Systematically scouting the unorthodox

Jerome [Jayaratne] is the current head of the system that has produced unconventional cricketers such as Muttiah Muralitharan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Lasith Malinga and now Ajantha Mendis. And, as one takes a look at the display window of the academy, one finds that the supply-line isn’t going to stop any time soon. A Malinga lookalike, a leggie who delivers the ball from an awkward angle, and a pacer who till yesterday was a star on the tennis-ball circuit, are a few of the ‘works in progress’.

The Sri Lankan board has about 700 active coaches spread across the country, who are all linked to the national academy. The complex network explains how tough it would be for a talented cricketer to go unnoticed. Head coach Jayaratne has national coach Trevor Bayliss and the Lanka A coach under him, along with the national pace and spin coaches and their assistants.

There is a Coaching Education Department with three members, looking after batsmen, pacers and spinners, who are under-studies of the national pace and spin coaches. The coaches from the ‘education department’ travel to provinces — comprising of three to four districts — on regular scouting trips. Helping them are coaches with provinces, districts and schools who have a ready data of players from their region. With such a labyrinth spread over the small island, where virtually all districts or villages are wired, the red lights frequently flicker at the academy in Colombo when an unusual talent is spotted. With the coaches having a common agenda, uniformity in the system is maintained.

Indeed, while people talk of his variations, his mystery deliveries, his amazingly complicated method of delivery, when I keep to him I see only simplicity. I see a someone adhering to the age-old basics of bowling. Up until the point of delivery, when his fingers rub their magic, his action is perfectly orthodox. This gives him a strong foundation.