Sri Lanka are ready to rumble at Lords (14 May 1999)

14 May 1999

Sri Lanka are ready to rumble at Lords

Ivan Corea

Ffiday May 14, 1999 is d Day at Lords. Time will stand still in the paradise isle of Sri Lanka. It will mirror a similar effect within the 100,000 strong Sri Lankan Community in the UK. Arjuna Ranatunga and the entire team are ready to 'rumble' at Lords.

Desperate attempts have been made to reach into the psyche of the Sri Lankan team in an attempt to upset them. 'The worst-team to play against' screamed an article in the Evening Standard. 'Sri Lankans demoralised' yelle a wire services report. Then there was the release of Alec Stewart's autobiography where he attacks the Sri Lankan captain, Arjuna Ranatunga and the team once again. Stewart said the Sri Lankans take the game to the edge of the law. Fine man to speak, the very man who sledges, pushes and bumps into players on the cricket field and insults a captain, Ranatunga has not stooped to such low levels. He has not taken the media bait and attacked Stewart.

The England captain is clearly sweating. He even wants the microphones on the wicket switched off so that any sledging is not picked up and transmitted all over the world which is what happened to him in that dreadful match in Adelaide. Ranatunga says he does not care - in his opinion the microphone should be kept on for the duration of the match. If people aren't doing anything wrong why would it bother them. The ball is firmly in England's court.

Ranatunga and the team have shunned the media hype, given a minimal amount of press interviews and have concentrated on the task at hand. They have been fine tuning their skills under the watchful eye of Duleep Mendis, Roy Dias, D. S. De Silva and Trevor Chappell. This is a team ready for action - not a bunch of 'demoralised' cricketers as portrayed in the British media. Even the BBC website refers to them as 'out of form cricketers.'

All the adverse media has only strengthened the resolve of Arjuna Ranatunga and the team. Forget the hype, they are going to Lords to show the world that they are still cricketers of class - of course there will be moments when Alec Stewart will revert to thuggery and sledging. The team however are truly focused - they want to give their best to Sri Lanka. They have been dismissed by the cricket pundits who see England as the new World Champions. Yet again Arjuna and the team come into the World Cup competition as the 'underdogs." The bookmakers have them at 12-1 to lift the World Cup - South Africa and Australia are the favourite to lift the Cup.

All eyes will be on Arjuna Ranatunga, he is no Hitler. They called him Napoleon when he won the World Cup. But he is displaying the grit, skills and determination of King Dutugemunu, a King of Sri Lanka. He is going into battle full of courage. The team are at one, knowing what they need to do on May 14. The pundits have warned Sri Lanka that the conditions will only favour England's seam attack. Gough and others will pitch that ball right up to the eyes of the batsmen. They will try anything in the book. But Sri Lanka must keep their nerve. Much will depend upon the openers and the middle order. The bowling attack rests with the greatest spinner in the world - Muttiah Muralitharan. The seamers must also bowl to a correct line and length.

Sri Lanka are ready for action. The entire nation will be behind them, people of all creeds. This is the hour. England are clearly nervous, they have relied too much on the hype hoping it would de-stabilise Arjuna Ranatunga and the team, it could backfire spectacularly on the England team on May 14. This is the moment Arjuna Ranatunga and the team have been waiting for. Expect fireworks. Sri Lanka are going all out to win.

Source :: The Daily News (https://www.lanka.net/lakehouse/)