post-match analysis was biased and far too one-sided. The English commentators
and writers should look closely at the video and they will clearly see that
both sides were the victims of bad luck.
We were particularly annoyed though by unfounded accusations, such as those
made by Michael Henderson in the Daily Telegraph. He made some rash
statements: "Sri Lanka lost their dignity", "How can any side take pleasure
from a victory that poisons the game" and "Sri Lanka's conduct in this match
was nothing less than a deliberate and concerted assault on the fabric of
the game". Great prose maybe, but not balanced journalism.
To label the Sri Lankan players as cheats is simply scandalous. The Sri
Lankan team does not, has not, and will not cynically orchestrate appeals to
pressurise the umpires. Yes, mistakes are sometimes made. You have to
understand that in conditions such as those in Galle, where top-class
spinners bowl on a dusty wicket, there will always be plenty of bat/pad and
lbw enquiries and, for both the umpires and the players, it is often too
difficult to know for sure what is out or not.
Henderson also said that Kumar Sangakkara has admitted claiming a catch that
bounced short and duly apologised to Michael Atherton after the game. This
is simply not true. Kumar Sangakkara believed he took the catch cleanly at
the time and the inconclusive television replays have not changed that
opinion since. He certainly hasn't apologised to Atherton.
The Sri Lankans are vocal and there is nothing wrong in that. In fact, I
would be disappointed if they weren't, as they needed to keep
themselves going for three strenuous days in the field. Test cricket is a
tough game and I was proud of their efforts.
These derogatory comments will just make us even more determined to win the
series, by the largest margin possible. The players have gained confidence
from Galle and will not be relaxing like they did last year, when South
Africa levelled the series in Kandy, in a game that we should have won.
Going back to the First Test Match, there is little doubt that winning the
toss was a big bonus, on a dry pitch that was always going to deteriorate on
a daily basis. The fact that the pitch deteriorated even quicker than
expected gave us an even greater advantage.
Having gained the advantage of winning the toss, you then have to take full
advantage of it and we did that with a disciplined batting performance by
our normally free-scoring batsmen. It was slow going and we only scored 221
on the first day. But, by losing only two wickets we ensured that we would
dominate the match from thereon in.
To their credit the English team kept their discipline too, despite the high
temperatures and not taking regular wickets. The bowlers maintained a tight line
and length and were well backed up by some excellent ground fielding.
We finally declared on 470 for five, more because of time than anything
else, but the wickets did not come easily. Marcus Trescothick played with a
maturity that belied his tender years and richly deserved his century. I
find it hard to believe that he has found it difficult to play spin in
the past. He was positive in his defence and quick to punish any loose
bowling. It is certainly rare to see Muralitharan driven through extra cover
like he was. Michael Atherton was as solid as ever, scoring 33 and 44 in
nearly seven hours of batting. England's openers seem to hold one of the
keys to their success.
England's run rate, however, was below two runs per over so it didn't hurt
us too much when we went through a session without taking a wicket. Thus,
despite not taking wickets regularly, we were in a position to enforce the
follow on the morning of the forth day. By the end of the day we had only
taken two second innings wickets, but again the scoring rate was so slow
that they were still over a hundred runs behind us when we started the last
day.
I was really pleased by the extended commitment, concentration and fierce
competitiveness of the Sri Lankan bowlers, close-in fielders and wicket-keeper, who had to endure three scorching days in the field.
It was first and foremost a great team performance, but there were some
outstanding individual performances that deserve a special mention: Sanath
Jayasuriya took eight wickets with his fizzing left arm spin and bowled
important long spells throughout the three days, something that he is not
used to; Chaminda Vaas, as he often does, claimed key wickets at crucial
times, by bowling straight, full and at an ideal pace for the pitch; Marvan
Attapattu and Aravinda de Silva showed their undisputed class with fantastic
centuries, full of patience and determination; finally, Kumar Sanagakkara
battled hard behind the stumps and showed us just how far he has come in the
last 12 months.
The physiotherapist, Alex Kontouri, also played a key role in our victory by
ensuring the Muttiah Muralitharan played the match. Murali was not a 100%,
but he took seven wickets in the game and bowled approximately 100 overs.
The fact that he played at all is testament to Alex's superb injury
management skills. He worked untiringly on the injury from the day it was
sustained in New Zealand and the value of his expertise was immeasurable.
The events of the First Test Match are now history and we have started
focusing on the Kandy match. The team is upbeat, the confidence is fully
restored, and we are determined not to make the same mistake as last year.