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VMMM, how are batsmen going to survive

whitedazzler

School Boy/Girl Captain
Sri Lanka look to be on their way to being a very dominate force in International Cricket more so in test cricket.

Fully fit they have Vaas, Malinga, Mendis and Muralitharan with Maharoof, Fernando and now Prasad there if anyone gets injured. On a turning pitch opposition batsmen will get terribly exposed. Not sure how Mendis will go when conditions aren't in his favour but he seems to be learning quickly.

Thoughts anyone?
 

Uppercut

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Sri Lanka look to be on their way to being a very dominate force in International Cricket more so in test cricket.

Fully fit they have Vaas, Malinga, Mendis and Muralitharan with Maharoof, Fernando and now Prasad there if anyone gets injured. On a turning pitch opposition batsmen will get terribly exposed. Not sure how Mendis will go when conditions aren't in his favour but he seems to be learning quickly.

Thoughts anyone?
Mendis has shown the variation and accuracy to bowl on flat pitches in ODIs. So that's something.

Malinga Vaas Murali Mendis does genuinely look the best attack in the world, if as much due to the weaknesses of other teams. But their batting's too weak, particularly away from home, to dominate. The current ICC rankings have them at 4th and i think that's about right.
 

JBH001

International Regular
The potency of that attack is greatly exaggerated.

Vaas is almost done, and will probably retire at the end of the year. Malinga is over-rated and is too much of a two length bowler. Mendis has shown a lot of promise but it is still early days, and we will know better in his second and third year and especially in his performances overseas. Murali is in decline and has been so for a little while now, although still capable of bowling good and sometimes destructive spells. But he will be less of a threat than he was during his long and magnificent peak, and this will become more and more noticeable this year and the next (after which I think he will retire).
 

Uppercut

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The potency of that attack is greatly exaggerated.

Vaas is almost done, and will probably retire at the end of the year. Malinga is over-rated and is too much of a two length bowler. Mendis has shown a lot of promise but it is still early days, and we will know better in his second and third year and especially in his performances overseas. Murali is in decline and has been so for a little while now, although still capable of bowling good and sometimes destructive spells. But he will be less of a threat than he was during his long and magnificent peak, and this will become more and more noticeable this year and the next (after which I think he will retire).
What attacks are better, though? Murali is still the world's best spinner. I don't think there's many who'd dispute that. Mendis has shown himself to be extremely threatening, against the best players of spin in the world. For the purposes of discussing the world's current best attack, his longevity isn't relevant. Malinga is a strange one, excellent at wrapping up tails, and some batsmen find him impossible to see out of the hand. Others play him with ease. You always know though, that he could come up with an unplayable delivery at any stage in the match and on any pitch. Vaas has been deteriorating and has lost a lot of pace, but he's still a very useful new ball bowler, similar to someone like Sidebottom.

On green seamers, the SA+Aussie attacks are better. But on flat pitches, slow pitches and deteriorating, turning pitches, Sri Lanka have as much as anyone.
 

lionheart

School Boy/Girl Captain
I think your going a little overboard, and that’s coming from a Sri Lankan cricket tragic.

Vaas is as good as done and shouldn't be talked about as someone who'll be part of the Sri Lankan attack for much longer. The only reason he keeps getting picked is because a) no one wants to disturb the status quo, and b) he's the best lower middle order batsmen in Sri Lanka.

But I do think the future is rosy, at least bowing wise. Malinga, Mendis, Murali and Maharoof are going to be a competitive attack anywhere in the world. We've got a ready made replacement for Vaas in left arm swing bowler Welegedara (I can't believe he didn't get a game in this series, he's easily the most promising bowler in Sri Lanka). Along with Prasad, Amerasinghe and Thushara we've got a couple of prospects of whom we can build a decent bowling attack around.

Our Batting is dire and will stop us from becoming a seriously respected team.
 

Migara

Cricketer Of The Year
I think 4M is going to be SL's future attack. Maharoof, Malinga, Mendis and Murali. Maharoof has not proved his worth in test cricket, but he's a very good ODI bowler. If he has a permenant place in test side we might see him blosoming in to a typical work-horse type bowler, who'll keep plugging from one end, much like Vaas. With backup of Prasad and Thushara, it's going to be a very strong bowling attack.

I am hoping that Maharoof picks up is batting to average at least in early 30s. Then five man attack will be possible.
 

lionheart

School Boy/Girl Captain
I am hoping that Maharoof picks up is batting to average at least in early 30s. Then five man attack will be possible.
Indeed. Thats what everyones been hoping for. Hopefully he can sort out all these side and back strains he keeps picking up.
 

