Kumar Sangakkara is human after all as he rides into the sunset with his partner, Mahela Jayawardene
With four consecutive hundreds that made him a demi-god among Sri Lankans, Sangakkara saw his team painfully exit the World Cup leaving behind a host of cricket fans disappointed. Along with his partner of so many years, Jayawardene, the two will be remembered as one of the greatest pair to have not only played the game but also provide the leadership and the quality of cricket to Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan cricket has a lot of work to do and I feel sorry for Angelo Mathews who will have a very tough time for the next several months as Sri Lanka goes into a re-building mode.
South Africa break the jinx
Perhaps, South Africa’s two losses in the group stage was the tonic it required to give this team the jolt to galvanise its players’ individual strengths into one effective force. The “knockout phase” jinx has finally been broken and in the most emphatic manner. A statement has been made in the strongest of terms. This could be one of the most lop-sided results in a World Cup quarter final and that too between two teams that have evenly matched each other since they started playing in 1992.
Sri Lanka pay the price for experimenting
Instead of sticking to a plan that has been working for them, Sri Lanka chose to re-invent the wheel. Its decision to open the innings with the inexperienced Kusal Perera and that too against one of the best pace attacks in the world was the mistake of the match. Between Lahiru Thirimanne and Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sri Lanka had the ideal combination of an aggressor (Dilshan) and a cautious compiler (Thirimanne) so I am puzzled with the change.
The faith in Quinton de Kock pays off
Many, including Ian Chappell, thought South African selectors could have done better for this quarter final by playing someone else in place of De Kock who had failed in the six matches that he appeared in. It’s either their faith in his ability or the unwillingness of AB de Villiers to keep wickets that kept De Kock in the side. Whatever the reason may be, he shed the shackles of uncertainty and delivered at the right time for his country.
Spinning is an art which Imran Tahir displays with great skill and entertainment
The South Africans have had more faith in Imran Tahir than the Pakistanis. This Pakistani born leg spinner represented his mother country in a World Cup Under-19 championship in 1998 only to be subsequently ignored by Pakistan. Circumstances and his desire to play the game at the highest level gave him the opportunity to play for South Africa.
He has been the center of attack for them, particularly in the ODI format. A crucial part of South Africa’s bowling unit, Tahir came up good in the match. His match winning figures of 4 for 26 destroyed the Sri Lankan middle over leaving no chance of a late order batting surge.