News in Cricket

Solution sought on Lankan players' IPL participation Former captain Duleep Mendis has been asked to explore a solution on the vexed issue of Sri Lanka national cricketers committing to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) despite the cash-awash Twenty20 tournament clashing dates with the Lankan team's England tour next year.  "I have been asked to see how the matter could be sorted out. I will be having a chat with the players," Mendis said on Saturday.  Asked if a middle path could be explored to deal with the issue, Mendis said, "One of the options is whether the Lankan players could in between the IPL tournament join the national team for the England tour and then return back to the Indian tournament."  Mendis, the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Chief Executive Officer, refused to elaborate on the possible outcome of his meeting with the players and merely said he was hopeful of an amicable solution.  SLC Chairman Arjuna Ranatunga has asked the players to be available for national duty during the England tour though the IPL-bound players reportedly expressed their reservations.  Ranatunga said SLC stance could be altered only by the Sports and Recreation Minister Gamini Lokuge's intervention, who last evening appointed Mendis to resolve the crisis between the Interim Committee and the players who have signed contracts with IPL franchises   Playing more against Mendis helped team: Rohit Sharma Young middle-order batsman Rohit Sharmareckons Indian players had become more adept in reading the guiles of mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis in the one-day series after getting the chance to play frequently against him on the recent tour of Sri Lanka. He also did not foresee the Indian batsmen experiencing any difficulties against the Lankan bowling sensation in the future.  "You might have seen what happened in the one-day series (in Sri Lanka). He did not get as many wickets (as in the Tests). That was because our players had played him more often by then. I don't see any difficulty (in playing Mendis) in the future," Sharma said before leaving for Chennai to represent Mumbai in the Buchi Babu tournament. Mendis mesmerised the strong Indian batting line-up in the Test series, in which the 21-year-old Sharma could not get a look-in though he was part of the squad, by grabbing 26 wickets with his bewitching mixture that included what's known as the "carrom ball", the one flicked with his middle finger. Mendis, who formed a deadly combination with the world's highest Test wicket-taker, off spin ace Muttiah Muralitharan, in the three-Test rubber that his team won 2-1, was slightly less successful in the five-match one-day series that followed and which was won by India. The 23-year-old Lankan, India's bugbear from the Asia Cup final in Pakistan, still managed to take 13 wickets in the ODI series at just under 12 per victim, but could not prevent the Indian team under Mahendra Singh Dhoni from clinching the ODI series for the first time in Lanka Sharma, who played for Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League, was candid in saying he was not very successful with the bat in the ODI series in Lanka, without assigning any reason for his poor display that fetched him just 72 runs in five innings.  His scores were 19 and 0 in Dambulla followed by 32, 18 and 3 in the last three day/night ODIs held at Colombo. "I did not perform well, but am very happy with the way the (ODI) team performed. It was more a team effort than an individual one," said the Nagpur-born player who is seen as the next big hope from Mumbai which has produced an array of fine batsmen. Asked how soon he expected to force his way into the Test squad after being at its doorstep for some time now, the youngster said he did not worry about such things and wanted to concentrate on scoring runs whenever given a chance. "It's not up to me. My aim will be to go and perform, do my job well by scoring runs whenever I get a chance," said the batsman who has four half centuries to his credit from 28 ODIs. Sharma said he looked forward to staying in the middle and scoring a lot of runs in the Buchi Babu tournament ahead of the forthcoming lengthy international season, which commences with the four-Test rubber for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.

Lanka ready to tour Pak, if India doesn't:

We can tour Pakistan if India don't - Ranatunga

December 16, 2008

	Arjuna Rantunga is confident of the security arrangements in Pakistan as well © Getty Images

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) chairman Arjuna Ranatunga has said Sri Lanka are ready to play Pakistan if India's visit next month is called off, the current probable scenario. "We will not hesitate sending our team to Pakistan if we are invited," Ranatunga told PTI.

Security concerns in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks put India's tour in doubt and the current political and diplomatic tensions make it highly unlikely that India's tour - for three Tests, five ODIs and a Twenty20 international from January 6-February 19 - will go ahead. The Indian board says it is willing to tour Pakistan but only if it gets a clearance from the government. A decision is still pending.

Ranatunga, however, was confident Pakistan would provide enough security to the Sri Lankan players. "Pakistan has proved it can provide adequate security, as it did during the Asia Cup Cricket tournament," he said.

Officials from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) have said that they would look at alternate options only after they get a final word from the BCCI on India's tour.

The rescheduled itinerary would perhaps benefit both teams. Sri Lanka will be facing a drought in terms of cricket, following the tour of Bangladesh in December-January. After the two Tests and a tri-series, involving Zimbabwe as the third team, their next assignment will only be in June when they take part in the World Twenty20 in England.

Similarly, Pakistan have not played any Tests in 2008 and their last one-day series was against West Indies in Abu Dhabi in November. Even the ICC Champions Trophy, which was scheduled to be held at Lahore and Karachi in September, was postponed to next year, pending a security review that is to be conducted during the India visit.