***Official*** VB Series 2006

[Lostman]

Aus to win all matches.

RSA to win all matches against Sri Lanka.


Sorry, Jason. But I expect a good series for Tharanga and Murali.

nah i think SL can win 2 against SA. Vaas and murali will win SL 1 and in the other 1 we will get a miralce that Jason has been waiting for

 

[James]

I agree , he scores an occasional 50 that sort of secures his position for the next 5 ODIs then just as the selectors finally are about to pull the pin on him he scores another 40 or a 50 to secure himself another extension !!

Not talking about Craig McMillan are we Jason In the end, the selectors pulled the plug but that was the story with him too.

In Sri Lanka's case, is there anyone around that could replace him? Does his experience and knowledge within the squad count?

 

[lionheart]

Not talking about Craig McMillan are we Jason In the end, the selectors pulled the plug but that was the story with him too.

In Sri Lanka's case, is there anyone around that could replace him? Does his experience and knowledge within the squad count?

He has experience and he has talent (knowledge, not so much) but he rarely puts these things into use. Ever since his brother died, he has been a shadow of his initial promise. If you drop him you could bring Vandort in, but I'd rather drop Mubarak. Mubarak is non-factor for any opposition, he can occupy the crease but he doesn't have the shots to score runs. Mehala on the other hand will most likely get out cheaply or score 30-40 runs in decent fashion.

 

[Lostman]

ooo just looked at the scedule SL play only 1 game at SCG and 2 at perth.

 

[JASON]

The conditions were helping the seamers a bit, but Sri Lanka threw it away. On the plus side, there was a big crowd...almost 5000 and mostly Sri Lankan supporters.
The way the Sri Lankans played today, they'll struggle to even compete let alone win a match in the VB Series.

You are absolutely right, their batting hardly shows itself to be of a side which has played a Test series very recently in India and an ODI series in NZ .

 

[JASON]

Aus to win all matches.

RSA to win all matches against Sri Lanka.


Sorry, Jason. But I expect a good series for Tharanga and Murali.

I expect SA to win most of the matches against SL and SL if lucky can pull one and have to be very lucky pull another one against SA on current form.

I am banking on SL to win a couple against the Aussies and some how creep into the final on points or run rate or God's will !!

 

[JASON]

Poor form by Sri Lanka. No need to turn the lights on this Friday night, against Australia. The game will be over before sunset.

That is a definite possibility.

But having said that, I am still hoping that SL win the toss and bat first, knowing how difficult and more one sided it will be if they were to bat under lights and chase a target that is already beyond them .

 

[JASON]

Not talking about Craig McMillan are we Jason In the end, the selectors pulled the plug but that was the story with him too.

In Sri Lanka's case, is there anyone around that could replace him? Does his experience and knowledge within the squad count?

He has long been groomed as SL's next Captain, purely because of his making into the SL Team at a very young age (relative to others in the Team at the Time) .

He is also one of those guys who maintains his averages by thrashing the hell out of minnows (ie Bangla/Zim /WI) and also capitalising at home .
So his averages at home and away when compared will show a massive difference . And lately he has struggled to make many runs in NZ and there is some suggestion that after the Vice Captaincy was taken away from him as punishment for his inconsistency he quickly got some of the senior players to rally behind him in a minor revolt as it were against Vaas (who took the Vice Captaincy from him).

This has been suggested as a reason for his failing to score runs in NZ or giving up his wicket after looking set for a decent score and having made a start .

 

[JASON]

He has experience and he has talent (knowledge, not so much) but he rarely puts these things into use. Ever since his brother died, he has been a shadow of his initial promise. If you drop him you could bring Vandort in, but I'd rather drop Mubarak. Mubarak is non-factor for any opposition, he can occupy the crease but he doesn't have the shots to score runs. Mehala on the other hand will most likely get out cheaply or score 30-40 runs in decent fashion.

IMO Mahela's poor run of scores in NZ means its going to come down to a selection between him and Mubarak .

 

[James]

It seems to me that Sri Lanka need to change their game and try and return to the sort of cricket they played between 1993-1997 with a young Jayasuriya, Rantunga, de-Silva, etc having a firm attacking attitude and the series of spin bowlers they had.

They certainly don't have that sort of quality now obviously but they need to be looking at doing something different IMO if they're going to compete with the likes of South Africa and Australia.

Perhaps Murali could open the bowling with Vass to try and get Australia on the back foot early?

What really struck me in New Zealand was the poor leadership from Atapattu, everything is done in slow motion, and he doesn't seem to know what he's doing half the time. Does he actually have the respect of the players?

 

[Dasa]

That is a definite possibility.

But having said that, I am still hoping that SL win the toss and bat first, knowing how difficult and more one sided it will be if they were to bat under lights and chase a target that is already beyond them .

The match is under the roof at the Telstra Dome, so lights are always on.

 

[dinu23]

pathetic display by our batsmen. why the hell did they SS tharanga for Vandort?
anyway, there's no way SL going to win a match in this series.

 

[Josh]

The match is under the roof at the Telstra Dome, so lights are always on.

Hahahahaha

 

[howardj]

The match is under the roof at the Telstra Dome, so lights are always on.

No. The lights will only be on at night time, because the roof is open for this match.

 

[andyc]

The match is under the roof at the Telstra Dome, so lights are always on.

The roof will be open for this one, I read.

Edit: Beaten to it...

 

[JASON]

Perhaps Murali could open the bowling with Vass to try and get Australia on the back foot early?

That would mean Sri Lanka's 2 strike weapons would have been fired very early and the Sri Lankans will be on a hiding to nothing after the first 20 overs when the others come on to bowl after these 2 have bowled their initial overs.

And if they fail to get wickets then it becomes even worse !

What really struck me in New Zealand was the poor leadership from Atapattu, everything is done in slow motion, and he doesn't seem to know what he's doing half the time. Does he actually have the respect of the players?

You are not wrong about Atapattu , he certainly wouldn't rank as the brightest guy to lead Sri Lanka. Everything takes a little longer for Atapattu to grasp and then his reaction to changes in the game take even longer !!

 

[Dasa]

No. The lights will only be on at night time, because the roof is open for this match.

Any idea why they're leaving the roof open for this match?

 

[howardj]

Not sure, but I think the players - where possible - prefer to play under natural conditions.

 

[Josh]

Any idea why they're leaving the roof open for this match?

Because the weather is good

 

[James]

That would mean Sri Lanka's 2 strike weapons would have been fired very early and the Sri Lankans will be on a hiding to nothing after the first 20 overs when the others come on to bowl after these 2 have bowled their initial overs.

And if they fail to get wickets then it becomes even worse !

I wouldn't bowl them out but maybe Murali could bowl 4 overs up front to try and get a couple of early wickets with Vass.

Or even, open the bowling with another spinner? You guys copied Greatbatch & Latham's approach from the 1992 WC so you could copy our tactic of opening with Dipak Patel too