JBH001

International Regular
All this talk of a strong SL attack is premature. Fair enough in their own home conditions they are formidable - though even then, as in the recent series with India, it was M and M who bowled the vast majority of overs. As for overseas, that remains to be seen. Vaas is in terminal decline and has never been all that successful overseas anyway. Mendis is untried, Maharoof lacks penetration, Malinga is never going to consistently succeed against good quality batsmen, and the crop of young quicks although showing promise are also untried and moreover seem prone to falling down with injury, which leaves us with only Murali as the only tried, tested, and proven performer (and he too, as I said, is in decline as age, injury, and wear and tear catches up with him).
 

archie mac

International Coach
Sri Lanka look to be on their way to being a very dominate force in International Cricket more so in test cricket.

Fully fit they have Vaas, Malinga, Mendis and Muralitharan with Maharoof, Fernando and now Prasad there if anyone gets injured. On a turning pitch opposition batsmen will get terribly exposed. Not sure how Mendis will go when conditions aren't in his favour but he seems to be learning quickly.

Thoughts anyone?
They always look good, until they play in OZ:sleep:
 

Days of Grace

International Captain
Ironically, the emergence of Mendis might hasten the retirement of Muralitharen.

Murali no longer has to carry the attack by himself. They have found him a successor, and he may be thinking that he can hang up his boots now with the team's spinning department in good hands.
 

Precambrian

Banned
Mendis has shown the variation and accuracy to bowl on flat pitches in ODIs. So that's something.

Malinga Vaas Murali Mendis does genuinely look the best attack in the world, if as much due to the weaknesses of other teams. But their batting's too weak, particularly away from home, to dominate. The current ICC rankings have them at 4th and i think that's about right.
World = Sri Lanka?

They'd be a joke anywhere outside the subcontinent unless they come across really helpful pitches in England or NZ.
 

Goughy

Hall of Fame Member
Its an attack Id like to see.

Far too early to predict that they will dominate the World, but if I was Sri Lankan I would be quite excited.
 

fredfertang

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
What are Sri Lanka up to in the 2009 English season? - would be good to see Mendis play some county cricket - preferably for Lancashire :laugh:
 

Mahindinho

State Vice-Captain
Steady on, chaps. Good, yes...but world's best?

As others have said, Vaas is very much on the decline -- no matter how controlled and swingy he is, I think there's a speed threshold that he's now dropping below.

Malinga has been found out by batsmen at Test level. Maybe not "found out", but at least "gotten used to". He's still a good impact bowler, but you wouldn't want him to bowl hundreds of overs. I'm hoping he improves as he gets older and more experienced.

Murali and Mendis, perhaps. Still too early to judge Mendis, but he's coped admirably so far.
 

Manee

Cricketer Of The Year
I truly believe that Chaminda Vaas is living off bowling at around 72mph which is accepted as the optimum pace for swing. Slightly above that or a non swing bowler dropping that low would not be acceptable but Vaas is sitting in a very helpful threshold, atm.
 

Perm

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
The potency of that attack is greatly exaggerated.
I don't think anybody is trying to say that Sri Lanka's current bowling attack is anything better than quite good, but I think it is fair to say that currently, one can assume it to be the best in the world. While there are obviously weak links, such as the ineffective Vaas and erratic Malinga, it is still a strong unit, especially if the two seamers bowl well. Most other countries are fielding bowling attacks with doubt over the quality of one or more of the bowlers, but with Sri Lanka I don't think this is much of an issue. Muralitharan is arguably the best spinner ever, while Vaas has served Sri Lanka well over his career and Malinga has shown us what he is capable of before. Mendis is obviously the least experienced, but is also exceptionally talented with a very fine start to his Test career, and as a unit they are stronger than any other attack at the moment. That's before you consider Maharoof and Fernando, who have done well in the past (albeit not consistently) and Prasad, who had good success on debut.
 

Perm

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Our Batting is dire and will stop us from becoming a seriously respected team.
I wouldn't say that. Kumar Sangakarra is in the top echelon of batsmen in the world today, while Mahela Jayawardene is a notch below that, and still a very fine player. At home Thilan Samaraweera is very effective, while Tillekeratne Dilshan is definitely a handy player to have in the middle order. Vandort and Warnapura look a little fresh, but both have had some success in the initial stages of their Test career, and both look promising.
 

Perm

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
I truly believe that Chaminda Vaas is living off bowling at around 72mph which is accepted as the optimum pace for swing. Slightly above that or a non swing bowler dropping that low would not be acceptable but Vaas is sitting in a very helpful threshold, atm.
He might be swinging the ball plenty, but that is very little use if it's too slow to be effective against good batsmen.
 

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