Ajantha Mendis Blog

Challenging new role for Mendis | Sri Lanka vs Pak 1st Test 2009

2009-07-03T10:44:00.000-07:00

Two teams best suited to make a mockery out of structures and 'processes' promise an unpredictable Test, which no longer favours Sri Lanka because of Muttiah Muralitharan's absence. Anyone out of a 17-year-old prodigy, a former pariah refusing to fade away, a 31-year-old left-arm spinner, a six-Test old mystery spinner, a 30-year-old fast bowler waiting for his Test debut, an uncapped 22-year-old who took three wickets in the first over of the World Twenty20 semi-final but is known for his prolific run-scoring in domestic cricket, and an offspinner who has bowled big legbreaks only in limited-overs internationals could decide this match.

The most important strand of this story, though, is Ajantha Mendis. Like it should be with any self-respecting mystery spinner, Mendis' last year was eventful. This time last year, he was embarrassing the Indian Fab Four in Tests, only to suggest his mystery was wearing off in the subsequent ODIs against India and Pakistan and the IPL, before coming back to mesmerise the world again in the World Twenty20.
Now there is no Murali, at least for the next five days, to build pressure from the other end, or to do the damage when Mendis is struggling. How will he react to having to lead Sri Lanka's most inexperienced Test attack in a long time? If his captain is to be believed, expect a new facet of Mendis to surface. "He is going to enjoy it," said Kumar Sangakkara. "He is a very, very tough character, he has got a good head on his shoulders, he is going to enjoy going out there, being the No. 1 bowler, and taking the pressure on."

What about Pakistan being reputed to playing him well? Like Younis Khan said it is not about doing anything differently, but just being able to read him well. "Mendis has changed from his last Pakistan tour," said Sangakkara. "Sides will have different ways of playing him, some will be more successful than others. Pakistan of course have been playing him quite well, but that doesn't mean Mendis is not going to be effective against them. We just need to fine-tune our thinking and field settings, and let him be as creative as he wants to be."

Not all of the other characters might get to play but have a look at the number of debutants regardless. For Sri Lanka, one out of Angelo Mathews and Kaushal Silva will surely debut. Suraj Kaluhalamulla, who announced today that he had changed his name from Suraj Mohamed, is more likely to replace Murali because Rangana Herath, the other candidate, was flown in today from England, where he was playing minor counties.

Pakistan's Mohammad Aamer and Abdur Rauf are almost certainties unless Younis changes his mind and doesn't play three fast bowlers, which he said was an aggressive move. If Saeed Ajmal is preferred to Danish Kaneria, even he will be getting his first cap. It will be a debut of sorts for Mohammad Yousuf as well with international cricket having changed drastically since he last played.

The pitch and conditions only add to the unknown. The rains made sure the whole ground had to be covered for two days before it could be unveiled it today. Then the grass was cut to make it look like a cricket field. At 10am today, after the Sri Lankan team had arrived for practice, a sea of humanity got to work to get the ground ready. It's a minor miracle in the Land of Small Miracles that the Galle International Stadium is ready to host a Test despite the rains.

While the captains sounded not dissatisfied with the outfield, the pitch remains a big unknown. It has rough patches already, and no live grass. While it all points to a big turner, there is a possibility that too much moisture might have seeped underneath, which could result in a slow turner. Both the captains refused to predict how the surface would behave. Any result from a three-day finish to a high-scoring draw is possible.

Then again this could turn out to be a regular Galle pitch, on which the old hands like Mahela Jayawardene, Younis, Umar Gul, Sangakkara could prove to be the most crucial players. And wouldn't it be fulfilling to watch some old-world cricketers outshine such exciting new talent?

My carrom ball is productive - Ajantha Mendis | interview

2009-06-19T12:40:00.000-07:00

Sri Lankan mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis in an exclusive interview , reveals his secret weapons.

Q: How do you enjoy the tag of a mystery bowler?

AM: Let it remain like that. I really do enjoy that.

Q: What is your experience bowling in English conditions?

AM: So far so good. I am happy that the team is doing well and I have a small role behind the team's success in this tournament.

Q: How is your carrom ball?

AM: It's productive and this kind of delivery has won many a wicket even in this tournament.

Q: Would you accept that the Nottingham wicket has helped you to become a successful bowler?

AM: I cannot deny that the wicket in Trent Bridge has really helped me. But one has to bowl in the right area to purchase wickets. In my book that is very, very essential.

Q: You have been brought on to bowl in this tournament during pressure situations. How did you manage that?

AM: The style of the T20 game is such that every cricketer will have to be ready to do anything so that I always back myself to accept the challenges. I always keep one thing in mind that if anyone can follow his basics, he will definitely reach somewhere. In order to bowl in the early part of the innings, I have practiced with the new ball that has really helped me.

Q: Which is your most memorable bowling spell in the international cricket?

AM: I got six wickets against India at Karachi in the STAR Cricket Asia Cup and that was really a very satisfying moment. People know that the Indians can play spin bowling the best. Even then I got six wickets against them and paved the way for my Sri Lankan team to win the trophy.

Q: Lot of people are of the opinion that batsmen all over the world will get accustomed with your bowling and you might not get the same amount of success.

AM: That is also a kind of a challenge. I am ready to face it. I have some more tricks under my sleeves. I will face the challenge when it comes in front of me.

Source : ESPNStar

Challenge to take on Murali, Mendis in Lanka: Yousuf

2009-06-19T12:35:00.000-07:00

KARACHI: Former ICL player and senior Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf on Friday said tackling the spin duo of Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha
Mendis during the tour of Sri Lanka would be the toughest challenge for him and his batting colleagues.

Yousuf, who returned to official fold after scrapping ties with the rebel Indian Cricket
League, is certain to be named in Pakistan squad for the Sri Lanka tour starting June 27.

The senior batsman, who has played 79 Tests and 269 ODIs, is relishing the prospect of facing mystery spinner Mendis, whom he had encountered once.

"I have played him (Mendis) just once but I have watched his videos as a preparation for the coming tour," Yousuf said.

"But it is the ideal series for me to make a comeback because I relish challenges. And I would love to do well against the duo (of Murali and Mendis), especially since I have not played much against Mendis," he said.

Mendis has been a big success for Sri Lanka in the ongoing Twenty20 World Cup in England with batsmen failing to read him properly.

Yousuf said although ICL was a good experience, he was eager to don the national colours yet again.

Source : TOI

Mendis mystery continues to haunt batsmen

2009-06-17T19:29:00.000-07:00

It's been almost a year since the July 6, 2008 Asia Cup final between India and Sri Lanka in Karachi. A certain Ajantha Mendis spun
his way 'mysteriously' into our collective consciousness with a spell of 6 for 13 in 8 overs to bowl Sri Lanka to a 100-run victory. He also had 17 wickets in the tournament from five games, winning him the Man of the Series award.

A couple of weeks later, he terrorised India's batsmen, including the fabled 'Fab Four', to grab 26 wickets in a three-match Test series in Lanka. He won the Man of the Series award again. The word 'mystery spinner' and 'carrom ball' became as much a part of cricket vocabulary as 'mid-on' and 'mid-off'. Batsmen were wary of facing him, at least in Sri Lanka or the subcontinent.

While conditions in England have been different from Sri Lanka, Mendis, a gunman in the Sri Lankan army, has managed to have the same effect on rival teams, shooting down batsmen in the World T20. His Man-of-the-Match winning effort of 3/9 in three overs against New Zealand at Trent Bridge enabled Sri Lanka to enter the semifinals as Group F toppers.

Mendis now has 10 wickets from five games and is fourth on the wicket-takers' list behind Umar Gul (12 wkts), Saeed Ajmal (11 wkts) and teammate Lasith Malinga (11). And he has done it by bowling straight and getting his victims either bowled or leg-before.

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori conceded after the game that getting after him was difficult. "Ross Taylor tried to get after him and target the short boundaries, but couldn't. You just have to admire the quality of bowling that was on view. Mendis bowled exceptionally well today," he said.

Normally, rival spin bowlers find it hard to find praiseworthy words for other spinners. Not Vettori, though. "It's no use blaming the batsmen for not doing the job. A lot of our batsmen picked Mendis today, but we found it very difficult to score off him. We all saw the turn that he got and that made it even harder for us to score off him."

The left-arm-spinner also refused to tag him as a mystery spinner. "He is not a mystery bowler. He is just a very good bowler with exceptional skill."

Before the start of the tournament, Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara had mentioned how it was important for Mendis to keep evolving and increasing his variations, as batsmen would soon figure him out. One year into the job as a mystery bowler, does Mendis feel that batsmen are figuring him out?

Mahela Jayawardene, who acted as interpreter for Mendis, said, "Even if the batsmen pick him, they find it difficult to score off him as he bowls very straight. (That's partly why he gets so many leg-before and bowled dismissals)."

What about the rest of the batsmen in the Sri Lankan batting line-up? "We do pick up, but he has got a lot of tricks in his trade. He does so many things with his fingers that it's difficult to keep track of things," Mahela, an expert in playing spin bowling, admitted. He also praised the role of Muralitharan in Mendis' rise.

Mendis is one of the many freakish talents that Sri Lankan cricket has produced. Be it Muttiah Muralitharan, Lasith Malinga, Sanath Jayasuriya and Ajantha Mendis, all of them are exceptionally successful playing cricket in an unorthodox manner. Mahela credits that to the amount of craze there is for cricket in Sri Lanka.

"Everyone wants to pick up a bat or a ball and imitate a Jayasuriya or a Murali. They are such good role models," Jayawardene said. With so much video analysis and team meetings, one is amazed that Mendis' enigma has still not been unravelled. Surely, the man himself enjoys the tag of being a 'mystery' bowler.

Source : TOI

Sangakkara hails Mendis after victory against New Zealand

2009-06-16T09:58:00.000-07:00

Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara saluted beguiling spinner Ajantha Mendis on Tuesday after his side reached the World Twenty20 semi-finals with a 48-run win over New Zealand.

Sri Lanka join fellow unbeaten side South Africa as well as Pakistan and West Indies in the last four.

Mendis took 3-9 at a crucial time when the Kiwis were well-placed at 64-2, chasing 159 to win.

"Ajantha was brilliant. He is very difficult to read and he has an attacking mindset. It's a great ability to have," said Sangakkara.

"He has a great leg break, but he varies his deliveries depending on whether or not he is bowling to a left- or right-hander."

Sri Lanka will play the second semi-final at the Oval on Friday against either South Africa or, more probably, the West Indies.

Despite their perfect record in the competition, Sangakkara believes there is still room for improvement.

"It was a great batting performance from Tillekaratne Dilshan (48). He was brilliant," added the skipper, who insisted he always believed his side could win despite the Black Caps' storming start to their reply.

"We knew that after the first six overs, and the fielding restrictions were lifted, we could pull them back. Now we can build on all of this and see where it takes us."

New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori, whose team would have made the semi-finals had they won as their run-rate was better then the Sri Lankans', admitted batting had let them down.

"It was a gettable total today but in three major matches our highest score was 120," he said.

"We got off to a decent start, then capitulated in the middle. But thay have a wonderful attack and deserved to win.

"We had a very comfortable draw. We played a couple of minnows and were then in a position to reach the semi-finals. But we didn't take our opportunities."

Source : AFP

The baffling, mesmerising spin of Mendis

2009-06-13T20:59:00.000-07:00

The spin bowler of the tournament to date has been Sri Lanka's Ajantha Mendis, and especially so against Australia.

Against the West Indies, who were chasing 193 for victory and who were going great guns at 70 for one in the seventh over, Mendis changed the game when, after Muralitheran had removed Lendl Simmons, he left them tottering at 73 for four in the eighth over after taking care of Xavier Marshall and Shivnarine Chanderpaul - one looping a catch into the outfield, one beaten and bowled.

brilliant and deadly

Against Australia, however, Mendis, the mystery man, was brilliant and deadly.

