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| Ajantha Mendis with the Man of the Series trophy in Colombo on Monday. (AP) |
Colombo: What a contrast!
The day began with Chandigarh da munda Abhinav Bindra’s golden shot in Beijing and, thousands of miles away, ended with a big defeat for Team India at the P. Sara Stadium here.
It turned out to be a series of misfires, really.
While the unassuming Bindra soared to become a national icon, captain Anil Kumble seemed to have aged 10 years on Monday. Eight days ago, though, he’d been grinning from ear-to-ear in Galle.
Kumble, indeed, was ashen-faced when he met the media after the 1-2 loss in the Idea Cup, offering no excuses and taking “full responsibility” for his own below-par performance in the Tests.
For the record, Kumble finished with eight wickets. Man of the Series Ajantha Mendis ended with 26, that too on debut, a record for a three-Test affair.
Kumble, however, isn’t much of a Mendis fan. “Don’t think there’s any mystery about him,” he said, adding: “Overall, we didn’t play quality cricket to win the series... We need to improve in all departments...”
A strong indictment that. In fact, the Indians’ body language had also been awful for much of the series and the josh was just not there.
The Indians won the second Test, in Galle, by 170 runs, but were trampled in the remaining ones. In what’s unusual, all three finished with more than a day to spare.
At the Sinhalese Sports Club, the Indians conceded too many in the first innings (600 for six declared) and, then, scored too few to be thrashed by an innings.
In the decider, on a benign surface, they scored too few (249) and conceded a sizeable first innings lead 147. In the end, Sri Lanka chased 122 (actually, getting one more) for the loss of two wickets, a result which gave them their fourth consecutive series win at home.
In their backyard, they’re roaring lions.
That a heavy defeat awaited the Indians was evident on Sunday itself and though top-scorer Rahul Dravid (68) and the courageous V.V.S. Laxman (61 not out) added 85 for the sixth-wicket, that was never going to be enough.
Moreover, with Ishant Sharma unfit, Kumble was one key bowler short.
“I didn’t expect the Indian middle-order to contribute so little... Earlier this year, they’d been quite good in Australia... Mendis did make a difference, but with India’s experience, he shouldn’t have been that big a factor,” former England captain Tony Greig told The Telegraph.
In town on a TV assignment, he added: “Perhaps, it’s time to look at youngsters for the middle-order berths... It’s a thought which definitely comes to mind after this defeat...”
That thought has begun to do the rounds and while one doesn’t know what would be the way forward for the new selection committee, the next Board president (lawyer Shashank Manohar) is no fan of the seniors.
The next Test series, at home, is against Australia. The first of four matches will begin in under two months.
Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly failed to get into three-figures, while Dravid and Laxman finished with 148 and 215, respectively.
To his credit, Kumble didn’t blame one or two batsmen. Also, he praised his bowlers, particularly Harbhajan Singh (16 wickets) and Ishant for bowling their “hearts out.”
In the captain’s words, it’s now time to reflect. On a disastrous campaign, that is.
Opposite number Mahela Jayawardene, who keeps growing in stature, lauded his men for an excellent team effort. “The series drained us... The good thing is that we had contributions from different players at different times...”
What the captain didn’t say is that he himself led pretty much from the front, a performance which included an unbeaten 50 on Monday.
Vice-captain Kumar Sangakkara took the MoM award in the decider, the reward for a character-coated 144 in the first innings.
Significantly, in the ICC standings, the Sri Lankans have narrowed the difference with India to just one. At the start of the series, it had been 10.
They deserve congratulations.
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