Scriptless Sri Lanka put hopes on hold

If there had been hype building for this Sri Lanka side through their Asia Cup campaign, much of it burned down, like a Vesak lantern that catches fire and ends in a smouldering mess, as a result of that calamitous final - a total of 50 all out tends to have this effect.

But there had been a hard-fought victory against Pakistan to reach that final, plus two wins over Bangladesh through the course of the campaign, as well as a victory over Afghanistan that was partly the result of the opposition's miscalculations. There is enough of a body of work to suggest this is no pushover team, even if they had to qualify for this World Cup via a qualifier in Zimbabwe (in a tournament they went unbeaten in, by the way).

Expectations at home, though, are muted. Dare fans dream of a semi-final spot? Right now, it seems more sensible to find reasons to keep a lid on the excitement.

Chief among these reasons, perhaps, is that captain Dasun Shanaka has been on perhaps the longest stretch of batting misery as can be remembered for a Sri Lanka cricketer (and this is something of a crowded field). We won't run through his recent run of scores here, largely because even stating these facts seems malicious. Suffice to say the guy averages 9.78 and has struck at 76 since March this year and, if anything, the scores are getting leaner.

If he were not captain, he would have been dropped. In fact, despite his having led Sri Lanka to better ODI results than in the years prior to his captaincy, Sri Lanka's selectors still seriously considered letting him go in the days following 50 all out. Part of why they have retained him is because no other player is seriously gunning for the job, of which there may be two interpretations: either no one wants to be saddled with the leadership of this team for a World Cup campaign, or there remains trust in Shanaka within the dressing room.

Still, a non-performing captain is unlikely to venture the kind of risks that might see a side with such limited resources overperform in the tournament, which, let's be honest, is what they would be doing if they were in that final four. He is a diminished force in selection conversations. And if, early in the tournament especially, someone needs to be told they are left out of the XI… how does Shanaka even broach that conversation?

Beyond this big one, several other concerns.

Kusal Perera will likely start the tournament as the opener that partners Pathum Nissanka, but there remain serious doubts as to whether his ailing body can withstand a 50-over tournament that puts teams on a travel-train-play treadmill for almost six weeks. Even when Shanaka contributes, Sri Lanka have been poor at providing the finishing fireworks that good ODI sides frequently produce with the bat. And though several of Sri Lanka's batting performances in the Asia Cup were founded on Kusal Mendis' innings, Mendis has not historically been a sustainer of good form.

Even the bowling attack, which has bowled out 13 of its last 15 oppositions, has hit new snags. Wanindu Hasaranga is not in the squad, after aggravating a hamstring injury. Hasaranga had not completely cracked ODI cricket, so perhaps this is not as substantial a bowling loss as it may appear. But his batting brought crucial balance, particularly in the context of Shanaka's form. Maheesh Theekshana remains under an injury cloud too.

If Sri Lanka go with Matheesha Pathirana in their starting XI, as they are likely to do, they will have to find a second new-ball bowler to partner Dilshan Madushanka. For all the pace and death-overs skill that Pathirana brings, he remains unable to swing the new ball, for now. In the Asia Cup, it came down to Shanaka - whose average speeds are in the mid 120kph range - to bowl in the powerplay.

Pathirana is, to some extent, a fitting mascot for the team. It is youthful (only five of 15 squad members are over 30, and three of those are 32 or younger), and, to some extent, full of promise. But there are also significant gaps in skill and strategy, and no serious body of work to which they can point.

Where once Sri Lanka built conscientiously towards global events, they have tended to lurch scriptlessly towards them in the past seven years. If there is hope, it is hope in youth; that someone will find a new gear. That collectively, there are enough unknowns here, that they will surprise.