Sri Lankan selectors look at life without Muralitharan
The national selectors named three spinners in the Board President's team as cover for Muralitharan for the four-day match against England starting at Matara on Thursday
Sa,adi Thawfeeq
11-Feb-2001
The national selectors named three spinners in the Board President's team
as cover for Muralitharan for the four-day match against England starting
at Matara on Thursday.
With the First Test against England looming in ten days, the injury to
Muralitharan, who is expected to play a key role in the series, is a main
worry for the national selectors.
Left-arm spinner Niroshan Bandaratilake, leg-spinner Malinga Bandara and
schoolboy off-spinner Muthumudalige Pushpakumara were named in the 14 for
the four-day game starting at Matara's Uyanwatte Stadium on Thursday.
Bandaratilake, who bowls in tandem with Muralitharan for Tamil Union in the
Premier trophy league tournament, needs a good performance at Matara to give
an indication to the selectors that he is ready for a recall to either
play alongside Muralitharan, or as the key spinner if Muralitharan is ruled
out of the Test.
He played the last of his four Tests in March 1999 against Pakistan at Lahore in the Asian Test championships. Bandara has made only one Test appearance against New Zealand in 1997-98. Both have been tried out as support bowlers to Muralitharan, but none has succeeded in holding his place despite being consistent wicket-takers in domestic cricket. Matara offers them another opportunity.
Pushpakumara is the most inexperienced of the trio and, in the limited
appearances he has had for Colts XI and Sri Lanka Under-19 and A sides, he
projected himself more as a late order batsman than a frontline
off-spinner.
Tillekeratne Dilshan, who scored a century against England in the
four-day game at the Sara Stadium, has been named captain of the side. He will
also take over wicket-keeping duties.
The Board President's team: Tillekeratne Dilshan (captain), Ruwin Peiris,
Avishka Gunawardana, Hashan Tillakaratne, Sunendra Kumar, Jeevantha
Kulatunga, Muthumudalige Pushpakumara, Niroshan Bandaratilake, Malinga
Bandara, Dinusha Fernando, Ruchira Perera, Kaushalya Lokuarachchi, Chamara
Silva, Nisal Randika.