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***Official*** South Africa in Sri Lanka 2014
- Thread starter Maximas
- Start date
Maximas
Cricketer Of The Year
Calls for Lakmal or Thisara to replace Kula...
guys pls, Lakmal has shown barely any signs of being a decent ODI bowler and Thisara is deadset one of the worst bowlers in international cricket, I don't mind if he gets in on his batting alone but giving him any responsibility with the ball is rarely a good idea.
guys pls, Lakmal has shown barely any signs of being a decent ODI bowler and Thisara is deadset one of the worst bowlers in international cricket, I don't mind if he gets in on his batting alone but giving him any responsibility with the ball is rarely a good idea.
Migara
International Coach
FFS, get a spinner who gives it a good ol rip. Dilshan had Saffers groping, and not known to give it a mighty tweak. Mendis is rolling it out, so is Senanayake. Herath or Randiv in for Kula, preferebly the latter due to his ability with the bat. Add an attacking spinner to the line up and series is their for the taking.
BTW, no on seems to be even mentioning Senanayake. Apparently had got through the testing, and word is that there had been no change since last time. Just want to see "My eye is the best" brigade getting mad.
BTW, no on seems to be even mentioning Senanayake. Apparently had got through the testing, and word is that there had been no change since last time. Just want to see "My eye is the best" brigade getting mad.
Maximas
Cricketer Of The Year
He passed the tests - is that confirmed? tbh I was a little worried about his new variations but not all-together surprising if he did pass.
I also echo the above sentiment regarding drafting in Herath or Randiv to the side, (although not at the expense of a seamer) however your view that we don't already have an attacking spinner in the side is sure to attract some attention from karan316
I also echo the above sentiment regarding drafting in Herath or Randiv to the side, (although not at the expense of a seamer) however your view that we don't already have an attacking spinner in the side is sure to attract some attention from karan316
karan316
State Vice-Captain
Why are people so impatient with Kulasekara, he's a wonderful talent, I didn't like the fact that he was dropped for the second test in England. He should have played instead of Pradeep. I would say give Kula a long first spell(in ODIs), and then make him bowl a couple of overs around 40-45 overs. Mathews and Lasith are good death bowlers. Plus the spinners have also contributed well in the last few overs for SL.So Kula's death over problems won't hurt the team a lot.
jan
State Vice-Captain
I meant he looked he was seriously aiming for test captaincy, especially when Amla had previously denied any interest in it. Then Amla got the job...
Im wondering if ABDV puts everything in doing his job when its a job he didnt want quite a short time ago. And that it may affect the team? Or is SA in slight decline in general now?
Slightly off-topic I guess but couldnt help it .)
Maximas
Cricketer Of The Year
You have this ridiculous notion that whenever a player fails or runs into poor form they are either simply not good enough to get back into form or the opposition are simply too good for them (or that one bad performance means they ought to be dropped), Kula was the no 1 ODI bowler for a time there, and since then he's been a vital cog in our whole ODI machine, let alone just the attack, his ability to exploit early movement is invaluable and his late order hitting doesn't always come off but when it does his impact can be both devastating and very timely for us. Saying "Thisara won't go at worse than 8 an over" is just the stupidest thing, not only is that not necessarily true because of how awful Thisara is but Kula rarely does that badly himself, and at least he brings some good experience and early venom to the attack, the alternatives bring nothing.
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YorksLanka
International Debutant
Yes but even you have to admit that Kula is a passenger in this team at present?yes he is a good player but he is totally out of form with both bat and ball..as for venom mate, only if the ball swings otherwise he is 75mph cannon fodder..
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Maximas
Cricketer Of The Year
No, not at all, he's been poor with the bat of late but you may recall his last good knock wasn't that long ago - it was against Ireland it was one of the main reasons we won the game in the end. You may also recall that during the first game Kula went at under 4.5 an over and in England/Ireland he made some vital early breakthroughs. He's not at his best but 'total passenger' is not an accurate description, that would better describe what Thirimanne was during that England tour.
Also worth noting that quite often the ball does swing for him, and it only has to do a little bit given he is able to get the ball to both move away and straighten, 75mph cannon fodder didn't seem quite so easy for Kohli, Yuvi and Dhoni in the world t20 final either, the margins are small for him at the death but he can pull it off, his last over in the 4th ODI in England when Buttler was going nuts also comes to mind
Also worth noting that quite often the ball does swing for him, and it only has to do a little bit given he is able to get the ball to both move away and straighten, 75mph cannon fodder didn't seem quite so easy for Kohli, Yuvi and Dhoni in the world t20 final either, the margins are small for him at the death but he can pull it off, his last over in the 4th ODI in England when Buttler was going nuts also comes to mind
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viriya
International Captain
I see where you're coming from about giving proven players more leeway and it's true, but if you don't experiment you never find what combinations would work.