The spin bowler - who spins the ball both ways and sometimes not at all, who disguises the direction of the spin and the amount of spin so well, and who varies his pace so skilfully - confused and bemused the batsmen so much that one could see the embarrassment on their faces, and none more so than on those of his victims - Ricky Ponting, Watson, and Mike Hussey.

Australia were hopping along at 48 for one off 5.5 overs when, in his first over, after beating the batsmen with a few deliveries, Mendis bowled Ponting, who, as he walked away, looked like a man who had just seen a ghost.

Next over, Watson was leg before wicket at 59 for three, and when Hussey also fell leg before wicket in the 13th over, Australia were 94 for six, and one of the pre-tournament favourites were on their way out of the tournament.

One reason for their exit was the power of the big left-hander, Chris Gayle; another was the magical spin of the wily Ajantha Mendis.

Source : The Gleaner

How do you explain the magic of Mendis?

2009-06-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

- While teammate Muttiah Muralitharan is credited with developing the doosra — an offspinner’s delivery that goes ‘the wrong way’ — Ajantha Mendis has been the pioneer of what has become known as the ‘Carrom Ball’. The Australian spinner Jack Iverson is believed to have first tried this

- The ball is held between the thumb, forefinger and the middle finger. Instead of being released through movement of the wrist and hand in an orthodox manner, the ball is flicked out by the fingers, in a way resembling someone playing the popular Asian tabletop game Carrom

- The bowler can spin the ball either way with little discernible difference in his action to the batsman. If the centre finger is gripped towards the leg side, the ball spins from leg to offside and vice-versa

- Mendis has so far claimed 34 victims in just six Tests and has looked a threat in the World Twenty20, particularly against Australia, whose captain, Ricky Ponting, he dismissed.

Ajantha Mendis - more than a nice little turner

2009-06-13T20:46:00.000-07:00

We admire players who do something different,” says Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka’s former captain. You can say that again. Sri Lankan cricket seems to encourage invention and innovation to a point where it is almost unconventional to be conventional. Jayawardene is that unique character: a solid, orthodox batsman and, until recently, level-headed leader in a team of mavericks, a school of science and artistry that is taking the World Twenty20 tournament by storm in a way that their predecessors did so unexpectedly and joyously in the 50-over World Cup of 1996.

The spirit of that tub-thumping campaign is retained in the current squad with the ageless presence of Sanath Jayasuriya and Muttiah Muralitharan. Their longevity is remarkable but so is their Madonna-like capacity for reinvention. When Jayasuriya played a reverse sweep against West Indies last week, Ian Chappell, the former Australia captain turned TV commentator, claimed he had never seen Jayasuriya play such a shot, essentially because he had never needed to.

Jayasuriya, who turns 40 at the end of the month, has favoured the cut shot over the years, slicing and dicing bowling attacks who gave him the slightest width. It was he and Romesh Kaluwitharana who broke the mould back in 1996, “teeing off” in the early overs to take advantage of fielding restrictions. England were infamously demolished in the quarter-finals, Jayasuriya’s contribution was 82 off 44 balls.

Now his “junior” partner is the 32-year-old Tillakaratne Dilshan, who has patented a shot that involves shovelling or scooping a straight, good-length ball directly over the wicketkeeper’s head. Plenty of batsmen have developed the flick over the shoulder to take advantage of a short fine leg but none can match Dilshan’s perpendicular perfection. “I think I’ve only missed it once,” says Dilshan. “Playing the shot means the bowler has to think twice about where he is going to bowl the next ball.” Dilshan also credits his stint with the Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League as vital to his cricketing education.

Muralitharan, the other survivor from 1996, is something of a liability in the field but his relentless accuracy and hint of mystery means he remains a vital cog in Sri Lanka’s inventive bowling line-up. While his apprentice Ajantha Mendis went for eight an over against Pakistan on Friday, Murali was as on the money just as Pakistan threatened to make a game of it.

When Twenty20 burst into the English cricketing consciousness in 2003, nobody anticipated the role of spin bowlers. Yet while quicker bowlers, such as Brett Lee, disappear to all parts, allowing the batsmen to feed off the pace of the ball, the slow men are hard to get away. And the clever slow men — like Mendis — can be impossible, as the Australians found to their bemused cost.

Mendis, 24, follows in the tradition of Australian spinners Jack Iverson, who took 21 wickets in the 1950-51 Ashes, and John Gleeson. These are the “flickers”, bowlers who deliver the ball not with wrist or finger spin but by finger-flicking propulsion. Mendis’s killer delivery, which he flicks with the middle finger, is know as the “carrom” ball, after a billiards-type game that involves flicking disks into pockets.

Jayawardene first saw Mendis while he was playing for the Army and appeared at a Sri Lankan net session. “Tom had a look and said, ‘This guy’s interesting’. Everyone was smiling because we hadn’t seen someone like that. He was very raw and didn’t have control but after a year he understood what he was doing and we realised he could be a thinking bowler.”

Mendis’ moment came less than a year ago when he took six for 13 against India in the final of the one-day Asia Cup. He made his Test debut later that month, also against India, and after Rahul Dravid became his first victim, he took 26 wickets at 18 in three Tests.

His stats are frightening: 34 Test wickets at 23; 64 one-day wickets at 13; 16 Twenty20 international wickets at seven and 155 first-class wickets at 16. Strike-rates and economy-rates are all more than acceptable. In the age of the batsman, these are throwback numbers, the sort of figures one would expect from the days of uncovered pitches.

Beyond Mendis and Murali, there is Lasith “Slinger” Malinga, the wild-haired fast man whose bowling arm is disconcertingly hidden behind the umpire until a 90mph ballistic is released with often devastating consequences.

Like Jayasuriya, these men are products not of a system but of a search, a widening of the net, championed by Arjuna Ranatunga, the World Cup-winning captain, to find players from beyond the elite, Colombo-based private schools.

If Sri Lanka have a weakness, one is tempted to say their fielding, yet in that discipline they have pushed the boundaries — literally. Angelo Mathews tried to catch West Indies’ Ramnaresh Sarwan on the long-on boundary, failed but kept the ball airborne as he went over the boundary. Seeing the ball was still in the air, he leapt and palmed it back into play before re-entering the field and returning the ball. His remarkable athleticism prompted an announcement from MCC, cricket’s law-makers, to confirm that his actions were legal because he was off the ground when he pushed the ball back in.

An expected victory over Ireland today will put Sri Lanka one step closer to a Lord’s final that six months ago in Lahore would have seemed unimportant and incomprehensible. After those terrifying attacks and the turmoil of their own country, Sri Lanka are surely the neutrals’ favourite to show the home of cricket next Sunday how the game should be really played.

Source : Times Online

Mendis should’ve been played more by KKR - Sangakkara

2009-06-11T22:38:00.000-07:00

The Bridgeford Road in Nottingham on Monday night might well have been a street in Colombo with all the tooting car horns and waving Sri Lanka flags. It was a fantastic atmosphere and we savoured the moment after having outplayed Australia. That was the start and not the end of the World Twenty20, but our win against West Indies suggests that we have been able to carry that energy forward. Hopefully, the same will happen against Pakistan as well.

As captain, though, I am naturally delighted that we have started this tournament so positively, considering the tough group in which we were placed. I knew we had the skills and ability to top the group, it was just a matter of whether we had the self-belief on the match days — we answered that emphatically showing just how close-knit a unit we have become.

I know there were many that had written us off after the warm-up games, but to be honest that was not a big concern for me. Sri Lanka has never had a good record in warm-up games ahead of big events.

Special mention needs to be made for the spinners, Ajantha (Mendis) and Murali. They are magicians and they give us an X-factor.

In fact, I was surprised that Mendis did not play more games for the Knight Riders during the IPL. If used properly, Mendis is a genuine match-winner.

Sangakkara all praise for Mendis

2009-06-11T12:10:00.000-07:00

Nottingham: Calling Ajantha Mendis “an attacking bowler,” Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara said bowlers of his ilk were a rarity.

“In Twenty20 cricket where the batsman has to attack almost every delivery he faces, to have a bowler like Mendis, with that mystery and that unpredictability, definitely adds to the attack,” said Sangakkara after Sri Lanka’s six-wicket win over Australia at Trent Bridge on Monday.

Ricky Ponting admitted that his side missed Andrew Symonds, who was sent home ahead of the tournament for breaching alcohol-related team rules. “His (Symonds) departure upset a lot of structures around the team,” the Aussie skipper said.

“Andrew is one of the best international players in this form of the game anywhere in the world. When you lose someone of that ability, it throws a spanner in your works.”

Ponting said he found it hard to comprehend Australia’s run of losses in T20.

“Actually, it is a worrying trend for the team and the group. We will address some of the areas we have been lacking in.

Sangakkara, Ponting hail Mendis

2009-06-08T23:38:00.000-07:00

Ricky Ponting is bowled by Ajantha Mendis, Australia v Sri Lanka, ICC World Twenty20, Trent Bridge, June 8, 2009

Sri Lanka began their World Twenty20 campaign by ending Australia's stay in the competition. Their captain Kumar Sangakkara, leading the side for the first time, remained unbeaten and secured victory but reserved special mention for Ajantha Mendis, who revelled in his first outing against Australia in any format.

Ricky Ponting concurred, calling Mendis a "unique bowler" whom they had studied but failed to counter effectively. "We've all had an opportunity to see plenty of video footage of him, but when you're in a Twenty20 game and you've got to go out there and play a certain way, you've got to take the challenge up to the bowlers," Ponting, who was one of Mendis' victims, said. "Today he got the better of us.

"He certainly had a big impact on the game. That was probably the difference in the game that their spinner did dictate to us a little bit through the middle of our batting innings."

On the eve of the game Sangakkara had said that Mendis would have to adapt accordingly as batsmen became familiar with his modus operandi, dissecting him with the help of video analysis. The Australians, however, did not have first-hand experience of playing him and the result was 3 for 20 in four overs. He bowled Ponting with one that went the other way, halting a promising innings of 25 off 15 balls; trapped Shane Watson lbw and breached Michael Hussey's defences as well.

"In a Twenty20 game, where you have to attack almost every ball you play, to have unpredictability, that mystery around him [Mendis] is good," Sangakkara said. "Batsmen will get on top of him on some days but more often than not he's a wicket-taking bowler, an attacking bowler."

Sangakkara expressed surprise at Mendis not being a regular of the Kolkata Knight Riders but said the very fact that he was part of the Twenty20 tournament in South Africa, along with 12 other Sri Lankans, would have helped immensely. It may be coincidence but the players from countries with lesser Twenty20 match practice leading into the World Twenty20 - Pakistan, Bangladesh and Australia - have struggled in England.

"Even if some of the players did not get consistent games, the fact that they were there, rubbing shoulders with some of the greats of the game, learning from that experience [has helped them]. They were training hard, learning to innovate and it kept them on their toes."

Sri Lanka, as a cricket team and country, has gone through rough times in recent months. Today's game was their first international since the team survived the terror attacks in Lahore and their country recently witnessed the end of a bloody 26-year war. They were reminded of that strife as they approached the venue, where 70 pro-Tamil supporters were holding a lawful protest outside the ground. Sangakkara, though, said that playing cricket was their focus and the team wouldn't bother about anything that was outside their control.

Three hours later, though, the scene outside Trent Bridge had changed remarkably. The protesters had dissipated and the only sounds emanating from outside the ground were deliriously happy Sri Lankan, and Irish, fans singing and drumming they way down Bridgford Road.

Mendis Magic leads Australia out of T20 World Cup

2009-06-08T23:29:00.000-07:00

Sri Lanka eliminated Australia from the ICC World Twenty20 with a six-wicket victory at Trent Bridge. Kumar Sangakkara played a captain's innings to lead them across the line, with an over to spare, as they chased 160 after Tillakaratne Dilshan sparked the pursuit with an innovative 53 off 32 balls. Australia were set back by a magnificent display from Ajantha Mendis, who bamboozled with his variations, and although the match went to the final over Sri Lanka always held the edge to book their Super Eights berth.

