The Sunday Mail
The stage is set for the tri-series final, where today Sri Lanka, brimming with promise but light on experience, will meet a Zimbabwe side who have managed to rise to their feet after a rickety start to the series.
Zimbabwe are still the underdogs, but the gulf is not so big that they cannot leap across it if they play to potential. They have the advantage in international experience, and this is their home turf.
Sri Lanka crumbled against West Indies’ pace and bounce in Harare, but they will remember their domination of the hosts in the series opener.
Their batting clicked in dramatic fashion against West Indies, last Wednesday, before their bowlers weathered Evin Lewis’ bold 148 to secure a one-run win.
Despite their relative lack of experience, Sri Lanka appear to have depth in all areas, and they will be very difficult to beat. Six years ago, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe met in a tri-series final at the Harare Sports Club.
A handful of veterans from that series are part of Zimbabwe’s current squads namely Hamilton Masakadza, Elton Chigumbura and Graeme Cremer. Upul Tharanga and Nuwan Kulasekara are the only two survivors for Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka had entered that tournament without four of their senior-most players (and titans all of them: Kumar Sangakkara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Mahela Jayawardene, Sanath Jayasuriya) but that didn’t stop them from lifting the title with a nine-wicket win over Zimbabwe in the final back in 2010.
As he leads a side similarly shorn of its seniors, Upul Tharanga will be hoping that history repeats itself. Zimbabwe have seen almost all possible results in this tri-series – losing their first match, fighting to a tie in their second, having their third rained off and then securing a narrow five-run Duckworth-Lewis win.
An outright win in the final would complete the flush, and give all of Zimbabwe something to smile about. Zimbabwe captain Graeme Cremer has not had the best series, with either bat or ball.
The 30-year-old has only taken one wicket, and scored 40 runs from three innings. Tactically, Cremer has excelled. He marshalled Zimbabwe’s last-gasp tie against West Indies, and then deciding, along with his coach, to open the bowling with Tendai Chisoro and Sikandar Raza on Friday.
That move paid off, and with Cremer then bringing himself and Sean Williams on, Zimbabwe were able to tie West Indies down and sprint through their overs, ultimately helping secure their win.
The final provides another opportunity to expand his experience and aptitude as a captain. We are very confident, the guys are up for it, and we want to take the momentum from the West Indies game into the final.” Cremer said on the eve of the match.
Upul Tharanga, Sri Lanka’s captain, is facing different sorts of pressures to his opposite number. For starters, his job is only temporary and he is only keeping the seat warm until Angelo Mathews returns.
With one of Sri Lanka’s matches rained off, and another won by eight wickets, he has only batted twice. With a big tour to South Africa coming up, he will want to leave Zimbabwe with more than just one pretty cameo to show for his time here.
“The last few weeks have been really good for us, and if we can continue that form, we can win the final. But, still, it is not going to be easy. We will have to do all the basic things quite correctly,” said Tharanga.
Squads.
Zimbabwe (possible): 1 Chamu Chibhabha, 2 Brian Chari, 3 Hamilton Masakadza, 4 Craig Ervine, 5 Sikandar Raza, 6 Sean Williams, 7 PJ Moor (wk), 8 Graeme Cremer (c), 9 Donald Tiripano, 10 Tendai Chisoro, 11 Chris Mpofu.
Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Dhanjaya de Silva, 2 Kusal Perera, 3 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 4 Kusal Mendis, 5 Upul Tharanga (c), 6 Asela Gunaratne, 7 Shehan Jayasuriya, 8 Sachith Pathirana, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Jeffrey Vandersay/Nuwan Pradeep, 11 Suranga Lakmal. — cricinfo
