Craig Ervine, the brave left-handed batsmen was not afraid by the aura of Ranaga Herath. He came at the crease when the score was 38 for 2 and witnessed two more wickets to fall, but he did not lose his composure. He got off the mark after facing thirteen deliveries and remained silent for a brief period until and unless he got accustomed to the spitting wicket and sticky heat of Colombo. Gradually the offside strokes started to unleash and his confidence was so high, he had the self-belief to marshall tail-ender Donald Tiripano and add 62 runs for the ninth wicket.
Zimbabwe took a lead of ten valuable runs courtesy of a valiant 160 from Ervine and gutsy 27 from Tiripano
On day 3, Rangana Herath was in a killer mood. He was introduced into the attack immediately to set jitters in the Zimbabwean batting lineup. He did not dissatisfy the newly appointed captain Dinesh Chandimal as, in the twinkle of an eye, the tourists were found reeling at 59 for 5. But throughout this tour, Zimbabwe always found a way to frustrate the hosts and even stunned them and their supporters by scripting astonishing victories. On a sultry day afternoon at Khettarama Stadium, the tourists, yet again, found their way out of the dark caves through Sikandar Raza and Malcolm Waller.
Raza was the symbol of courage on that hot afternoon. Like Ervine, he spent time at the crease and when got habituated with the spin of Herath, he relied on playing shots which were defensive at the start but never transformed into reckless ones, while he dispatched the ball for boundaries. At the other end, Waller was a bit fluent. He played his shot as he received assurance from the composed Raza who provided the perfect foil to Waller’s controlled aggression.
Raza and Waller stitched a courageous partnership against the dangerous Herath and stamped Zimbabwe's authority over the Test match and when Graeme Cremer essayed a stubborn 48 by batting at number nine on day 4, Sri Lanka’s chances in the only-Test series looked bleak and yet another humiliation was waiting to be digested.
Zimbabwe failed to create history but they should not lose heart
The cricket followers around the world were already amazed and delighted by the fighting spirit of Zimbabwe and majority backed them to create history by winning the Test. But, in the end, lack of experience became a very important factor on the final day of this scintillating Test match.
Cremer, the spirited captain of Zimbabwe, failed to realise the value of close in fielders when he and Sean Williams operated for a prolonged period. He kept fielders in the deep and waited for the Lankans to go for the hit, which Niroshan Dickwella and Asela Gunaratne did not do as they built their match-winning partnership by relying fully on singles and twos.
Cremer and Williams targeted the middle and leg stump line so that the Lankan batters go for the rash shot, but sadly, Cremer forgot, he was not playing a 50-over match. In Test cricket, the tactics of 50-over matches don’t count. It cost Zimbabwe dearly.
Then, Zimbabwe lacked the option of a genuine wicket-taker who could come in for a short burst and fetch quick wickets and above all, Zimbabwe’s fielding was sloppy. During the crucial passage of play they dropped two catches and then, there were the little opportunities of run outs which went begging. Of course, Dickwella’s tricky stumping decision by the television umpire also dented their chances.
Gunaratne steered Sri Lanka home safely and Chandimal escaped a Test defeat in his first stint as the captain of Sri Lanka’s Test team. Zimbabwe were left bemused thinking what could have been the scenario had those catches were not dropped and had the decision of third umpire went in favour of them.
But in my opinion, Zimbabwe should not be upset. Throughout the tour, they played their cricket like a street fighter and the never say die attitude has earned them plenty of accolades all around the cricketing globe. The mistakes which they made were due to the lack of playing enough Test matches. We don’t see Zimbabwe play enough Tests and most of the top teams are not interested in playing against them. Neither do they have a professional Cricket Board and political system nor do they have the adequate financial support to provide them with the facilities to promote cricket in the country. The duty was on the players to utilise the little opportunities they get and prove their worth so that the top teams notice and lend a helping hand to bring Zimbabwe’s cricket back to life.
The boys from Africa exhibited enough character and they should maintain it for a better future.
Thank You
Faisal Caesar
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