Australia's stay in this tournament - the international title they don't hold - lasted three days and now they face two extra weeks in Leicester to prepare for the Ashes series. Make no mistake, they desperately wanted to win this event, and further stock their trophy cabinet, but were short on their skills for the second game running against a highly impressive Sri Lanka outfit.

With Sangakkara at the crease there was a sense of calm about the run-chase, even when the asking rate grew in excess of nine-per-over for a moment in the closing stages, and he was aided by a sparkling cameo from Jehan Mubarak. When Mubarak came to the crease a charged-up Brett Lee had bounced out Chamara Silva and he followed it up with three dot balls. However, Lee sent down a wide and the extra ball of the over was clouted over deep midwicket and you could see Australian shoulders slump.

In the next over Sangakkara, one of the most impressive cricketers in the world on and off the field, completed a classy fifty off 40 balls with a delicate dab-sweep off Nathan Backen. With 14 needed off two overs there was no way back for Australia and Mubarak cleared the ropes again before a wide sealed their elimination.

When Australia slumped to 94 for 6 in the 15th over the match was shaping to be very one-sided, but they added 65 runs in the last five overs to give the bowlers something to defend. However, they needed early wickets and despite a fine catch by David Warner to remove Sanath Jayasuriya the game was carried away from them through a fine innings from Dilshan.

He took 16 off Shane Watson's flustered first over, showing his full range of shots including a mow over midwicket and a deft sweep over fine leg, while his 26-ball half-century arrived with an extraordinarily cheeky top-edge flick over the wicketkeeper's head. Dilshan needed some convincing to opening the batting, but his elevation has been a revelation and he has the power to clear the in-field but also the subtle touch to manoeuvre the ball.

It needed a cracking delivery from Michael Clarke - his first - that pitched on leg, spun and hit middle to end Dilshan's innings and a period of tight bowling from the spinners gave Australia a slim lifeline. Sangakkara and Mahela Jaywardene were content to deal in singles, but with the run-rate climbing fractionally Jaywardene tried to go over the top and got an outside edge to backward point.

Sangakkara, though, knew perfectly when to pick his moments and deposited Nathan Haurtiz for two sixes in his last over, which went for 16. Lee, under huge pressure after his pasting at the hands of West Indies, tried to conjure a comeback but Australia just hadn't made enough runs.

The tone had been set in the first over of the match when Warner carved Angelo Mathews - a surprise new-ball option on his debut - to point but the key was always going to be Sri Lanka's spin. Watson and Ricky Ponting had begun to locate the boundary regularly when Mendis was thrown the ball for the final over of the Powerplay and the game changed.

He could have had Watson leg before with his first ball as he was beaten by one turning from leg to off, then with the final delivery of a brilliant over he uprooted Ponting's leg stump as the captain backed away. In his next over Mendis nailed Watson on the sweep and the new batsmen were prodding and poking uncertainly against his multitude of variations.

However, it's not just with spin that Sri Lanka's attack has a magical touch. Lasith Malinga's first over had been expensive, but he is an irresistible cricketer who can produce wonderful moments and a superbly disguised slower ball made Brad Haddin look foolish as it dipped late and took out two stumps.

Captains can often be left scratching their heads in Twenty20, but today everything Sangakkara tried work perfectly. He brought back Isuru Udana and the young left-armer produced a classy slower-ball that Clarke could only chip back down the pitch, before Mendis claimed his third by pinning Michael Hussey with one that zipped off the surface.

The next over proved Australia's best of the innings as Muttiah Muralitharan was taken for 21 with Mitchell Johnson launching two huge slow-swept sixes over deep midwicket. The damage, though, had already been done and a team so used to competing in the final stages of global events are packing their bags after the first round.

Ajantha Mendis’s Carrom Ball signals end of bent arm ‘doosra’

2009-06-08T23:20:00.000-07:00

World cricket has in recent years seen the advent of the ‘doosra’ - the offbreak that turns as a legbreak. Cricket also in the recent past has witnessed the reporting of various offspinners (but no leg spinners) from various countries for suspected bowling actions (chucking).

Since the reporting of Muttiah Muralitharan for a suspect bowling action and his clearing by the ICC’s tests at the University of W. Australia, there has been an increase of international off spinners bowling ‘doosras’ and being reported: Marlon Samuels, Johan Botha and Saeed Ajmal.

.This is not a coincidence. The problem for off spinners who bowl the ‘doosra’ is that they rotate the wrist inwards towards the head to get the back of the wrist facing the batsman to deliver the ‘doosra’ legbreak. This automatically bends the elbow. The reader can try it by cocking the wrist away from the head for a legb reak and towards the head for the off break. The former has a straight elbow and the latter has an elbow bending outwards.

The result is that when an offspinner such as those named above, bowls a "back of the wrist" doosra, the elbow flexes; the greater the "rip" imparted on the ‘doosra’, the larger the elbow flexion.

Not surprisingly, by just using published images of these ‘doosra’ bowlers and by measuring their elbow flexion above shoulder height in the delivery swing one can get an idea of the large degree of elbow bend imparted by bowling the ‘doosra’.

Taking published images of Botha, Murali, Samuels and Amjal, the average elbow bend is around 60 degrees (*). And for the big ‘doosra’ ripper’s of Botha and Murali the elbow bend is 70*.

Ajantha Mendis, the Army CC mystery spinner who burst onto the cricket scene last year and whose meteoric rise to international acclaim and respect, is an offnspinner whose arm action is impeccablen- indeed the army bowler’s arm is rifle straight!

His ‘doosra’ is different from the other bowlers: while they rotate their wrist to change from off spin to legmspin; Ajantha bowls with a straight wrist but uses his middle finger to impart leg spin to the ball. His "carrom" ball is actually a finger spinning ‘doosra’.

Ajantha developed this delivery on his own in the streets of Moratuwa, and as earlier described by this writer, he is the cricketing offspring of another humble village lad: Sonny Ramadhin who first discovered this delivery in a sugar plantation village in Trinidad some 60 years ago.

So why does a bowler risk the stigma of being reported for chucking by bowling the bent arm wrist ‘doosra’ when he can bowl the "Ajantha Mendis" finger ‘doosra’ and achieve the same leg spin with a straight arm?

Currently, off spinners all over the world are learning to bowl the wrist ‘doosra’, except in Australia where there are none - surprisingly for a country whose players do not hesitate to ignore, tread or overstep the line in various aspects of cricket such as sledging, over-rates, intimidation etc.

An unfortunate development is that locally and indeed all over the world, young players are emulating their bent arm idols and learning the wrist ‘doosra’. Coaches are being asked to teach the ‘doosra’. Do these coaches not know the bent arm ‘doosra’ is a no ball according to the law?

Despite the reporting of ‘doosra’ bowlers for suspect bowling, there is the call from some quarters including ex-cricketers to "legitimize" the ‘doosras’. Daryll Cullilan of South Africa said: "Bowling the ‘doosra’ is a skill and it makes the game more interesting."

But throwing a baseball is a skill (although some purists might disagree), so why not go the whole hog and allow this too? Terry Jenner, Shane Warne’s bowling coach says: "Why should we bend the rules for something that is not legal?

A top local umpire has declared that chucking is prevalent in schools cricket and the most "popular" is the off spinner’s ‘doosra’. But "there is no point in no balling or reporting the offence." Instead the umpires just notify the school coach in private.

Is this the legacy we wish to give to our children and the future cricket generations? For a country is that is renown for its gentle peoples and cultures, its traditions of fairness and the common way and its awards for the ‘Spirit of Cricket’, it may be fitting that Sri Lanka set in motion the call for the teaching and adoption of Ajantha’s finger ‘doosra’ instead of the current bent arm ‘doosra’.

It would be feather in the cap for the SL Cricket Board, its coaching section and the Umpires’ Association to lead the way in this important development and to fight for its adoption by the ICC and the MCC.

Just as a humble village lad started the "mystery" ball a long time ago and another humble lad of Chinese lineage gave us the "chinaman" ball, maybe our Moratuwa lad may one day be best remembered for the ‘Mendis doosra’ that ended the era of the bent arm offspiners.

Source : Lanka Times

More Shrapnel Removed from Ajantha Mendis - More Surgery is Performed

2009-03-12T23:46:00.000-07:00

Ajantha Mendis required another round of surgery recently when scans revealed more shrapnel lodged in his scalp and back.

With his head almost completely wrapped in bandages, Mendis celebrated his 24th birthday today at the Nawaloka hospital in Colombo surrounded by friends and family.

He was still feeling some pain as the pain killers wore off.

A heavy security presence was also noted outside Ajantha’s room.

Pakistan are yet to make a breakthrough in their investigation. According to the Times Online the perpetrators may have already fled to the lawless tribal areas of Pakistan's North Western border with Afghanistan.

The sources said they feared that the rest of the 12 gunmen who attacked the Sri Lankans’ convoy on Tuesday had fled to Pakistan’s northern tribal areas, from where al-Qaeda and Taleban militants operate.

It is said that this is the same region where Bin Laden evaded capture many times. What chance does the Pakistani government have of capturing these individuals when the US with all their technology and man power could not find the tallest man in the region - A journalist who met bin Laden in the 1990s described him as 6 feet 4 inches in height.

So it seems inevitable the criminals who tarnished Pakistan's image and almost took the lives of Sri Lanka's national cricketers may never be brought to justice.

Ajantha Mendis still in hospital

2009-03-11T03:27:00.000-07:00

Star spinner Ajantha Mendis, who underwent surgery on returning home after last Tuesday’s terror strike in Lahore, is still in Colombo’s Nawaloka Hospital.

While the Sri Lanka cricketers don’t have national engagements till the ICC World T20 meet in the first week of June, Mendis (and some of his compatriots) have Indian Premier League commitments to fulfil from next month.

Mendis is on the rolls of the Shah Rukh Khan-owned Kolkata Knight Riders. He was taken on board rather late in the inaugural season, last year, but is expected to be one of the impact-players in edition No.2.

“I can’t give you the exact date for Ajantha’s discharge… Perhaps, in another couple of days… The area (lower part of the head, right side) requires regular dressings, something which can’t be done in his house,” the premier hospital’s medical administrator told.

Source : The Telegraph
__________________

Real close shave for Ajantha Mendis | Sri lankan Team attacked in Pak

2009-03-05T02:38:00.000-08:00

Ajantha Mendis, who made such a splash on his Sri Lanka debut last year and is a Shah Rukh Khan Knight, had a much closer escape than reported in the hours immediately after Tuesday morning’s terror strike in Lahore.

“The doctors haven’t confirmed, but it’s feared that a bullet grazed the right side of Ajantha’s head… It’s not that he was struck by shrapnel only,” Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) chief executive Duleep Mendis told.

Speaking from Colombo on Wednesday evening, Mendis added: “Ajantha’s in hospital, as are four others… There’s some concern over (Thilan) Samaraweera, who took bullets in his leg and has undergone surgery, but the others should be discharged in a couple of days…”

Ajantha, Samaraweera, captain-in-waiting Kumar Sangakkara, Tharanga Paranavitana and assistant coach Paul Farbrace have all been admitted to the Nawaloka Hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka’s premier medical institution.

While Mendis didn’t say that Ajantha too had been operated upon, a spokesman for the hospital conveyed that in as many words.

“I don’t have details, but Ajantha has also undergone surgery… His wound necessitated that,” a gentleman who identified himself as being from the “administrative side,” said around 10 pm.

Ajantha, an armyman, is days away from his 24th birthday.

Meanwhile, according to Mendis, SLC intends “doing something” for the team bus driver, Mohammad Khalil, who kept calm and drove the vehicle to safety.

From Sangakkara to Muttiah Muralidharan, everybody has praised Khalil for his courage and presence of mind.

“We’ll be doing something for the driver… We’re very appreciative of the role he played… Right now, though, our priority is to see that the injured are quickly back to good health,” Mendis pointed out.

Mendis, a former captain, too had gone to Lahore on the special flight which brought the Mahela back home.

The Sri Lanka cricketers don’t have international commitments till the World T20 meet in England, which begins on June 5.

So, there’s time to recover from the wounds, both physical and emotional.

