If there was a beauty contest for idyllic settings between Sri Lanka and New Zealand, as the two teams were set to face off in the ODI in Pallekele, it was a close call. Pallekele is nestled in the bosom of the lush green Kandyan Hills. New Zealand has spectacular rolling hillsides and well groomed playing fields. Both locations feast the eyes and are the envy of any cricket fan. Torrential rains are an act of God and that should not get in the way of us admiring nature’s gifts.
It is fair to say that there is a very friendly bond that ties the two countries together and cricket enhances this. Not long ago on a visit to Auckland we stopped by a hotel where the receptionist warmly welcomed us saying “Oh! We love your cricketers and your country’s Dilmah Tea. Let’s have Ceylon Tea!” Dilmah Tea is the front runner of Ceylon Teas in New Zealand.
These bonds apart, whether the forthcoming cricket encounters will be as close and as pleasurable a contest, given the looming threat of rain, is a matter still up in the air. The hosts are a more fancied lot—on form and results, but with the glorious uncertainties of cricket there is an unpredictability that the Kiwis offer because of their relentless spirit and their penchant to turn tables when least expected. They are an irrepressible lot.
We have seen what Brendon McCullum was able to do in his 123 off 58 in the T20 against Bangladesh; and the 3 for 16 by Tim Southee and 3 for 33 by KD Mills. And in the T20 against Sri Lanka, there was McCullum again, and Ross Taylor, Nicol and Guptil to contend with.
Vettori will be missed
Then of course we still recall Daniel Vettori when the New Zealand Test team last toured Sri Lanka in 2009. Unfortunately he is not with us on this tour. Although the Kiwis lost both Tests, the 33-year-old Vettori as captain showed his leadership, topping both the batting and bowling averages for his team. He scored 272 runs (avg. 68.00) with one century and one fifty and captured 10 wickets (avg. 32.50) with his left-arm spin.
When Vettori was first selected to play for New Zealand, one headline screamed “But He’s Only 18!”
On that occasion as Daniel modestly put it: “I suppose it was a little bit of luck with the selectors at that time. At 38, [oof-spinner] Dipak Patel was close to his career. They were looking for someone new and I had done well in the Under–19 tournaments…they gave me a chance and it was pretty nerve-wracking, but pretty exciting as well to play for your country at eighteen”.
When we caught up with Dipak Patel in Auckland last week he was engaged in running an intensive coaching camp at the Cricket Academy which he has been devoted to over the past 15 years. Dipak, a stylish middle order right hand batsman and a crafty off spinner, made his Test debut against the West Indies in 1987 and his last Test match was ten years later when Sri Lanka toured New Zealand. He is best remembered for his 99 against England in 1992 when he was run out. As a bowler he was the spinner who was called upon, surprisingly, to open bowling against Australia in the limited over game, and he pulled it off. “They talk more about my ’99 than the hundred I did not make!”
Alluding to the strategic aspects of coaching he says that, taking skill as a given, it all comes down to psychology. Mind over matter. It takes mental and physical strength to establish oneself in the long form. Unfortunately, he says, the present nature and pressures of international cricket does not give much time to establish oneself.
Kiwis in re-building process
New Zealand, he says, is going through a re-building phase with squads of young players being conditioned to the art and science of all forms of the game. The induction of young players and their conditioning to the challenges of international cricket is a sine qua non—a prerequisite. This takes time. It’s an investment.
Sri Lanka, he believes, has a good strategy to encourage young players. The talent pool is impressive and the up and coming have the advantage to be mentored by, and be able to look up to, such stars as Aravinda de Silva, Muttiah Muralitharan, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene – even when they retire, they avail their wisdom and services to the furtherance of cricket in the far flung areas of the country. “So, make sure that the young have access to the crack players, an abundance of whom Sri Lanka is blessed with”.
As Sri Lanka take on New Zealand, the resilience and spirit of the New Zealanders can aptly be captured by the following inspirational story — a sensational drama in a match between South Africa and New Zealand in 1953 at Ellis Park in South Africa.
Christmas Eve disaster
There had been a Christmas Eve train disaster in New Zealand. Flags were flying at half mast, and the match in South Africa began on a somber note.
The South African fast—bodyline bowler Neil Adcock, 6 ft 3, was bowling to the diminutive New Zealand century maker Sutcliffe. Adcock’s quick flying high-pitch bowling would bruise several batsmen and as Ray Robinson the writer described it—it even resulted in one player going to hospital as he was coughing up blood after a blow to the chest.
When Adcock bowled to Sutcliffe, he tried to flick it away but the ball struck the side of his ducking head, and a crack, like a gunshot, was heard all around Ellis Park! Sutcliffe sinks to the turf as his left ear is struck, is taken to hospital, stitched up with a huge band-aid strapped to his ear, and returns looking like a warrior in a battle field.
New Zealand nine down
New Zealand are now nine down and as they do not have a tenth batsman as R.W. Blair had received the tragic news that his fiancée was killed in the train disaster the night before and decided to stay back in the hotel.
As the ninth wicket fell Sutcliffe is about to walk back to the pavilion. Surprise…Blair, padded up and all, unexpectedly appears on the field to help if he can. Sutcliffe puts his arm around the batsman as he walks in to comfort him. The 22,000 strong crowds go into a prolonged applause.
And then the fireworks began. Sutcliffe hits 3 sixes and Blair hits one before getting out. Standing ovation follows.
Take note: Such is the culture and spirit of the New Zealand cricketers.
