***Official*** India in Sri Lanka

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

Laxman seems that he's still awesome against it.

For some reason I read this as "Laxman seems to think that he's still awesome against it.

May be some truth in it though...

 

[Jono]

He struggled against Murali last time around.

Ah okay, I actually haven't looked at the scorecards recently and didn't have the opportunity to watch the series as it wasn't shown in Australia.

Hard to imagine VVS struggling against a spinner, but if he's going to struggle against anyone I imagine it'd be against Murali.

 

[SJS]

Haha, I feel the same way about Murali and India. IIRC SJS had posted something similar by Cardus about Vic Trumper.

I think what is happening is that both Laxman and Sachin are not using their feet as they used to against spinners. Its not just Murali, even Shane Warne improved his performances against India before he retired.

 

[jammay123]

is mendis definitely going to play?

 

[Manee]

It is very likely.

 

[Lostman]

is mendis definitely going to play?

He should but this is SL again. They have a nice history of making some interesting choices. (under Mahela). Dropping Malinga, to get nuwan kulasekera and maharoof into the test side are what comes to mind. If i remember correctly, this happened in 2 tests, one against Australia and one against England.

Didn't even bother watching the first day of these two tests, didn't want to raise my blood pressure.

Also hoping Mubarak gets 2 ducks in the warmup game. Though even this hasn't stopped him from being selected before.

 

[Migara]

He should but this is SL again. They have a nice history of making some interesting choices. (under Mahela). Dropping Malinga, to get nuwan kulasekera and maharoof into the test side are what comes to mind. If i remember correctly, this happened in 2 tests, one against Australia and one against England.

Didn't even bother watching the first day of these two tests, didn't want to raise my blood pressure.

Also hoping Mubarak gets 2 ducks in the warmup game. Though even this hasn't stopped him from being selected before.

Malinga and Maharoof are both recovering from Injury, and will be ready for the champions trophy.

ATM SL fast bowling look thin without Malinga and Maharoof and decline of Fernando. I am hoping that Dhammika Prasad will get through. Only bowler of note in current SL ranks to have genuine pace.

 

[JBH001]

Even though Murali is not presently the bowler he used to be?

Agree with that. A little predictable these days and lacking a little zip.

I dont think he will have a bad series against India, he is after all, still Murali, but I doubt he will have a good one or be all that effective (although this does depend too on the surfaces prepared - repeats of the pitches prepared for the England series will see him defeated and hastened into an earlier retirement).

If, as I suspect, Murali is finally starting to decline (although I have thought this before) he has had one hell of a long run and fantastic peak. Almost unprecendented, afaik, in terms of length and potency. From the beginning of 2000 (when I think he hit his hot streak) and upto the start of the Australian tour of 2007, his record is as follows.

Mat Inns Overs Mdns Runs Wkts BBI BBM Ave Econ SR 5 10  
120 208 6672.3 1699 16137 735 9/51 16/220 21.95 2.41 54.4 63 20  
 65 121 3750.0 994 8791 473 9/51 13/115 18.58 2.34 47.5 43 18

Home and away records are both superlative.

home 40 77 2429.1 696 5355 311 9/51 13/115 17.21 2.20 46.8 31 13  
away 25 44 1320.5 298 3436 162 8/70 11/132 21.20 2.60 48.9 12 5

I agree with Jono. This is his last series vs India, and I think his last series of note for a while. It would be good to see the great spinner match the best batsmen in the world one last time (and saddening to see the converse).

 

[ret]

so who will score the most runs and take the most wkts in the series?

 

[honestbharani]

Now haven't you noticed that Murali had achieved a feat that no other spinner achieved that easily since Lance Gibbs? Running through the Indian side for a spinner is a rare thing. Doing it twice is remarkable. And all those came in recent times. There's every possibility he could do it on the third time as well.

that series in 2001-2002 in Sri Lanka.. India did not have Tendulkar and Laxman...

 

[SJS]

He struggled against Murali last time around.

Just to put this whole discussion about Mutrali versus India in perspective.

Sri Lanka first defeated India in a Test match in September 1985. It was only the 3rd Test between the two neighbours and the first one to end in a result. First strike to Sri Lanka. No Sachin Tendulkar, Muralitharan etc on the horizon at this stage.

For the next 16 years, during which Sachin and Murali rose from debutants to stars to superstars to living legends, India never lost another Test to Sri Lanka, winning seven of them.