Source : The Telegraph.

Learn to read batsmen's mind, Jayawardene's advice to Mendis

2009-02-15T21:04:00.000-08:00

After the recent thrashing against India, mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis needs to work on reading the batsmen's mind to regain his lost spark, believes Sri Lanka's outgoing skipper Mahela Jayawardene.
"India is one of the top sides today and they played very well against us. We have played them a lot in recent times and I think they played Mendis very capably," Jayawardene today said after arriving here for a two-Test series against Pakistan.

"He now has to realise that the surprise element is out and he now has to become a much smarter bowler and come up with new tricks and learn to read the mind of the batsmen. He has got Muralitharan with him who is a very good teacher," he added when asked about Mendis, who came a cropper in the recent ODI series against India which the Lankans lost 1-4.

Jayawardene once again sidestepped queries on who his successor would be when he steps down after the upcoming two-Test series against Pakistan.

"...I think the final decision is with the selectors whom they pick," Jayawardene, who will step down as captain after the two-Test series against Pakistan, said in a news conference in Karachi.

Jayawardene reiterated that his decision would allow Sri Lanka to be better prepared for the 2011 World Cup in South Asia

Mendis will bounce back: Jayawardene

2009-02-15T21:00:00.000-08:00

Ajantha Mendis might have suffered a poor run in the recent ODI series against India but Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene believes the mystery spinner will soon make a successful comeback.

Mendis burst onto the international scene with his mesmerising spell against India last year but hit a rough patch in the recent series against India and was also rested in the fourth ODI. He scalped only five wickets in the series.

"Yes definitely (he'll hit form). This is probably the time he has to learn the ropes. The inception was brilliant. Everyone was surprised by the talent he had.

"Like all the international cricketers, he just has to try and adjust," Jayawardene told reporters.

"I think it is a good challenge for him to adjust. Do different things like what Murali did for the last 15 or 16 years, creating new opportunities, bowling different things.

"Specially having Muttiah Muralitharan alongside him will definitely help him to achieve those targets and goals and we have to be patient with Ajantha and give him the opportunity he needs," Jayawardene added.

Sachin helped me tackle Mendis: Yuvi

2009-02-15T20:55:00.000-08:00

It was carnival time for the India batsmen in Colombo and one of the man leading the carnage against Lanka, Yuvraj Singh summed up the Indian mood post the win and of course he thanked Little Master Sachin Tendulkar for his tips that helped him tackle spin wizard Ajantha Mendis.

It was lip-smacking to the core, Yuvraj Singh was the toast of Premadasa and it took just 82 balls for hs century, and the acknowledgement went straight to the dressing room.

Adressing the media after the win, Yuvi said, "He (Sachin) actually gave me plans to play Mendis in this series because last time I got out to him a few times so I was chatting with Sachin who told me a few points, which really helped me in getting through in the initial overs. I'll give credit to Sachin for helping me."

Playing in tandem with Sehwag has been a rarity for the lef-hander. However, when he got this opportunity he did not want to let go off it.

He said, "I don't remember me and Viru batting together and getting a hundred. Because normally Viru is batting up the order. By the time i get to the crease he is out on hundred or I am there till he gets 250 or 300 runs. I don't get to bat much with him. But I really enjoyed batting with him."

The Little Master was third time unlucky in this series. However, Yuvi warned his opponents that Sachin will be back with a bang.

Mendis form not a worry, says Jayawardene

2009-02-15T20:43:00.000-08:00

Feb 1, 2009

COLOMBO (AFP) — Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene said Sunday that spinner Ajantha Mendis would come back strongly after getting just two wickets in as many matches against India in the ongoing one-day series.

"We cannot ask a 23-year-old to pick four wickets in every game. I am sure Ajantha will bounce back. It is not a huge concern for me," said the Sri Lankan skipper, whose team trail 2-0 in the five-match series.

The unorthodox spinner grabbed 19 wickets in his first six matches against India, including a 6-13 performance in his team's victory in the Asia Cup final in Karachi in July 2008.

But he went wicketless for the first time against India in the opening game in Dambulla and took two in the second match here on Saturday, having so far conceded 91 runs in 20 overs.

"Right now, they are playing him well. Let him learn. The batsmen also adjust themselves and then the bowlers try to change what they want to do and that's how they learn," said Jayawardene.

"He is still bowling well and creating opportunities. He is probably not picking wickets because the batsmen are not taking too many risks against him."

Mendis played a key role in his team's Test series victory against India at home last year when he captured 26 wickets -- the best by any bowler in a debut three-match series.

He also became the fastest to complete 50 one-day wickets recently, achieving the feat in 19 matches. He has so far bagged 61 wickets in 26 games.

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said he was happy his team had not given too many wickets to Sri Lankan spinners Mendis and Muttiah Muralitharan in the first two one-dayers.

"I won't say that our batsmen have got the better of the Sri Lankan spinners. There are still three more games to go. They are not getting wickets, but at the same time they are not giving away too many runs," said Dhoni.

"We are cautious and targeting other bowlers. We are happy that we are not giving wickets to the spinners."

Fan-actics “X-Mendis”

2009-01-27T00:39:00.001-08:00

Thanks to Ceci Masters

Source - theflyslip

Mendis is not a threat for us: Dhoni

2009-01-27T00:35:00.000-08:00

Playing down the threat from the new spin sensation of Sri Lanka Ajantha Mendis, Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said on Monday his team is not wary of playing him.

Addressing the media in Colombo on the upcoming five One-day International series against Sri Lanka beginning on Wednesday in Dambulla, the Indian skipper, however, said it is always "tough to beat Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka".

Asked how his team was going to face Mendis, who ran though their batting order in the Test series in Colombo last year, Dhoni said they had a measure of the spinner during the subsequent ODI series, which India won.

"We did well against him in ODIs, so there is no need for us to worry too much about him or any individuals. Our boys are ready to face the challenges ahead," said the Indian skipper.

Dhoni said although the weather conditions may look the same in the neighbouring countries, but it is not so.

"The conditions are not the same. The pitches in Sri Lanka perform differently as the match progresses. A lot depends on the toss," he said, indicating that India won all the matches against Sri Lanka last year after winning the toss.

Dhoni said although the team was missing Harbhajan Singh, the senior member of the team's spin department, it has given a golden opportunity for the upcoming youngsters to perform and prove their talents.

According to the rescheduled tournament itinerary, only the first one-day international (ODI) will be played at Dambulla Rangiri Stadium while the remaining games will be held in Colombo (January 30, February 2, 5 and 8).

The only Twenty20 International will be played in Colombo February 10. Three ODIs will be played under lights at R Premadasa Stadium while the fifth one-dayer will be a day game at the Sinhalese Sports Club, also in Colombo.

The series was hastily scheduled after India cancelled its tour to Pakistan in January-February following the Mumbai terror attacks.

Sri Lanka, which is boosted by its two emphatic back-to-back wins over Pakistan last week, will fly back to Pakistan in February to play two Tests after hosting India.

I will have no problems against Mendis, says Sehwag

2009-01-25T23:48:00.000-08:00

On the eve of the Indian cricket team's departure for Sri Lanka for a one-day series, dashing opener Virender Sehwag has sought to put the rivals on the backfoot, saying he had done his homework against mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis and would not hesitate to attack him.
Sehwag said his knowledge of the nuances of the game made it easy for him to deal with mystery bowlers like Mendis.

"I am exceptionally aware of the nuances of the game. I know what's happening, who is where and how to take advantage of him in the field. I studied him (Mendis) during the Asia Cup in Pakistan. Even at non-striker's end, I kept following his methods. His style when he is bowling off-spin, googly, or pushing it through middle finger.

"So I have no problem in attacking him. A bowler is demoralised if he knows that a batsman has read him completely", Sehwag told in an interview.

He said a bowler like Mendis preferred to keep three or four fielders close to bat. "It means there are open spaces in the field. Even a mis-hit can give you boundaries," he explained.

"Unlike the accepted norm, I find hitting against the spin more profitable. It allows one to free one's arms," he said.

The explosive right-hander, who claimed that he never looks back in regret, said his big knocks won't count anything for him if the team had not won ultimately.

"I never look back. I have never looked back on those innings. What is gone is gone, it's over," he asserted.

Can Ajantha Mendis calm Dhoni and company this time?

2009-01-25T23:46:00.000-08:00

The high riding Indians on a crest of a wave of their recent success against the World Champions Australia and England will take Mahela Jayawardena’s Sri Lankan one day cricket status to the acid test when they arrive in the Island tomorrow (Monday) to play 5 One-Day Internationals.

Ajantha Mendis will give the Indian cricketers all the problems...

Sri Lanka who won the Test series 2-1, but was roundly beaten 3/2 in the ODI series by Dhoni’s men back home last August, will find the Indians led by the exemplary young captain a huge stumbling block in trying to redress things when they meet again. While Jayawardena and Co. will enjoy a big home advantage, the Indian dominance bringing down Ricky Ponting’s Aussies and Kevin Pietersen’s Englishmen speaks very tall of a team that has found the winning formula with a combination of all his units.

Dhoni who had declared himself out of the Test series against the Lankans last year, played an important role as captain and batsman in the limited overs, helping to outwit Sri Lanka when they last met in Sri Lanka less than a year ago. The strong point of the Indian team is that the batting department has improved tremendously with the likes of Yuvaraj Singh contributing enormously to a side that has been consistently held together by the big hitting opener Virender Sehwag who had a fine stint against Australia and England.

Then add the inform Gautham Gambhir, ‘little master’ Sachin Tendulkar and the skipper Dhoni himself, it will be a huge proportion to the Sri Lankan bowlers.

It is interesting to see as to how the Indians will cope up with Ajantha Mendis who mesmerised them in the Asia Cup final, which the Lankans won. Then the subsequent home Test series July-August 2008 where Mendis inflicted irreparable damage to the Indian side to take the Test series 2-1. India’s ace spinner Harbhajan Singh will miss the series due to a hamstring injury and his place will be taken by left-handed allrounder Ravindra Jadeja who has been enjoying a fairly successful Ranji Trophy season, taking 42 wickets in 9 matches and scoring 739 runs.

The Sri Lankans will be mindful that the Indian batting machinery had the fire power to destroy Australia and England and it will require a gigantic effort from the Lankan bowlers to address that area.

However, Sri Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardena is fully focused in the on - going ODI series against Pakistan which both teams have won a match each and the final to be played on Saturday.

Itinerary

January 26 Monday: arrival of Indian team. Jan. 27 Rest and practice. January 28 First: ODI Dambulla-Day match January: 29 and 30 rest and practice. 31st Sat. 2nd ODI at R. Premadasa Stadium D/N. Feb. 1st and 2nd rest and practice. Feb. 3: 3rd ODI R. Premadasa Stadium D/N. Feb. 4 rest. Feb. 5: 4th ODI R. Premadasa Stadium D/N. Feb. 6 and 7 rest and practice. Feb. 8: 5th ODI SSC Day match. Feb. 9 rest. Feb.10 Twenty20 game at R.Premadasa Stadium D/N.

Teams:

India. Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautham Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvaraj Singh, Rohith Sharma, Suresh Raina, R.Jadeja, Yusuf Pathan, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Munaf Patel, Pragyan Ojha, Irfan Pathan, Preveen Kumar, Coach. Gary Kirsten.

Sri Lanka: Mahela Jayawardena (Captain), Sanath Jayasuriya, T.M. Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara, Thilina Kandamby, Chamara Kapugedera, Farveez Maharoof, Thilina Thushara, Jehan Mubarak, Angelo Mathew, Muthiah Muralidharan, Ajantha Mendis, Dilhara Fernando, Dammika Prasad.

Mendis, Hodge sign longer contracts | IPL 2009

2009-01-25T23:40:00.000-08:00

Ajantha Mendis

Calcutta: Kolkata Knight Riders signed two of their replacement players from the last season — Sri Lankan spin sensation Ajantha Mendis and seasoned Australian batsman Brad Hodge — on longer contracts.

