da bet sport： The triangular series against India and New Zealand, who were able to selectDaniel Vettori and Dion Nash for the tour after the pair passed fitnesstests last week, is drawing ever closer and the excitement is starting tobuild
Dav Whatmore18-Jun-2001Dav Whatmore
National CoachThe triangular series against India and New Zealand, who were able to selectDaniel Vettori and Dion Nash for the tour after the pair passed fitnesstests last week, is drawing ever closer and the excitement is starting tobuild. It is not just the senior squad, however, that are preparing for thefuture: the youth squads are busy practicing and the A team is taking onPakistan in an unofficial three-match Test series.With the first-class season in Sri Lanka now finished, this is a goldenperiod for training and there are few better ways to prepare for the rigoursof international cricket than playing an A series against a competitive teamlike Pakistan.I am a great fan of A team cricket. It provides the selectors with a clearerindication of which new players have what it takes to succeed at the seniorlevel and gives those younger players valuable experience at a higherstandard of cricket to which they are normally accustomed, reducing the gapbetween first class and full international cricket.Indeed, in recent times it has been a useful feeder system. The likes ofRussel Arnold, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara, Kaushalya Weereratne,Dilhara Fernando, Indika de Saram, and Avishka Gunawardene were all selectedafter impressive performances during A tours. This time the likes of SajeewaWeerakoon, Ishara Amarasinghe, Michael Vandort, Chamara Silva and AkalankaGanegama all have an opportunity to stake their claim.Some players have fallen by the wayside; that is unfortunate, but completelynatural. The cream, however, should rise to the top. The fact that so manyhave migrated up into the national team should leave the youngsters in nodoubt: A team selection represents a golden opportunity to further theircareers.An A tour also provide an ideal opportunity for national team players tohave a decent knock or bowl. If they are slightly out of touch or lacking inmatch practice then it can become an ideal vehicle for recapturing theirform. Thus, for example, Kumar Sangakkara, made good use of his chance inDambulla last week by scoring a half-century in the second innings. Ofcourse, you have to make sure that you don’t crowd out the young talent.Players are not the only ones to benefit. First class umpires too canbenefit immensely from the experience of officiating in unofficial TestMatches and One-Day Internationals. They are exposed to greater pressurethan they are in the Premier League and that helps them prepare better fortheir first ODI.The senior teams preparations are starting to gather pace. Training has,however, been hampered slightly by the Mercantile tournament. With most ofthe guys playing at the weekend we have had to be sensitive to the needs ofindividuals. Thus, for example, we have probably not quite done as muchrunning as we would have liked.That tournament is now drawing to a close and that will allow us to raisethe tempo of out training. Next week we will increase the number of netsessions and we hope to have a three-day training camp soon, preferably inGalle where we are playing a Test Match and may now play two ODI’s too.Injuries have also hampered preparations slightly, though fortunately therehas been nothing serious to date. The long-term injuries have nearly healedand Kontouri has been attending to the various niggles. Fingers crossed wewill all be fighting fit in four-weeks time.