Kula has bowled 11 wicketless overs at 6/over while adding 1 whole run in the last 2 matches, while Thisara has batted with an average of 60 and SR of 132 and bowled with a 27 average vs SA (I realize it's only 7 innings).. Thisara's bowling issue is that he can't keep the runs down (5.5 econ vs 4.7 for Kula), but he also strikes every 30 balls which is right up there. In fact, there's not much of a difference between Thisara's and Malinga's records incredibly.. It's deceiving because Malinga always bowls at the death of course but for someone who can give SL a great finish that's something to look at.
It's something worth experimenting with Angelo taking the new ball - especially considering getting our only fast bowling all-rounder an extended go before a WC in Aus/NZ will be crucial..
It's just a theory and it would never happen - mostly because Angelo would never make himself bowl more consistently as captain.
Maximas
Cricketer Of The Year
Matthews opened the bowling a fair bit during the last Australia tour, it worked pretty well in tandem with Kula (who happened to be in insane form and the conditions suited him perfectly for a few of the matches) and freed up Malinga for later. Your idea of using Thisara as a death bowler (is that what you were trying to say?) I find a little frightening, I've not seen much of an indication that he has a go to delivery or a consistent yorker. If Thisara plays (which I think he should) he needs to come in at no 7 at the expense of a batsman, Priyanjan probably being the man to make way.The thing is - why experiment now when we know that Kula is a vital part of our 'combinations' and has played his role well over several years now when a world cup looms?
YorksLanka
International Debutant
You are correct in all you stated mate BUT It's all in the past and we are talking about now. Yes Kula has done really well but he is not scoring runs or taking wickets so I maintain he currently is a passenger- you will recall I also suggested thirri was dropped whilst in a England but you argued against it ..
Also Priyanjan has done far more than kula recently so no way he should make way IMHO..thisara will also feature in our World Cup plans as he is the only "hit the deck" bowler we have - which I think will be essential on hard wickets in OZ
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Maximas
Cricketer Of The Year
Well just on the bolded, you might recall in the fifth ODI he played a matchwinning innings, so I think it was rather well worth keeping him in the side, and now he's starting to find some form (last 3 innings: 60no, 13, 36). I imagine he's probably grown as a player from the experience and he'll have the confidence that he has the backing of the selectors and that he can pull himself out of a slump at international level. (Now watch on as he throws it away in the 3rd ODI now that I've said this).
If you drop someone for going through a form slump every single time you won't get very far, you don't know how close the next good performance is and even when he isn't taking wickets as he showed in the first ODI he can usually keep things tight even when he doesn't take wickets, so I don't see the drastic need to drop him at all.
Given you appear to think Thisara should replace him, think about the team balance issues that creates, we are already playing with 7 batsmen, given that Thisara's stronger suit is his batting that almost means we really would only have 3 genuine bowlers and be relying on all-rounders and part-timers for 20 overs (possibly more) in every ODI we play, really not liking that idea, sounds ok on paper given the options we have but I don't think it would work so well in pressure situations. Given that Priyanjan effectively threw away his chances of batting higher than 7 after that wild slog I think the battle between him and Thisara is over the no 7 spot, generally a spot in the order that a big-hitter is required, on batting alone Thisara probably fits that role better, but than again Priyanjan's versatility is also handy if he lose a lot of wickets and need him to help re-build an innings.
And on the point of needing 'hit the deck' bowlers in Australia - check this out... the stats appear to show that our two seamers that rely mainly on swing and accuracy (and changes of pace in Malinga's case) are the ones who've done well in Ausralia recently. Note Perera's high average and high economy rate, given that Matthews is already in the side and able to hit the deck quite hard I don't see the necessity for another bowler of this kind, and if we really wanted one I suspect someone like Dhammika Prasad could replace one of the spinners we have in the side currently, it's a bit of a long shot but Maharoof could also be an option given he has had some success in Australia on previous tours and is style.
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YorksLanka
International Debutant
Yes I know what you are showing and saying but these stats don't reflect Kulasekara form in he last two series..no one disputes he has been a great servant to his country and I am sure he will come good again however I just feel that he needs a rest and to regain his confidence in domestic cricket and then come back firing. As for Thisara, yes his stats aren't great but neither are Kushals but we both know that on his day, he can change games and that's why we should nurture the guy..eg can only invest in our future by developing him..as for Maharoof, that's a VERY long shot buddy, again, yes good player in the past at the top level but not sure he can still do it at that level...you're right about thirri by the way, glad he read my threats to drop him and pulled his socks up in the last odi 
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karan316
State Vice-Captain
With the current team combination, SL needs to let Thirimanne sit out of the ODI squad, give his middle order slot to Ashan Priyanjan and get Thisara in the lower order. Thiri's role isn't a difficult one, yet his returns have been poor, he doesn't have that impact for the shorter formats and is a bit one dimensional. I know Thirimanne is a long term prospect and will do well with time, but for now, he isn't required in the ODI team.