The Indians, after having set high standards for themselves, were found wanting in the shock defeat against the hosts. The Sri Lankans had all the cylinders firing right from winning the toss.
But then, does that mean that India are an overrated side?
It's definitely not. It's true that India's mighty batting line up could not fetch a victory this time. The true strength of the team is evaluated in terms of the resilient nature of the side and how well they stage a come back from the jaws of defeat.
- Images: India vs Sri Lanka
Indians bowlers were guilty of giving away too many no balls and wides. The 16 extra balls didn't do any good to their bowling analysis. We all understand that given the aggression of the batsmen in the one-day matches, even the good balls go for runs.
Sometimes, even a great bowler ends up giving away runs despite bowling well. But bowling wides and no balls is entirely in the hands of the bowlers. Wides and no balls are the only indication of the apparent rustiness of a bowler. That's one area where the team will have to work a lot in the next few training sessions.
Zaheer Khan seems to have not recovered fully from his injuries. He appeared almost short of limping in his last few overs. Ganguly did the right thing by finishing Zaheer's spell at a stretch. I would be surprised if Zaheer plays further in the tournament.
When a bowler suffers an injury during his spell, it's always advisable to continue his bowling at length and ask him to leave the field. Once the body cools down it is almost impossible to do any justice on the field.
The evening conditions helped the Sri Lankan medium pacers. Dambulla is no different from the typical sub-continent wickets, where the evening moisture and breeze aid the bowlers with swing and bounce. Nuwan Zoysa and the evergreen Muttiah Muralitharan turned the heat on the Indians all through the innings. The tall and left-handed Zoysa extracted disconcerting bounce from one end and Murali turned the ball at will from the other.
And please, do not forget about the dark horse of the Sri Lankan bowling attack, Ferveez Maharoof. I was greatly impressed by this new lad who bowled with tremendous control in the death overs. A well-disguised slower delivery, along with yorkers and highly controlled wicket to wicket bowling made him the most effective bowler.
Maharoof excelled under pressure with his variations coupled with accuracy. A cool-headed Kumara Sangakkara, who is supposedly the brain behind the Sri Lankan batting, rallied the innings till the end. The partnership between Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene was structured very well. Their initial approach of running the ones and twos and the calculated aggression in the slog overs appeared to be a well-executed plan.
The surprising change in the Indian batting order will call for some criticism. The decision, perhaps, was taken to make use of the flamboyant batting skills of the diminutive wicketkeeper, Parthiv Patel.
Although not many would understand the rationale behind that decision, the team must have decided to experiment. This was the best chance to see how Parthiv would respond under such circumstances. It's a well known fact that a lot of cricketers blossom under pressure and when burdened with more responsibilities.
Indian team will now go back to the drawing board to iron out their flaws. Frankly, there is not much to panic. We have seen that the pattern of this Indian team is to suffer a jolt before they start settling down. Some may accuse me of sounding too optimistic about this team, but its only fair to say that I can read the pulse better.
Other columns:
India's top four are lazy runners - Dean Jones
Sri Lanka at home will be tough to beat - Bob Woolmer
