Five things to look forward to in the Sri Lanka vs West Indies series

With most of the cricketing world’s focus on the upcoming heavyweight clash between India and South Africa, we seem to have forgotten another engaging series that is right around the corner – the West Indies’ tour of Sri Lanka. Starting October 14, the West Indies play two tests, three ODIs and two T20Is in a 44-day tour to the island nation.After failing to qualify for the Champions Trophy in 2017 – the first time since its inception – West Indies travel to Sri Lanka to set things right. On the other hand, after back-to-back home losses against Pakistan and India, Sri Lanka will want to reassert their home advantage. Statistically one of the most powerful teams at home in the last five years, this year has been a bit of a letdown for Sri Lanka. Facing a lower ranked team such as West Indies, they will back themselves to exceed expectations and come out on top.With several batsman-bowler battles in store, the series promises to be one filled with excitement and power-packed performances. The West Indians will have a point to prove come October, and the Sri Lankans will be waiting. Here, we take a look at 5 things we will look forward to in the series:

#1 Angelo Mathews\' Golden Run

The biggest thorn in West Indies’ side will be the Sri Lankan captain Angelo Mathews

Angelo Mathews was appointed the captain of the Sri Lanka side in 2013, and he has taken to it like a fish to water. Plenty of legends in the game have found the pressure of captaincy too much to bear, and their form has dipped when they have been made captain. But Mathews seem to thrive on captaincy, with his form taking a dramatic upward curve since he was made the skipper of the side. Mathews has a 47-41 win/loss ratio in all international cricket matches since his appointment, the fourth most in Sri Lanka’s history.

As captain, Mathews has scored 2133 runs in 21 tests, with six hundreds and eleven fifties on the way. Apart from New Zealand and Australia, he averages more than 50 runs against all other test playing nations. He has been especially brilliant at home, scoring 1688 runs in 17 tests at an average of 73.39. In He has also averaged more than 50 in seven out of his nine test series as captain, cementing his place as Sri Lanka’s leading scorer in tests in the past two years. He has not stayed quiet in ODIs either, with 2144 runs in 72 matches. In addition to that, he has performed splendidly as an all-rounder, taking 46 wickets at an average of 33.97, at a terrific economy of just 4.61.

In the last series against India, Mathews scored 339 runs in 3 matches, at times looking absolutely unstoppable. He played both spin and seam with equal ease, and was the highest scorer in the series, though Sri Lanka lost it eventually. At one point, Mathews had 10 scores of fifty or more in 20 innings, which substantially increased his reputation as a solid batsman in tests. With the West Indian bowlers going all guns at the Sri Lankan team, it will be interesting to see Mathews’ response, though it is assured that he will dig deep to see his team out of trouble, as he always has.

#2 Jason Holder as Test Captain

Newly appointed Test match captain Holder must learn the tricks of the trade fast

Earlier this month, the West Indies Cricket Board announced that Jason Holder would be replacing Denesh Ramdin for the test series against Sri Lanka. After Ramdin, who managed only 4 wins and 2 draws in 13 tests, Holder was appointed as a means to infuse a new style of captaincy in West Indies’ rapidly descending test form. This tour to Sri Lanka will be especially tough for them, as they play their first match in Galle where Sri Lanka has an excellent track record. Their second test will be at the P Sara Oval where West Indies has never played before. So Holder will have a predicament in his hands in his very first captaincy stint at the highest level.

In the eight tests that Holder has played, he has picked up 16 wickets, and most surprisingly has scored 380 runs with a century and two fifties. The century in question came in a match-saving effort against England at Antigua which was then followed by an unbeaten 82 against Australia. With the head of the selection board, Clive Lloyd personally backing Holder, he has quite the name to live up to. Though the West Indies had a disappointing World Cup, Holder was praised for his captaincy skills, especially taking up the responsibility to bowl at the death.

With Kraigg Braithwaite as his deputy, Holder will look to surpass his counterpart Mathews, who has already proved to be an old hand in captaincy issues. Now playing as an all-rounder more than a bowler, it will be up to him to provide crucial breakthroughs and maybe even come up the order to hit quick runs. He will particularly want to improve West Indies’ ranking in tests, where they are at a disappointing 8th. When Holder takes the field next month, he will be West Indies’ second youngest captain. But he is as quiet-spoken as ever, maintaining that he has learnt a lot of lessons from his predecessor Ramdin on building relationships and moving on. With future tours of Australia and India up ahead, this tour to Sri Lanka will be the benchmark that Holder will want to set for his team.

#3 Spin To Win

Devendra Bishoo or Rangana Herath? Who will be more successful?

