Having returned to winning ways with a nervy victory over minnows Afghanistan in their World T20 opener, a seemingly rejuvenated Sri Lanka will take on a determined West Indies hoping to maintain their supremacy over the Caribbeans in the game’s shortest format.
Despite the fickle nature of the T20 format that has produced five different winners since the inception of the world championship in 2007, seldom have defending champions arrived for the battle to safeguard their crown completely low on confidence with very few giving them an iota of chance.
Sadly, that has been the plight of Sri Lanka, who generally have always shone on the global stage since winning the 1996 ODI World Cup. Following the retirement of legends Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, the islanders have struggled to cope with transition, the next generation taking more time than expected to find their feet.
They managed to win just one match — against a lowly United Arab Emirates — in the Asia Cup and preceding that they lost a three-match T20I series 1-2 to India although they came with a near second string side following a spate of injuries that had ravaged the main team.
However, Angelo Mathews and his men can look forward to the clash against the perked-up West Indies here at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday with plenty of confidence, thanks to their strong record over their opponents. Of the six times they have played the Caribbeans in World T20, they’ve won five times with the sole loss being that painful one in the 2012 final at the R Premadasa Stadium.
Apart from that, and very importantly, they’ve been able to do what very few teams in international cricket have managed to do consistently — keeping the bludgeoner Chris Gayle silent. Barring the first time when the two sides met where the Jamaican hammered 63, the Lankans have sent him packing for single digit scores — 5, 2, 3, 3.
Nonetheless, West Indies would start the clash against Lankans with their tails up. They kick-started their campaign on a rousing note, scaling down England’s target of 183 with plenty to spare with Gayle igniting the tournament with a sensational 48-ball 100 not out.
Gayle’s hundred was his second T20I international century and 17th in the format where he turns out for various franchises across the world. The 36-year-old also returns to a venue that he so gladly calls his second home, thanks to the immense adulation the Royal Challengers Bangalore fans shower upon him. The Chinnaswamy is a stage where he has sparkled time and again, and he would be looking to light it up one more time.
On paper, the Windies appear favourites to post their second straight win that would help them take a big step towards sealing a semifinal spot. In Gayle, Marlon Samuels, Darren Sammy, Dwayne Bravo and Andre Russell, they have plenty of firepower in the batting department and with the final three doubling up as all-rounders, they have plenty of options to get the balance right. Sri Lanka don’t have similar brutality in the batting and the bowling has been considerably weakened following Lasith Malinga’s injury but if they punch together as a team, they can make a silent statement as well.
(Deccan Herald)