Mendis has arguably been the best bowler in the world in recent months and is sure to be a big attraction when the second season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) kicks off April 10.

Delhi DareDevils have bought Australian batting sensation David Warner and allrounder Andrew MacDonald while Deccan Chargers have roped in Ryan Harris, also of Australia, for the second edition of the IPL.

The closure of the month-long trading window on Thursday saw a total of seven players being traded, according to a media release.

The Mumbai Indians signed the West Indian Dwayne Bravo, while the Chennai Super Kings inked a long-term contract with Sri Lankan Chamara Kapugedera, the release added.

Royal Challengers Bangalore swapped Zaheer Khan for Karnataka Ranji Trophy captain Robin Uthappa (Mumbai Indians). In another exchange, Ashish Nehra of the Mumbai Indians was swapped for left-handed batsman Shikhar Dhawan of the Delhi DareDevils.

Jaydev Shah of the Rajasthan Royals — captain of the Saurashtra Ranji team — will play for the Mumbai Indians.

Batsman Gaurav Dhiman of the Mumbai Indians will turn out for Royal Challengers Bangalore and Rajasthan pacer Pankaj Singh, of the Rajasthan Royals, will don the colours of the team from Bangalore in the coming IPL season.

Australian MacDonald featured in his country’s consolation Test win in Sydney, whilst Warner made a sensational Twenty20 debut — both against South Africa.

Amrit Mathur, chief operating officer of the Delhi DareDevils, was excited about his new addition.

“We are really delighted to have signed David. “His debut game for Australia the other day has been sensational and we are hoping he will carry forward this brilliance into season two of the IPL,” he said.

The IPL player auction for the second season will take place in Goa on February 6, where franchises will have the opportunity to purchase current international players to fill the remaining slots for overseas players in their squads.

Pakistan brace for record-breaking Muralitharan, Mendis

2009-01-19T03:27:00.001-08:00

Sri Lankan spin magicians Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis loom as major threats for Pakistan in their three-match one-day series which opens here Tuesday.

The 36-year-old Muralitharan, already the highest wicket-taker in Test cricket with 769, will have the extra motivation of overhauling the tally of one-day wickets, currently held by Pakistan's Wasim Akram with 502.

The wily off-spinner needs just nine wickets to become the highest wicket-taker in both forms of the game.

But the unorthodox Mendis holds more challenges for the home team.

The 23-year-old army officer is not a big turner of the ball like his more illustrious partner Muralitharan, but the key to his success is the way he grips the ball with his fingers and flicks it to bowl a variety of deliveries.

Last week he became the quickest bowler to get 50 wickets in one-day cricket, having made his debut only last year.

In his only match against Pakistan, Mendis took four wickets. He then took six wickets in the very next match against India to help Sri Lanka win the Asia Cup here in July last year.

Pakistan's first plan is to outwit Sri Lanka with pace as they named six fast bowlers in their squad of 15 with fit-again Shoaib Akhtar leading the pack.

Akhtar, 33, missed all matches in Pakistan's 3-0 win against the West Indies at Abu Dhabi in November last year.

The home team can also take heart from Sri Lanka's unimpressive batting despite winning the tri-series in Bangladesh last week.

Pakistan hastily arranged the one-day series with Sri Lanka after India pulled out of a planned tour amid hightened political tension in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.

The second match will be played here on Wednesday, while the final match is in Lahore on Saturday.

Mendis an extra special blend

2009-01-19T03:20:00.000-08:00

There seems to be no stopping Ajantha Mendis that off-spinning sensation from the Army from breaking records and getting statisticians to rewrite the books.

First he erased former England's medium pacer ,Alex BedserAlex Bedser's record. Bedser had taken 24 wickets in a three Test debut series against India and that epic feat stood for over 51 years until Mendis came along and struck Bedser's name off the books and put him to second best by capturing 25 wickets.

Not satisfied with that, Mendis has now pocketed another record, that of getting to 50 wickets in one-day Internationals in just 19 matches. The earlier record stood to the name of India's Ajith Agakar who captured 50 wickets in 23 matches.

Incredible is the best way to describe Mendis' feats with the ball. If these two achievements are an indication, then he is on the way to more records.

Mendis, emerging from a little known school where he did not have the best facilities to ply his trade and improve, showed his capabilities once joining the Army.

There he was nursed and nurtured and allowed to blossom with his mentor in the Army Major General V.R. Silva a former Maliyadeva cricketer and hockey player showing him how. Somewhat of a freak like, the West Indian of old Sonny Ramadhin, he got into the wicket taking act playing in the Premier League.

Batsmen who fronted up to him, were non-plussed as to how to read and play him. He seemed to have six different deliveries, bowled with an off break action and once it pitched, batsmen did not know which way the ball was going and they were lured to their demise.

Apparently the most vicious of all his deliveries is the `carrom ball' delivered with the style of a carrom player, where he flicks the ball at the last moment.

Mendis could not play in the first match of the triangular series in Bangladesh. Had he done so, he would have obtained the record much earlier. Recovering from an ankle injury, he made his presence felt in the game against Zimbabwe to grab the record.

Mendis first made it to the Sri Lanka team when he toured the Caribbean for the one-day series. There, former West Indian greats and the knowledgeable who saw him told me that in this guy they see Ramadhin reborn and predicted a great future for him.

He has since not let his admirers down and is continuing to mesmerise batsmen who come up against him. Most batsmen seem to be just prodding at his deliveries not knowing which way the ball is turning and hoping against hope that they would connect.

Unassuming and the likeable Mendis first showed his mystic powers in Test cricket when he bamboozled the Indian batsmen when they came up against him early last year.

None of the Indian batsmen, which included willow wielders of the class of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, V. Laxman and V. Shewag were comfortable against him and were undone by his wiles.

Test wicket record holder Muttiah Muralitharan is also in line to add another record to his career, needing 10 more wickets to go past former Pakistan Captain Wasim Arkam who holds the record for the most number of wickets in one-day Internationals.

Akram called it a day with 512 wickets. Muralitharan now has 492. The record should spin Muralitharan's way when the Indians tour here soon for five one-day Internationals.

Pakistan doing homework to tackle Mendis: Intikhab Alam

2009-01-19T03:11:00.000-08:00

Pakistan cricket coach Intikhab Alam on Saturday said spinner Ajantha Mendis was the biggest threat for them in the upcoming one-day series against Sri Lanka and they were preparing well to tackle him.

Pointing out that Muttiah Muralitharan and Mendis were best spinners in the world, he said the Pakistan team knew Murlai's bowling style well, having played him a lot, but was working on ways to counter Mendis.

"We have been watching videos of both of them specially Mendis and we will be ready for him. We have collected information but that is not for public consumption.

"We have seen videos of all his (Mendis') recent matches and we will go out and be positive against him," he said.

Alam said that the team was using unorthodox methods to prepare for Mendis but said he could not disclose details.

Alam is impressed by Mendis, who he feels adds to the charm of the game which can be used in popularising Test cricket.

"I think when you have players like Mendis around it adds to the charm of the game and unconventional players like him can help boost the popularity of Test cricket," Alam said on Saturday.

Alam said Mendis was not a conventional and orthodox spinner and that is why he had gained success in such a short period of time.

"In the past there have been some bowlers like him Sonny Ramadin of West Indies, Gleeson from Australia and they always were a mystery for the batsmen because of their unusual bowling grip and variations," he said.

Ajantha Mendis becomes the Fastest to take 50 wickets in One-Day Internationals

2009-01-13T05:34:00.000-08:00

The sensational Sri Lankan cricket star Ajantha Mendis of the Sri Lanka Army was adjudged the fastest wicket taker in One-Day Internationals with 50 wickets taken in 19 matches.

Ajantha Mendis achieved this historic attainment breaking the record of Ajith Agarkar of India who took the same number of wickets in 23 matches.

Ajantha Mendis contributed with three wickets as Sri Lanka demolished Zimbabwe by 130 runs in the second match of the Grameenphone tri-nation tournament at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur

It was a match to remember for the mystery spinner as he became the fastest bowler to take 50 one-day international wickets achieving the milestone in just 19 matches.

The 23-year-old Sri Lanka Army officer, who already hogged the spotlight in international cricket with his 'carrom ball' to flummox the batsmen, had Ray Price stumped by Kumar Sangakkara to beat Indian pacer Ajit Agarkar's record in 23 games.

"We are quite happy and no doubt it's a good achievement. Ajantha is something special and we definitely celebrate his success," said an excited Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene, who also reached a milestone as he took two catches yesterday to secure most one-day catches (156) as a fielder. Jayawardene achieved it in 289 matches while former Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin has same number of catches to his belt in 334 games.

Fastest to 50 wickets - Cricinfo

Ajantha Mendis, Kulasekara crush Zimbabwe

2009-01-12T02:33:00.000-08:00

Sri Lanka v Zimbabwe, Tri-Series, 2nd match, Mirpur

Nuwan Kulasekara and Ajantha Mendis executed the perfect demolition job to not only complete the win against Zimbabwe in the second match of the Tri-Nation Tournament in Bangladesh, but also ensure a bonus point. In the process, Mendis became the fastest to 50 ODI wickets when he had Ray Price stumped by Kumar Sangakkara, as Zimbabwe surrendered tamely during their chase.

Kulasekara was on fire right from the start as Sri Lanka looked to defend the 210 they put up earlier in the day on a difficult pitch. The Zimbabwe openers lasted just six overs - Kulasekara castling Vusi Sibanda for 6 and then trapping Hamilton Masakadza leg before in the next over.

Tatenda Taibu may have been dropped by captain Mahela Jayawardene off Thilan Thushara, but his luck lasted only a little while more as he played on to a Kulasekara in-cutter the next over. Thushara was rewarded though, sneaking through Sean Williams' defences as Zimbabwe were left reeling at 47 for 4 in the 17th over.

Jayawardene then unleashed spin at one end and Mendis, predictably, struck in his first over bowling Stuart Matsikenyeri. Matsikenyeri's 15 was to be the highest score in a dismal-looking scorecard, as captain Prosper Utseya and Keith Dabengwa exited in a hurry as well. Dabengwa was caught by Jayawardene, who drew level with Mohammad Azharuddin for the most number catches as a fielder, with 156.

Price was completely outfoxed by Mendis when he charged out, as the bowler, in his 19th match, broke Ajit Agarkar's record of 50 ODI wickets in 23 games.

A fine display from Ed Rainsford and a disciplined performance from the spinners earlier in the day had helped Zimbabwe restrict Sri Lanka to 210. Rainsford struck thrice to cripple Sri Lanka's top order, while Utseya and Ray Price tightened the noose by checking the run-flow in the middle overs.

After being put in by Zimbabwe under hazy conditions, the Sri Lankan openers made a solid start. Sanath Jayasuriya signalled his intent with two fours off Rainsford in the first over.

The run-rate never dipped below five as the partnership neared fifty, but having lifted Elton Chigumbura for a six over long-on the previous ball, Jayasuriya fell chasing a wide delivery, caught by Masakadza at first slip.

Zimbabwe took their second Powerplay as Rainsford came back for a second spell and struck immediately, trapping Sangakkara leg before. Jayawardene's miserable run against Zimbabwe continued as he was dismissed in Rainsford's next over, caught behind for a duck by Taibu off a thickish outside edge. Rainsford continued strongly, and when Chamara Kapugedera was caught plumb in front, Sri Lanka had slipped to 89 for 4.

Tharanga moved steadily towards his half-century, but another bowling change in the 21st over, with Utseya bringing himself on, did the trick, as he trapped Tharanga lbw for 42.

Price was then brought on as Zimbabwe switched to spin at both ends, looking to make further inroads. However, Jehan Mubarak and Mathews battled bravely to get Sri Lanka back in the game. They were slow, aiming primarily to consolidate. Their fifty stand took 14 overs but was brought up in emphatic fashion, Mathews hitting Tawanda Mupariwa for a six straight down the ground.