Then in September 2001 India toured Sri Lanka and Murali had his famous , and only success of note, against India taking 23 wickets in three Tests at 19.3 each. But what people tend to forget is that India's two best players of spin, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman were both not playing in that series which Sri Lanka won 2-1.

Lets not go overboard with a cursory look at statistics.

The record of this Indian side, in full strength, against Sri Lanka, has been impeccable.

It may change this time but not because of some far fetched notion that Murali has somehow rediscovered himself against India.

This is another series and anything can happen and lets just leave it at that.

 

[SJS]

Having said that, its very interesting to go into the details of how Murali has progressed against India in general and Sachin in particular.

• Sachin and Murali have faced each other in 11 Tests.
• India has won five of them, all other being drawn.
• Sachin has scored 832 runs at 59.4 and
• Murali has taken 42 wickets at 39.7

Does look as if Sachin has been having by far the better of the exchanges. Now look at the pattern.

Here are Sachin's 13 innings with Murali in the attack

04/08/1993	[B]71[/B]
 18/01/1994	[B]142[/B]
 26/01/1994	[B]96[/B]
 08/02/1994	6
 09/08/1997	[B]139[/B]
 09/08/1997	[COLOR="DarkRed"]8[/COLOR]
 19/11/1997	23
 26/11/1997	15
 02/12/2005	[COLOR="DarkRed"]22[/COLOR]
 10/12/2005	[COLOR="DarkRed"][B]109[/B][/COLOR]
 10/12/2005	16
 18/12/2005	[COLOR="DarkRed"]23[/COLOR]
 18/12/2005	19

Very interesting indeed. Here are some very revealing facts.

• In his first five innings against Murali Sachin scored 454 runs with 2 hundreds, a ninety and a seventy !
• Not once in these five innings did he lose his wicket to Murali
• He averaged 90.8 till then against Sri Lanka with Murali.
• Then Murali got him for the first time at the Sinhalese Sports ground for 8 runs in August 1997.
• Since then (and including that innings), Sachin has scored 235 runs in 8 innings at 29.4 !
• There is one hundred and no other score above 25 !
• Half of these innings, he has fallen to Murali !

It is, of course, true that the last 5 of those innings were played in December 2005 when Sachin was undergoing a period of terrible loss of form and self-doubt but still the battle does start anew for sure for both these legends next week !!

What a mouth watering prospect !

 

[Migara]

that series in 2001-2002 in Sri Lanka.. India did not have Tendulkar and Laxman...

Agreed. But Galle test was won with heroics of Fernado. Murali had the say only in SSC. The pitches were far different to normal SL pitches by then. They had ample pace and bounce with lateral movement (which Murali likes). I am not convinced that this time we'll have fast tracks. If Malinga was fit and Fernado in full cry we would have seen very bouncy wickets. But not this time around IMO.

 

[chaminda_00]

Vaas will dominate IMO and Murali and Mendis will just play supporting roles.

 

[Cricket_God]

Vaas will dominate IMO and Murali and Mendis will just play supporting roles.

you mean batsman will dominate vaas,

vaas is nowadays a burden on the team,he has no pace
even though he was never a fast bowler but nowadays he is military medium
and even batsman have time to adjust to swing beacuse of low pace

 

[DaRick]

you mean batsman will dominate vaas,

vaas is nowadays a burden on the team,he has no pace
even though he was never a fast bowler but nowadays he is military medium
and even batsman have time to adjust to swing beacuse of low pace

You mean like the West Indians dominated him?

He's a formidable bowler at home; don't discount him. He's got more tricks up his sleeve than swing, you know (probably part of the reason why he is).

 

[Cricket_God]

You mean like the West Indians dominated him?

He's a formidable bowler at home; don't discount him. He's got more tricks up his sleeve than swing, you know (probably part of the reason why he is).

he will bowl his off cutters i know,but really he is no longer a force he once was

 

[Jono]

Vaas will dominate IMO and Murali and Mendis will just play supporting roles.

Nah sorry man, but Sachin is going to own Vaas this series. Will bring up the test record against Vaas' bowling with a flick through midwicket to the boundary.

 

[aussie]

If Vaas/Malinga/Murali/Mendis do play it potentially could go down as the first great all-round attack on paper at least SRI would have played in the short but successful test history. Good stuff

 

[Cricket_God]

If Vaas/Malinga/Murali/Mendis do play it potentially could go down as the first great all-round attack on paper at least SRI would have played in the short but successful test history. Good stuff

vaas is useless now,mendis just has one good odi match and he is great-no
they have a weak attack and murali has to do the job