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From an outsider’s point of view, the recently concluded Test contest between Sri Lanka and Pakistan was a spectacular one, considering the excellent battle between bat and ball throughout all the three matches. The spirit of game between the two outfits was admirable and the pitches prepared in the series were of good quality and were result-oriented. 

Though the Lankan tigers emerged victorious 2-0 and created history on their home soil, it was more of Pakistan losing the series than Sri Lanka winning it. I am not taking any credit away from Kumar Sangakkara and his boys for the fantastic victory, but the visitors more than often failed to capitalize on big moments in the Tests, which cost them dearly. 

In fact, Pakistan won more sessions than their opponents in the three Test matches but they let their feet off the accelerator when they could have choked Lanka out of the competition. It wasn’t that the Pakistanis displayed lackluster performance, but some indefinite shot selections at crucial junctures is what brought about their downfall. A major reason for the tourist’s poor batting display may be too much of T20 cricket and lack of Test cricket in past couple of years.

At Galle, Pakistan were cruising at the start of day 4 in their pursuit of the target of 168, but a miserable slump witnessed them losing eight wickets for 46 runs in the morning session and they were rattled out for 117. Top-order batsmen like Butt, Misbah, Malik and Akmal couldn’t resist the temptation and played reckless shots to snatch a defeat from the jaws of a win.

Similarly, in the second Test at the P Sara, after being bowled out for a humiliating 90 runs in the fist innings, Pakistan made amends with skipper Younus Khan and debutant Fawad Alam leading the fightback by adding grievous 200 runs between them. But in a pathetic attempt to play the reverse-sweep shot off part-timer Paranavitana, Younus threw his wicket away which opened the flood gates.  Pakistan was subsequently bowled out for 320 after being in a strong position at 285-1.

Even Sri Lanka had their batting woes, with them losing 5 wickets for 79 in Galle, lost 7 for 63 in their first innings at the P Sara Oval and 6 for 80 while batting second at the SSC. But, Pakistan’s batting slide was much costlier and it’s very apparent from the series result. 

Primarily, it was a bowler dominated Test series, with both spin and pace getting a fairly-equal share of wickets. What impressed me the most was the Sri Lankan bowling combination of Kulasekara, Thushara and Herath. The trio were chief contributors to their team’s victory as they shared 44 wickets between them. Never at any point in the series was Murali missed by the home side as the void was filled exceptionally by Herath. Such was the dominance of the left-arm spinner that the mysterious Ajantha Mendis was made to sit out in the final Test. 

The pitches were extremely sporting in the series with the 22-yard track at Galle being the best. In the first Test, one witnessed something which isn’t seen very often in the Subcontinent. The Galle pitch provided plenty of assistance to the seamers as fast bowlers from both the sides exploited the moisture in the Galle pitch meticulously and accounted for 25 out of 40 victims to fall in that match. Several batsmen (who generally make merry on Subcontinent tracks) found it difficult to survive in the opening Test, except for Mohammad Yousuf, who made a stunning comeback to the international arena by compiling a fabulous 24th century of his career. The tracks for the second and third Test were good batting pitches but the batsmen from both the teams didn’t do justice at all except for the final two innings at SSC in Colombo. 

Sangakkara’s captaincy was admirable as he led his side acutely, making some bold decisions in critical situations and more importantly motivating his side to be alert and seize the momentum each time Pakistan slipped up. His faith in Herath was justified; also he rotated the bowling attack around Kulasekara and Thushara smartly. The left-hander’s Herculean unbeaten knock of 130 runs was commendable as he gave his side an outside chance of chasing a world record target of 492.

Only blow of the series for the Lankans was the injury of Tillakaratne Dilshan who broke his finger while doing his duty behind the wickets. But the gamble worked well for Sri Lanka as Dilshan did a fine glove-work throughout the series in absence of injured wicket-keeper Prasanna Jayawardene. 

The only positive for Pakistan from the series was the performance of players like youngster Mohammed Aamer and Saaed Ajmal. The latter was so adept in the series that he made front-line spinner like Kaneria sit out for the first two games. Pakistan also found a new opener in Fawad Alam whose fighting spirit in second Test awed everyone.

In all, it was an entertaining series that kept on changing the course each session. As a spectator, I enjoyed the three weeks of some hard-fought Test matches.

MY STARS AND DISAPPOINTEMENTS OF THE SERIES:

Stars:

1) Kulasekara-Thushara: The pace bowling duo are the new striking force of the Sri Lankan team. Kulasekara (Man of the Series for 17 wickets) and Thushara (12 wickets) were the pick of the bowlers with 29 victims between them. Kulasekara led from the front with the in-swinger delivery being a devastating weapon in his armory, while Thushara’s spells at Galle and P Sara were magnificent as he nagged the Pakistan batsmen with his consistency.

2) Rangana Herath: After being rushed from England into the side to replace Murali, Herath grabbed the opportunity by both the hands as he triggered a Pakistani collapse twice to guide his team to victory with a series haul of 15 wickets.

3) Saaed Ajmal: The off-spinner continued his good form from the T20 version, as he always kept the Lankan batters in check with immaculate bowling length and his variations in flight. Fourteen wickets proved why he was picked ahead of Kaneria at the start of the series.

4) Kumar Sangakkara: With a series average of 66.20, the Lankan skipper was best among the rest. His ton in the final Test displayed that he is the one of the best contemporary batsmen but it’s his captaincy skills that has gained more accolades.

Disappointments:

1) Umar Gul: He was the biggest struggler in the series as he never found consistency. Except for his 4-43 in the second Test, the pacer had nothing much to show. Even Younus Khan showed little faith in Gul in the series by bowling him less spells, which is justifiable as the pacer bowled 24 no-balls in three matches.

2) Misbah-Malik-Akmal: Though the trio played well in the final Test, they never seemed to click at the big moments and let their team down in the first two matches.

3) Ajantha Mendis: The mystery spinner didn’t at all bowl to his potential and was wayward on most of the occasions. His five wickets in the series were mostly of the tailenders.

4) Younus Khan: Though he led his side inspirationally, his knock of 82 runs in the second Test is the only innings to show as a batsman in the series.