But having taken the third Powerplay in the 42nd over, Mubarak took his chances against Price and ended up holing out to Williams at mid-on, bringing an end to the sixth-wicket partnership of 69. Thushara hit two sixes in a Dabengwa over but Sri Lanka could manage just 22 runs in the Powerplay. Mathews brought up his fifty in the 49th over, and his workmanlike innings ensured Sri Lanka at least had a reasonable total to defend.

Zimbabwe can still make the finals, unless Bangladesh manage a major upset against Sri Lanka in the final match of the tri-series on Wednesday.

Ajantha Mendis, among the best cricketers of 2008

2009-01-09T05:09:00.000-08:00

Ajantha Mendis has been nominated as one of the top players for the 2008 cricinfo awards.

Among the nominees for the best performance are players Sachin Tendulkar, Graeme Smith, James Anderson, Harbhajan Singh, Andrew Flintoff etc,

Ajantha Mendis’s name was nominated as he displayed magnificent performance in the final match against India in the Asian Cup.

The jury consisting of Ian Chapel, Tony Greig, David Loid, Ramiz Raja and 11 other persons will announce the winners according to their performance next week.

The Cricinfo awards were introduced in the year 2007 and Sri Lankan batsman and wicket keeper Kumar Sangakkara and Zaheer Khan won the awards for the best batsman and for the best bowling in test cricket while Adam Gilchrist and Lasith Malinga were awarded for the best one day performance.

Mendis spins magic to rout Bangladesh

2009-01-09T04:46:00.000-08:00

SPIN sensation Ajantha Mendis picked up three wickets as Sri Lanka closed in on an emphatic win over Bangladesh on the fourth day of the second and final Test in Chittagong yesterday.

Mendis took 3-23 off 10 overs as the host struggled to 62-5 at tea in its second innings after being set a massive 624 to win the match and level the series.

The home side, which made 208 in its first innings, lost its openers with just 22 on the scoreboard.

Mendis triggered the slide when he removed Imrul Kayes (5) in his first over, caught at first slip by skipper Mahela Jayawardene.

Veteran paceman Chaminda Vaas removed Kayes's opening partner Tamim Iqbal (17), having him caught behind, before Mendis returned to dismiss Junaid Siddique and Mohammad Ashraful.

Siddique was trapped leg before wicket while Ashraful edged to wicketkeeper Prasanna Jayawardene after failing to read a googly from the unorthodox spinner.

Raqibul Hasan saw his middle stump uprooted by a reverse-swinging ball from fast bowler Dilhara Fernando and Bangladesh slipped to a precarious 5-52.

Earlier, Tillakaratne Dilshan notched his second century of the match.

Dilshan, 32, hit 14 fours and a six in his sparkling innings of 143 off 175 balls to steer the visiting side to a declaration at 6-447 in its second innings.

Dilshan, who top-scored with 162 in Sri Lanka's first-innings 384, became the fourth Sri Lankan to score two hundreds in a match after Duleep Mendis, Asanka Gurusinha and Aravinda de Silva.

Ajantha Mendis is the sorcerer's apprentice

2009-01-09T04:15:00.000-08:00

IF you observe Balapuwaduge Ajantha Winslo Mendis at a press conference, you can almost imagine Alice in Wonderland.

Along with the enigmatic smiles as his captain or manager translates his answers from Sinhala to English, there is a sense of wide-eyed wonder, almost as if he's asking himself: “What am I doing here and how did it happen?”

Just three years ago, Mendis, then 20, was trying to figure out what to do with his life. His academic career had been undistinguished, and he was playing for a local club when a chance encounter changed his life.

The Sri Lankan Army provided the opposition, and they liked what they saw of the youngster. After learning that Mendis was unemployed, the army made their move. His mother, a pious Catholic who raised her sister's children alongside her own, was reluctant, but the army's coaches managed to convince her that her son wouldn't be sent to the war front in Jaffna.

When he got to the army, Saman Hewavitharana, his coach, was amazed by what he saw.

“When he joined the army, he had only the off-break and leg-break,” he said recently. “But on his own, he started developing other deliveries at practice.”

The army had no great cricketing tradition and played in Tier B of the championship. In tandem with Seekuge Prasanna, a leg-spinner who dismissed Sachin Tendulkar in India's tour opener, Mendis inspired the army's run to the title. His contribution was 68 wickets at 10.51, and though there was little media coverage of the second rung, the buzz around the grounds where he played forced the selectors to take notice.

An Australian with fond memories of the subcontinent also played his part. In 1969-70, Ashley Mallett took 28 Indian wickets with his off-spin as Bill Lawry's side triumphed 3-1. Four decades on, he holds spin clinics twice a year in Sri Lanka.

Ruwan Kalpage, who played 11 Tests for Sri Lanka in the 1990s, was the chief coach at the spinners' clinic, and Mallett recommended Mendis get some special attention.

While they watched him, they did nothing to tamper with his unique style and repertoire. It's rare enough to find someone who bowls off-breaks, leg-breaks, flippers and googlies with a measure of control, but what Mendis has is a special delivery comparable to Coca Cola's secret 7X ingredient. Like the soft drink, there's real fizz off the pitch, but it's only when you watch the replays that you can marvel at the method behind it.

Holding the ball along the seam between forefinger and thumb, with the seam then pointed in the direction of gully, Mendis propels the ball with the knuckle and nail of his middle finger. If you try it at home, the chances are that the ball will drop somewhere near your feet. He manages to land it perfectly time after time, and after pitching, it zips away from the batsman like a leg-cutter.

Some have named it the “carrom ball” because of the manner in which the leather is flicked towards the batsman, and along with a loopy googly that he disguises beautifully, it remains the most potent weapon in his armoury.

When he made his one-day debut against West Indies a few months ago, commentators such as Colin Croft struggled to classify him. Hewavitharana, his former coach, calls him a “spin mix bowler”, while a Sri Lankan journalist who asked Mendis himself was astonished when he answered: “I'm an off-cutter bowler.”

His variations were far too much for both Pakistan and India at the Asia Cup in June-July, with the Indian humiliation in the final especially acute. The cream of a young batting line-up that had beaten Australia earlier in the year was rendered clueless, and commentators back in India were left to console themselves with the thought that the middle-order legends would all be back for the Test series in Sri Lanka.

After his 6-13 in that Asia Cup final, the hype surrounding Mendis was similar to the fame that David Beckham found with his 50-yard goal against Wimbledon more than a decade earlier.

India tried to play down the threat, with Rahul Dravid saying: “It will be a mistake to focus just on Mendis. We have come up against a lot of bowlers in our time and have succeeded against them.”

Prophetic words, as it turned out. Originally considered a one-day prospect, Mendis began to befuddle batsmen of the quality of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene in the Sri Lankan nets. After his Asia Cup feats, the urge to throw him in at the deep end was irresistible.

That it would be a dream debut was seldom in doubt once Sri Lanka's batsmen had piled up 600 against a listless Indian attack. Mendis planted seeds of doubt in his first four overs, and then reaped the reward with the first delivery of his fifth. The carrom ball on middle stump forced Dravid back in his crease, but by the time the bat arced down, the ball had crashed into the top of off stump. Anil Kumble and Zaheer Khan were then bamboozled by his variations before a magnificent over fetched him the prize wicket.

At his best, VVS Laxman is a master against the turning ball, the man who demoralised Shane Warne by flicking against the spin through midwicket, and driving inside out through extra-cover. Mendis set him up with two carrom balls that barely missed the edge before a superb googly sneaked through bat and pad.

In the second innings, he took out Laxman and Dravid again to finish with match figures of 8-132 as Sri Lanka romped him by an innings and 238 runs.

“It's hard enough to pick him from the hand,” said an Indian batsman later. “But the way he gets it to spit off the pitch makes him even harder to play.”

Ajantha Mendis puts Bangladesh in a spin | 2nd Test Vs Bangladesh 2008

2009-01-04T04:18:00.000-08:00

Sri Lanka bowled themselves to a position of strength despite a rearguard rally by Bangladesh tailender Mashrafe Mortaza on the second day of the second and final Test here on Sunday.

Spinners Ajantha Mendis and Muttiah Muralitharan shared seven wickets to bowl out the hosts for 208 in their first innings in reply to Sri Lanka's strong 384.

It was Mortaza who spared Bangladesh the ignominy of following on, adding 63 for the last wicket with Shahadat Hossain (five not out) after they were reeling at 145-9.

Mortaza hit eight fours and two sixes, one each off Mendis and Muralitharan, in his 89-ball 63. The only other player to offer some resistance was skipper Mohammad Ashraful who made 45 off 100 balls with five fours and a six.

Sri Lankan openers Malinda Warnapura (seven) and Prasanna Jayawardene (six) took their team to 13-0 in their second innings at close for an overall lead of 189.

Mendis, playing only his fourth Test and his first away from home after missing the opening game in Dhaka due to an ankle injury, rattled the home team with his guiles.

He removed Mehrab Hossain (18) and the in-form Shakib Al Hasan for a first-ball duck off successive balls besides taking the wickets of Mushfiqur Rahim (21) and Raqibul Hasan to finish with figures of 4-71.

Mendis, who enjoyed a sensational debut against India last year picking 26 wickets from three Tests, also got able support from Muralitharan (3-62).

The veteran bowler brought to an end a spirited knock by Ashraful, who flayed him for a six and two fours in an over, by having him caught behind.

Earlier Chaminda Vaas dismissed both the openers to deny Bangladesh a strong start in their first innings.

The fast bowler removed Tamim Iqbal for a duck in the opening over and trapped Imrul Kayes leg before for six, Bangladesh slipping to a precarious 26-2.

Mendis picked the third Bangladeshi wicket to fall in the morning when Raqibul Hasan failed to read a straighter one from the bowler and was adjudged leg before.

Bangladesh's batsmen failed to build on the good work of their bowlers who dismissed the visitors after they had added just 13 runs to their overnight total of 371-6.

Shakib picked three of the four remaining wickets to finish with 4-109.

Sri Lanka lead the two-Test series 1-0 after winning the opening Test in Dhaka by 107 runs.

And then there was Mendis | Srilanka Cricket 2008 Review

2009-01-04T01:38:00.000-08:00

January 3, 2009

A new dawn: Mendis has already almost taken over the mantle of main match-winner for Sri Lanka

Two thousand eight, according to Chinese astrology, was the Year of the Rat. For Sri Lanka cricket, it was the year of Ajantha Mendis.

The 23-year-old burst into the limelight in the Caribbean in April, bemusing the best of West Indies batsmen, who were at sea against the five varieties of spin he bowled. When Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene threw the ball to Mendis in the first one-day international, in Port-of-Spain, little did anyone realise that it would herald a new genre of spin.

Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan came into the limelight at a time when the art of spin bowling was dying. In the next 15 years or so they raised it to a level it had never attained before. But nothing lasts forever. Warne left the game in 2007 and Muralitharan is nearing the end of the road. The old fears were back that spin would become a dying art.

Then came Mendis.

Dwayne Bravo, the West Indies allrounder, recalled his first sighting: "[Ramnaresh] Sarwan had problems picking him, and from the time we saw this, most of the batsmen retreated to the dressing room and had a close look at his hand on the TV monitor." However, the best quote came from Rob Steen, on Cricinfo: "I have just seen the future of spin bowling - and his name is Ajantha Mendis."

Mendis really came into the limelight in his second ODI series, the Asia Cup in Pakistan, where he spun his team to a remarkable 100-run victory over favourites India in the final in Lahore.

He continued to torment the Indian batting when they toured Sri Lanka for a three-Test series and lost it 2-1. The difference was Mendis, who broke a 62-year-old record, held by England fast bowler Alec Bedser, by taking the most wickets in a debut series - 26.

The strong Indian batting line-up of Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, and VVS Laxman was left so bemused by the mystics of Mendis' spin that they managed only three fifties between them.
With Mendis catching so much world attention it was no surprise when he won the ICC's Emerging Player of the Year award.

New kid on the block Ajantha Mendis, who promises to become Sri Lankan cricket's new chief match-winner, succeeding Muttiah Muralitharan, who has held the mantle for many years.

