Last Saturday at the Singhalese Sports Club (SSC) grounds what an exciting One-Day International (ODI) contest it turned out to be with Sri Lanka sneaking through to win by one wicket with five balls to spare against the West Indies who were made to pay dearly for bowling 14 wides which meant they gave the home team the luxury of extra runs and extra deliveries in chasing down the target of 290, which was the highest at this venue.
Seldom does the SSC hold an ODI because of its low capacity (around 10,000) and this is shown by the stats that in the last 14 years only five ODIs have been played there. SSC which houses the headquarters of Sri Lanka Cricket is renowned for holding Test Matches. But on this occasion they were given an opportunity to host an ODI because the R Premadasa Stadium which can hold 35,000 spectators and holds the majority of ODIs played in Colombo is under renovation.
Thus with the limited space available at the SSC one expected a full house bursting at the seams to watch the first ODI between Sri Lanka and West Indies. But to everyone’s disappointment the ground was never full and there was plenty of empty seats going abegging. To see so many empty spaces at the start of a new international cricket season at home was a big disappointment. The question that begs to be asked is: Is cricket losing its popularity in the country with the national team not performing so well on the international stage?
The present side does not carry any iconic players or any big names and the team’s performance in all three formats has also been rather inconsistent for a long period of time that people have lost or are losing interest in the once loved sport. Even the television companies are not showing much interest to sponsor home international matches played by Sri Lanka. With a new television rights coming up soon (by the end of March) it was reported that one of Sri Lanka Cricket’s long standing media rights holder Sony Pictures Network (formerly Ten Sports) has pulled out from the bid to earn the rights for the next three-year cycle.
Sri Lanka Cricket has been on a downward trend since 2016 and it is shown by their poor rankings in one-day cricket which they were one-time masters and world champs. Sri Lanka are ranked eighth in ODIs and T20Is and they have not shown any improvement towards rising higher from that position which reflects the team’s inconsistency so much so that the one-time world T20 champs and two-time world T20 finalists has to go through a qualifying round to make it to the Super 12 of the upcoming World T20 tournament in Australia in October. It is to that level the country’s international cricket standards have fallen.
To bring back the crowds and attract spectators and television rights holders the national team must once again show consistency and start winning on the international stage and have another successful World Cup. There’s nothing like winning a World Cup to spur the entire nation. We all know what happened when Arjuna Ranatunga’s side lifted the World Cup in 1996 and how the win transformed cricket in the country. Eight years later Sri Lanka laid their hands on the T20 World Cup under Lasith Malinga. Malinga today in the twilight of his brilliant international career is the only draw card in the Sri Lankan cricket line-up and that too only in the shortest format T20, having retired from Tests and ODIs.
Today Sri Lanka does not have players worthy enough for spectators to pay money and watch. There is plenty of talent but none has converted it into dazzling proportions that make them superstars. To do so, one has to perform consistently and if that is done the team will also benefit and start to win regularly.
With a new coaching staff in place, the players are beginning to believe in themselves and their ability.
Sri Lanka’s match-winner in Saturday’s first ODI against West Indies Wanindu Hasaranga said, “All the coaches that have come in are great. They have really motivated the team. They tell us about what there is to gain from changing things and where we can go, as well as how to get there. They talk to players individually. In the last few months we are developing and coming up as a team.”
If Hasaranga’s words are to be taken in the true sense, then Sri Lanka are on the right path to lift themselves from the depths their cricket has fallen into and once again start raising their head and become a force to be reckoned with. Time will tell.
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