Dilshan dazzles on second coming

For the last 18 months Sri Lanka's major concern has been the sturdiness of their middle order. At last they seemed to have unearthed an answer: Tillakaratne Dilshan.

Dilshan's arrival in Test cricket was as dramatic as his second coming, which started in the second test against England after 2 ½ years in the wilderness, as he compiled a magnificent 163 not out in his second match back in 1999/2000 against Zimbabwe.

The opposition may have been weak, and the pitch might have been placid, but Dilshan so impressed the pundits that he was lauded, prematurely as it turned out, as a world-class talent.

A wristy player blessed with Fred Astaire footwork, Dilshan looked the business. He waltzed down the wicket to spinners and was comfortable against the quick bowlers too.

But Dilshan was not the business and he failed to nail down a permanent spot. During his next eight tests he failed to pass fifty once. No one doubted his talent; it was his temperament that was being called into question.

England's 2001 tour of Sri Lanka showed the best and worst of Dilshan. In England's two practice games, at P. Sara and Matara, he producing two dazzling centuries. The English media were in awe. But come the Tests he flopped.

England sensed a character flaw and piled on the mental pressure. Dilshan looked tentative and nervous, one tenth of the free-flowing player that had hammered England's bowlers in the warm up matches.

After the series, the selectors made their judgement and Dilshan went out to pasture. The road back was long and hard - 33 months to be exact. Eventually though, after performing well under pressure during a couple of ODIs, he was handed another chance.

We expected him to be nervous but he showed no butterflies. In both innings, with Sri Lanka in trouble, seized back the initiative with a glorious counterattack. He scored 63 and 100, top scoring in both innings, but it was the verve he displayed scoring the runs rather than the quantity that impressed.

"I was told to be positive," revealed Dilshan. "I was told not to worry about the loss of early wickets and urged to play my natural game. That helped me and benefited the team."

To be given free licence was a blessing for a man that was desperate to grab his chance: "After being dropped I could not get into the side because of Sri Lanka's nine-match run of Test wins. I had to seize my opportunity in this game. I wanted to prove that I could play Test cricket. I was under some pressure to score runs in this test and I hope that I have proved myself now. I hope to continue."

Dilshan was particularly impressive against the spinners. Dancing down the pitch he disrupted their length and nullified their threat: "The ball that they tossed up was the one that turned so I used my feet and it started to become very difficult for them."

He looked less comfortable against the pace and extra bounce of Andrew Flintoff though, who targeted his chest area after dismissing Dilshan off glove in the first innings. Other fast bowlers will have taken note and he will still need to prove himself against hostile quick bowling.

But the time being, after such a long wait for a second chance, he should lap up the praise. It looks as if Dilshan as come back stronger with a now-or-never attitude - that's fantastic news for Sri Lanka.