Bangladesh prepare for Mendis threat

2009-01-03T01:38:00.000-08:00

Bangladesh's brave attempt at pulling off a record-breaking chase of 521 in Mirpur rounded off one of the most memorable months of Test cricket in recent memory. It also dispelled the notion that anything over 450 is unattainable in the fourth innings, even if it involves the weakest Test nation. Though the result didn't go their way, Bangladesh's effort has sparked some life and anticipation into the short series, which Sri Lanka were overwhelming favourites to sweep.

Now, though, Bangladesh find the bar raised much higher. The talking point in Chittagong has been the return of Ajantha Mendis to the Sri Lankan squad from an ankle injury. Should he play, the home side will find it that much harder to square the series. Mendis left the Indians clueless in the home series last year and, if he has his way on a slow turner here, Bangladesh could suffer equally. The two-day gap between Tests wouldn't have given Bangladesh enough time to prepare for Mendis. They may have handled Muttiah Muralitharan creditably on a fifth day pitch in Mirpur but Mendis, as recent history will tell you, is a different proposition.

Butt claims to have broken the Mendis code

2009-01-02T05:03:00.000-08:00

Pakistan opener Salman Butt claims to have found the key to success against Sri Lankan mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis after watching him bowl during the Indian Premier League trials for Kolkata Knight Riders. "He bowls like the typical finger tape tennis bowlers you find playing on the streets of Pakistan and his success comes from the fact that he has a very good faster ball without any visible change to his bowling action or grip on the ball," Butt told.

Butt said he would now be more comfortable while facing up to the unorthodox off-spin of Mendis during Pakistan's upcoming series against Sri Lanka.

"At the end of the season, Mendis had appeared in trials for the Kolkata Knight Riders and I got a chance to watch him bowl and also played him in the nets," Butt said.

"He uses his top finger to obtain speed off the surface and turn without changing his action," the opener added.

Bowlers who use just two fingers to obtain turn and speed from tennis balls covered with tape in street cricket in Pakistan are described as tape tennis specialists.

Mendis has been a runaway success since the Asia Cup held in Pakistan last year during which he bamboozled the batsmen with his variations taking six for 13 in the final against India in Karachi.

Mendis has taken 48 wickets at an average of 10.12 in 18 one-day internationals besides scalping 26 in three Tests against India.

Ajantha Mendis | Young Sri Lankan has world in a spin

2009-01-02T04:58:00.000-08:00

The most vivid sporting memories are generally seen in the flesh, but there was little more memorable in 2008 than a glimpse on television of a match being played halfway around the world.

It was a one-day international between West Indies and Sri Lanka. Its sole novelty was a young Sri Lankan spin bowler named Ajantha Mendis.

The moment of revelation came when Mendis bowled Darren Sammy, a lower-order batsman but one not lacking in ability. Sammy could hardly have been more bemused if the ball had disappeared entirely in its flight. Something remarkable had just flitted into view. The rest of the year confirmed that first impression.

India's batsmen, brought up in conditions that favor slow bowling, generally cope well with cricketing legerdemain and deception. Shane Warne, Australia's spin magician, had only a modest record against India. Yet India's batsmen were utterly confounded by the variations in pace, flight and spin that Mendis, 23, can summon up from his immensely powerful fingers.

In the final of the Asian Cup, he took six wickets for 13 runs against India. It was one of the best sets of figures ever in a one-day international.

Mendis then took 26 wickets in three five-day tests, the most ever in a three-match debut series, against the Indians. By the end of the series, India regarded Muttiah Muralitharan, international cricket's all-time record wicket-taker, as the softer option.

Mendis's averages per wicket - 10.12 in one-day internationals and 18.38 in tests - look like something from another, much lower-scoring age.

Cricket goes into 2009 with many imponderables, some entirely off-field. None on the field is more fascinating than whether Mendis maintains that early promise.

For now, he is a "mystery spinner." Batsman cannot work out his method and predict what is coming toward them.

Where earlier generations had only the evidence of their own eyes, experience and instincts and the game's grapevine, the moderns have access to intensive video analysis and nobody will be examined more closely than Mendis.

Those early averages, particularly the one-day one, will be hard to maintain unless Mendis is truly freakish. Yet they do suggest that Mendis will be a force for years to come.

Three remarkable spinners - Warne, Muralitharan and India's Anil Kumble - have towered over the past two decades.

Batsmen learned their methods and went cross-eyed examining film. Yet they continued to take hundreds of wickets. Mendis appears to have the mix of subtlety in variation and robustness in method to do the same.

Unlike Muralitharan, Mendis does not have to face worries about the legality of his bowling action. He is absent with an ankle injury from Sri Lanka's current series against Bangladesh, but he should be back in January for the greater challenge of tests in Pakistan.

A controversial figure among Sri Lanka's Tamil minority because he plays domestic cricket for the army club, he may, nevertheless, prolong the career of the Tamil hero, Muralitharan, who no longer has to carry the burden of bowling opposing teams out by himself.

Mendis is not the only rising practitioner of what was once thought a dying art. Shakib al-Hasan, a 21-year-old, could be the match winner Bangladesh has been looking for since it entered test cricket and India has a new wrist-spinner in Amit Mishra.

Fit-again Mendis joins Sri Lanka squad in Bangladesh

2009-01-02T04:55:00.000-08:00

Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis joined the squad in Bangladesh Monday after a quick recovery from an ankle injury that was expected to keep him out of the test series.

Mendis, 23, suffered severe soft tissue damage in his right ankle during a domestic game early this month and was replaced by left-arm spinner Rangana Herath for the two-test series.

"My ankle is alright now as I am feeling no pain," Mendis told reporters on his arrival in Dhaka Monday.

He is now expected to play in the second test starting in Chittagong Saturday.

Sri Lanka are in command in the first test in Dhaka after taking an overall lead of 406 runs after the third day. Monday is rest day due to parliamentary elections.

The unorthodox finger spinner was declared Man-of-the-Series on his test debut against India in July-August, taking 26 wickets at 18.38 runs apiece to help clinch the three-game series 2-1.

If he plays in Chittagong, it will only be his fourth test.

The phenomenon of Ajantha Mendis

2008-12-28T20:48:00.000-08:00

Utter confusion prevails over what to term Ajantha Mendis. The mystery bowler from Sri Lanka, who before beginning his cricketing career was an Army gunner, was the latest spin sensation in international cricket this year.

Two of his deliveries during India's Test series in Sri Lanka remain etched in my mind. One that spun a mile and got rid of Guatam Gambhir and one that skid across and skittled past the defence of VVS Laxman. Was it true? Were we finally seeing a bowler who had the ability to bowl six different balls every over?

As he bowled a blend of off breaks, leg breaks, googlies, top spinners, doosra's and the carrom ball, experts picked each other's brains to unravel the Mendis mystery. Even the best players of spin wanted a second chance against him. The first was too big a mystery to fathom. Before you knew it, he got you!

Many experts compared, even equated him with the likes of Jack Iverson and John Gleeson after he set a Lankan record by picking 18 wickets in his first two Tests against India. Only four bowlers in the history of Test cricket have had a better record.

These bowlers are India's Narendra Hirwani (24), England's Alec Bedser (22), Australia's Bob Massie (21) and England's Syd Barnes (19). Of these, only England's Alec Bedser went on to become a pillar of English cricket and finished with 236 wickets from 51 Tests.

What also stands clear from the list above is the fact that none of the bowlers of the game, who have gone to etch their names in the list of most successful bowlers or highest wicket-takers in the game had been able to make such an impression in their first Test series. Look at the list and you won't find a Sir Richard Hadlee or an Imran Khan or a Anil Kumble or a Shane Warne or fellow Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan.

Even though Murali may back Mendis as his successor and call the gunner better than himself, the Moratuwa Mauler still has many a miles to go before he's accepted as a proven match-winner for Sri Lanka.

Due to Sri Lankan's cricket calendar, Mendis has only played in three Tests so far. He's talented no doubt and till the time world cricket picks his variations he will continue to be a threat.

But the true test of the spinner will come once the Mendis mystery is solved. How soon would that be, only time will tell. But till such time, Mendis would do well to remember that bowlers who make a sensational entry in cricket need not necessarily have a sensational exit.

The acid test awaits!

Ajantha Winslow Mendis Interview | Captain Mahela’s new Lieutenant

2008-12-25T03:07:00.000-08:00

When Mendis was dumping the balls into the stands in the cauldron of Asian Cup Final against India at the National Stadium of Karachchi, not only sports romantics, but also very capable players were held in trance by the seemingly casual flick of his magical middle finger spinning. Left-handers, Yuvraj, Raina and Pathan were sent off with no clue against aggressive balls of the ‘carromball’ spinner.

“He would have taken eight wickets had Jayawardene not removed him.” was the view of many commentators.

This mesmerising wicket hungry bowler who arrived into Sri Lankan cricket as a breath of fresh air, was practising at the SSC grounds, in a freaky way of gripping the ball between thumb and middle finger, and throwing the ball up, down and front, when I reached SSC to have a chat with this unorthodox, self-taught bowler.

We would like to know about your school cricket career.

I studied at Kadalana St. Anthony’s College till Grade 9 and then entered Moratuwa Maha Vidyalaya. I played for the Moratuwa Maha Vidyalaya under 17 cricket team as the captain.

Since I was very much engaged in cricket couldn’t excel in studies. I did my O/L in 2003 and stopped my schooling without doing A/Ls. That’s mainly because of my passion and dedication for cricket. Because I think it is difficult to balance studies with sports and I was not interested in studies.

Why did you join the Army?

As in the case of the majority who join the Army my intention was not merely to go to the battlefield and fight. The main reason was to play cricket. I joined the fourth Artillery Regiment at Panagoda.

How did it happen?

When I was playing for the Moratuwa Club, I took seven wickets in a cricket match between the Army and the club. Having being impressed by my performance, an official from the Army came to my place and invited me to join the Army and play for its cricket team.

At first I was a bit hesitant due to the image I had of the Army in my mind. My mother too was a little bit reluctant to agree with Mr. Vitharana’s suggestion of recruiting me to the Army. However my relatives convinced my mother to let me join the Army.

Do you have any battlefield experiences?

I received basic training as a soldier but I have never been in the battlefield. I mainly engaged in cricket.

You stayed at Panagoda Army Camp. How often did you visit your family at Moratuwa?

Once in a fortnight. I was the only person in my family who did not go to work outside.

All my sisters and brothers stayed and went to work from home. I was eagerly waiting to visit my family. I missed them a lot and they did too. Especially my mother. She used to prepare dishes I liked when I went home.

Your family?

I am the third in a family of five. My elder brother Aruna is working at Brandix and my elder sister Aruni is reading for an external degree.

My younger sister Rasika is getting ready for her O/Ls this year at the Moratuwa Convent. My younger brother Asanka is studying to become a Catholic priest at the Kalutara seminary.

My mother Ranjani Sriyani Fernando is a housewife. My father, Wensus Leo Mendis died before I joined the Army. I am sad that my father is not there to see my achievements. I believe that his blessings are the key to my success.

What made your foray into Sri Lanka cricket team?

Due to my performance I was selected to Development Academy and trained under coach Jerome Jayaratne. I took part in the provincial premiere series. I became the best bowler and then the cricket committee decided to recruit me for the national team.

Who are your coaches?

Prasanna Dissanayake was the school coach at Moratuwa Maha Vidyalaya. Saman Hewavitharana was my coach in the Army and I am now being trained under Neil Rajapakse.

Your way of bowling is similar to that of Jack Iverson in the 1950s who developed the method of gripping the ball between the thumb and middle finger powerfully flicking the latter either way at the point of delivery. Did you try to imitate him or did your coaches try to change your way of bowling?

No. I didn’t try to imitate Iverson. A bowling style cannot be imitated one has to have innate talent to handle the ball. My coaches did not mess around with my natural talent either. They were not obsessed with mimicking of someone else’s way of delivering the ball. Coaches helped me to develop my way of bowling.

What are your practice sessions?