West Indies is often called the home of fast bowlers, and for very good reason. They have give cricket a steady stream of tall, vicious fast bowlers who have left their mark in every single decade. From Wes Hall and Andy Roberts to Malcolm Marshall and Curtly Ambrose, West Indies has never been lacking in producing good fast bowlers. But when it comes to spin bowling, West Indies are surprisingly lacklustre. While playing in spin-friendly conditions, they will look to back their bowling department with high-quality spinners.

West Indies have dropped spinner Veerasammy Permaul, opting to put their hopes on uncapped left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican. Warrican has impressed in the domestic circuits, taking 8/72 against Jamaica and 8/88 against the Leeward Islands earlier this year. With Sunil Narine still unavailable for tests, West Indies’ hopes rest on young Devendra Bishoo, who was one of the silver linings in West Indies’ series against Australia. He bowled with great control and variation to the Australian team, effectively shutting them down in the middle overs and sparking a collapse. After some disappointing early matches, Bishoo has finally stepped up to grab his opportunity with both hands, and West Indies would want him to hold on.

On the other hand, the Sri Lankan squad is as always teeming with spinners. Led by the wily Rangana Herath, they routed India in two sessions to win the match at Galle, and later consistently troubled them in the rest of the series. New-comer Tharindu Kaushal has been very impressive as he has repeatedly been unafraid to toss the ball up and tempt the batsman. As backup, Sri Lanka will have veteran Jehan Mubarak, though we must wait and see if they bring on a new face. Sri Lanka will have no problem bowling to West Indies on surfaces which they know like the back of their hands, and it will be up to West Indies to respond in style.

#4 Life After Kumar Sangakkara

Sangakkara’s replacements must fill his shoes at any cost

It would be an understatement to say that Sri Lanka will miss Sangakkara in test matches from now on. From being a quick scorer to slowly becoming the rock of the middle order, Sangakkara’s influence on the team cannot be described in mere words. Sangakkara’s crisp drives, solid defense aside, the thing that will mostly be missed is his very presence. He was a player who made his teammates feel safe and secure when he was out in the middle, someone who could take the entire opposition on and assure everyone that nothing was impossible – something that Angelo Mathews does at present.

Though Sangakkara’s departure has left a void in the team, Sri Lanka has already taken measures to try and fill it. Lahiru Thirimanne has been terrific at times and plain at others, showing excellent determination in his innings in ODIs. But he is yet to consistently show the same in Test matches, and Sri Lanka will want him to come in to form. Another player who has stepped into Sanga’s boots is Dinesh Chandimal, who recently made a terrific 162 not out against India, helping Sri Lanka to a famous win in Galle. Mathews himself has held fort countless times in the last two years, but is yet to find a worthy partner to keep the runs coming.

Kusal Perera is another batsman who deserves a promotion up the order, becoming only the second Sri Lankan wicketkeeper to score two fifties on debut, when he did so in the third test against India. Kusal, who opens the batting in ODIs, showed tremendous maturity and confidence while playing the Indian spinners as he thwarted them for close to two sessions on a wearing pitch. If he continues to put in such contributions, Sri Lanka will seriously think of putting him at No. 4. Whomever Sri Lanka decides to put in Sangakkara’s place, they will know that he will never replace the batting great. But it is all Sri Lanka can do as West Indies arrive to make their claim known.

#5 An elusive win in Sri Lanka

Jason Holder will want to be the first man to lead West Indies to a bilateral series win in Sri Lanka

Of all the quirky statistics that West Indies own, perhaps the one that they never want is the fact that they have never won a bilateral series in Sri Lanka. The only tournament they have won was the ICC World T20 in 2012/13, beating the home team in the process. But in nine previous attempts, West Indies have failed to get the better of their subcontinent opponents. The closest they have ever come was in 2010, when they drew all three tests, but they were mostly helped by the torrential rain.

Of their 33 matches in Sri Lanka – across all three formats – West Indies have only won 8 matches, and only half of those came against Sri Lanka, the rest coming in ICC Championships. Therefore it would not be amiss to say that West Indies have never fared particularly well over there, and they would not like that particular record to grow any further. Their last test series over there in 2010 was marked by Chris Gayle’s spectacular triple century and Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s watchful innings. With both batsmen absent from their current squad, it will take something special for West Indies to break the hoodoo in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka themselves have found that their home fortress was not as impenetrable as they thought it was, with consecutive losses to Pakistan and India. But they have generally been good at home, beating Pakistan and England last year. Though West Indies are ranked lower than them, they will do well not to underestimate them. Going through a period of transition themselves, Sri Lanka must get their act together if they are to convincingly beat the West Indian team.

After the two T20Is in the current series, West Indies do not play another one before the ICC World T20 next year, so this will have to enough practice for them. Sri Lanka on the other hand will play two more against New Zealand later in the year, so they will not be too worried. All in all, the upcoming series promises to be exciting and action-packed as two new-look teams face each other in a battle to reclaim lost honour. Game on.