I arrive at the SSC grounds around 8 in the morning for practice. I practise till 6-7 p.m. with breaks in between. Unless I have to practise for a tournament, I keep Saturday and Sunday free.

How do you spend your weekends?

Most of the times when I am at home during the weekend, I sleep. Even my family members do not disturb my sleep. Otherwise I listen to music. I love Hindi songs.

How’s the response you receive from opposite sex?

Quite a big and impressive response. Girls call me but I do not know how have they found my contact number.

When girls see me they purposely look at me and smile with me. I don’t know them but I smile with them. Even you could see how many girls smiled and came and talked to me. I do not know any of them. I’m happy to have a good response from the opposite sex as a boy of this age would rarely have that chance.

Your princess charming?

I haven’t thought of that yet. I wish I had one but I know it’s hard for me to manage romance with sports. I would be confused not knowing what to give priority, to romance or sports. I would finally end up losing both. I want to build up my sports career. This is just the start of a long journey.

So, at the moment I concentrate only on sports. I will think of settling down , may be, in five years’ time. I’m still 24. It would be ok for me to think of something what you mentioned after 30.

Was the Asia Cup your maiden international match?

I have played for Sri Lanka prior to that. When I was at the Development Squad I played for Sri Lanka against India. I represented the National team at the tour nament in the West Indies as well. I was in the IPL “Kalkata Night Riders”.

Tell about your recent promotion?

I joined the Army as a soldier. After my high level performance at the Asia Cup Final, I was promoted as a second Lieutenant on my return.

How do you feel about the new promotion?

I feel honoured and proud along with the euphoria of being world famous and receiving a promotion at such a young age.

Ajantha Mendis tipped to better Shane Warne's record

2008-12-23T05:29:00.000-08:00

SRI Lankan coach Trevor Bayliss has put cricket's top batsmen on high alert that self-taught mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis can step into Shane Warne's shoes and become the world's top spinner.

Bayliss has been gobsmacked by Sri Lanka's new spin freak, who has taken an astonishing 20 wickets at an average of 10 in his first eight one-day internationals - including rocking India with an amazing 6-13 in the final of an Asian one-day tournament.

Mendis, 23, devastated India again last week when he grabbed eight wickets in his Test debut in Colombo.

The unorthodox youngster, who has five different off-spin and leg-spin variations bowled with a mysterious click of his fingers, appears harder to pick than his teammate, Muttiah Muralidaran.

Bayliss, the former NSW batsman, has seen enough to declare that Mendis can take spin to fresh heights and become the premier tweaker in world cricket.

"This guy is an absolute freak. He has five different deliveries which spin different ways and he is working on another one or two others," said Bayliss, speaking from Galle.

"He flicks deliveries out of his fingers in different ways and the amazing thing is that every one is accurate.

"There is no doubt he could become the world's best spinner because he's only at the start of his development and he's such a quick learner with an enormous potential.

"Batsmen can't pick him at the moment and he is only going to get better."

The deadly Mendis has also invented a new delivery - the "carrom" or "flicker" ball - which he releases with a snap of his strong middle finger and could result in an off-break, a leg-break, a googly or even a zooter.

Mendis has been compared to former Australian mystery spinner John Gleeson but has more tricks as he has no "stock" ball in his confusing bag of spin weaponry.

The part-time Sri Lankan army trooper is an incredible story given he comes from a poor family and taught himself to bowl with a tennis ball.

Like the unorthodox actions of Muralidaran and super slinger Lasith Malinga, it is a great credit to the Sri Lankan development system that no coach has attempted to change Mendis.

Australia could lock horns with Mendis at September's Champions Trophy and Bayliss has warned that his side will be a much tougher proposition.

"Apart from his own incredible talents, one of the great things about Mendis is that Murali will be able to bowl in a more attacking fashion at the other end," Bayliss said.

The security and safety situation in Pakistan for the Champions Trophy in September remains one of cricket's burning issues with Australia set to boycott the tournament if it is not shifted from the strife-torn republic.

Ajantha Mendis is a danger - Shoaib Malik

2008-12-23T05:25:00.000-08:00

Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik believes Sri Lanka will provide stern opposition for his side during their tour next month.

The Pakistan Cricket Board have invited the Sri Lankans for three Tests and three one-day internationals in a series starting in January, filling the gap in the calendar created by India's cancellation of their tour.

The PCB will finalise the dates for the series against Sri Lanka this week.

Pakistan lost 1-0 to both South Africa and India in their only Test series in 20 months since Malik took over as captain.

While he was disappointed by the cancellation of the Indian tour, Malik feels that Sri Lanka will make for an equally testing contest.

"We are disappointed with India's decision not to tour Pakistan," Malik said.

"India have been doing well so it would have been a good series, but Sri Lanka are also a good team.

"We have to do a lot of hard work since we have been out of international cricket for so long.

"Sri Lanka have been doing well at the international level. They will be tough opponents, but we will be ready for them."

Malik is especially wary of the threat posed by spinner Ajantha Mendis, who is Sri Lanka's leading wicket-taker this year and was instrumental in their 2-1 win over India in a three-match Test series earlier this year.

"Sri Lanka have two quality spinners in Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis," Malik said.

"We have played Murali on numerous occasions in the past, but Mendis would prove a handful. We have to master him."

Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam has banked his hopes on fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, who has not played a Test or a one-day match for Pakistan this year due to suspension and injury.

Although he is available for selection, Shoaib is still fighting to overturn an 18-month ban imposed by the PCB for disciplinary reasons.

He was picked for the three-match one-day series against West Indies in Abu Dhabi, but did not play due to a calf injury.

"Shoaib will be our key man," said Intikhab. "He is back and is now full of confidence.

"I see him as a completely changed man and he will be an asset for the team."

No missing Mendis | says Mashrafee Mortaza

2008-12-23T05:08:00.000-08:00

Vice captain Mashrafee Bin Mortaza says they are relieved that sensational Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis is missing the two Test home series starting on Dec. 26.

"Mendis is now a quite good bowler and his absence must relieve us," Mashrafee said to reporters during the Tigers' first practice session on Friday at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.

Mendis, who grabbed 26 wickets in three matches to help his side to a 2-1 Test series win over India in July-August, was ruled out of squad at the last moment due to knee injury. Rangana Herath replaced him in the 15-member squad.

The Bangladesh pace spearhead, however, believed Sri Lanka still had a good bowling attack with spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan still a big threat.

"There is no Mendis in the Sri Lankan squad, but Muralitharan is still there and he may cause the main problem."

The 25-year-old said they had been working on how to deal with Muralitharan and hoped to play better cricket in home condition.

Off-spinner Muralitharan has grabbed 76 wickets, including 10 five-wicket hauls, in nine Tests against Bangladesh.

Mashrafee said his side needed to do better in batting, bowling and fielding.

"We could not continue with the performance we had put up against New Zealand at home to South Africa last month, but this time we are confident of doing well against Sri Lanka.

"We first think of whether we can win the Test. For this, we need do well in four innings with both the bat and the ball.

"If we can play well in two innings, then we can go close to them, but it is not possible to win the match without doing better in all four innings," said Mashrafee.

He praised left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan for the way he was coming up.

"He has been bowling consistently since the World Cup in the West Indies as he pitches the ball in specific areas as [Mohammed Rafique] did and it is probably the reason for his success."

A Mendis special insurance from Janashakthi

2008-12-23T05:05:00.000-08:00

A combination that’s set to become a winning partnership, was tangibly expressed on Tuesday evening at the Holiday Inn Hotel - when an agreement was signed and exchanged between the Chairman, Janashakthi Insurance, W.T. Ellawala, and Sri Lanka’s ace spinner of the ball, the metoric rising star, Ajantha Mendis - to give effect to his becoming the new Brand Ambassador for Janashakthi. This memorable occasion, that had a measure of significance for both Janashakthi and Mendis, had a very representative gathering comprising personnel from the media, both print as well as electronic, visitors and guests, with the proceedings being well steered by compere Kumar de Silva.

It was gathered from the Managing Director, Janashakthi Insurance, Prakash Schaffter, that the new partnership between Janashakthi and Mendis was complementary to each other, in that both share the same passion and values “Innovation, Trustworthiness, Dynamism and Dependability. Janashakthi he emphasised has proved that these values are inherent in its business activities, having produced countless industrial firsts, as well as proving its dependability and trustworthiness by settling many significant claims.

And went onto draw the parallel, that Mendis too in his relatively short career, proved beyond doubt that he is a cricketer, who can be trusted to deliver the goods. He is also a celebrated as an innovative and a dynamic cricketer an accepted fact among the cricket loving public.

Prakash also made the point that both Janashakthi and Mendis had yet another similarity in that they were early achievers. For the reason that within only a decade of operation, Janashakthi was the only insurer to acquire a state owned insurance company, and swiftly to become Sri Lanka’s 3rd Largest General Insurer.

Not forgetting as well that it was the fastest insurer to reach the Rs. 5 billion revenue milestone and also Sri Lanka’s first private insurer to venture into the South Asian market. Mendis too has shown that he is an early achiever for he almost single handedly “delivered” the Asia Cup to Sri Lanka and was declared the most ‘important player’ in the tournament. He was also named “Most Emerging cricketer 2007/8 at the recently concluded ICC cricket awards.

This apart, in a very short period of time he achieved the laudable feat of breaking the world record for the most number of test wickets by any bowler in a debut test series. He became the ‘Man of the series’ in the twenty20 tournament in Canada and then went on to dazzle in Zimbabwe too: There are features that are common to both Janashakthi and Mendis, which led Prakash Schaffter to conclude saying “all our Mutual accomplishments, passions and qualities are in line with Janashakthi’s corporate image and the excellence of the brand we take pride in offering the Sri Lankan public, thus making Ajantha Mendis the perfect choice.

The Chairman, Janashakthi Insurance, W.T. Ellawala and Roshan Abeysinghe drew a brief narrative of both Janashakthi and Mendis - with Roshan adding that we ought not to lose sight of the part played by Major General V.R. Silva in nurturing and guiding this gem of a bowler. Roshan even went to the extent of making a suggestive request that Janashakthi consider insuring Ajantha’s fingers.

The man of the moment, Ajantha Mendis said it was his pride and privilege to be associated with Janashakthi in this way and thanked them for the opportunity.

Ajantha Mendis out of Bangladesh tests

2008-12-23T05:02:00.000-08:00

An ankle injury has forced star spinner Ajantha Mendis out of Sri Lanka's squad to tour Bangladesh this month, Sri Lanka Cricket said on Thursday.

Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath was picked as a replacement for Mendis in a 15-member squad for the two Tests starting December 26.

However, Mendis will play in a three nation one-day international tournament involving Zimbabwe as the third team, the statement said.

Mendis made his debut for Sri Lanka this year and had quickly established himself as a strike bowler in both Tests and limited overs cricket.

In July he broke a 62-year record for the most number of wickets in a three-match debut series, beating England's Alec Bedser's previous best of 24 wickets.

Herath, who has taken 35 wickets in 13 Tests, played his last Test against the West Indies in March.

The squad: Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Kumar Sangakkara, Malinda Warnapura , Michael Vandort Thilan Samaraweera, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Prasanna Jayawardena, Chaminda Vaas, Muttiah Muralitharan, Rangana Herath, Dammika Prasad, Chamara Kapugedera, Farveez Maharoof, Dilhara Fernando, Thilan Thushara.

M & M - gives cricket a new meaning

2008-12-14T01:51:00.000-08:00

Through the years, modern political transformation there have been certain individuals who have swum against the set pattern of currents and cut their own niches to make an indelible impression in the history of a given society or mankind as a whole.

For instance France’s Napoleon Bonaparte, (1769 – 1821) later known as Napoleon I, was a French military and political leader who had a significant impact on the history of Europe. He was a general during the French Revolution. In 1799, Napoleon staged a coup d'état and installed himself as First Consul; five years later he crowned himself Emperor of the French and the rest is common history.

In Sri Lanka former President Ranasinghe Premadasa came from very insignificant beginnings, but, the impression he made in the Lankan political arena has now become common folklore.

Ajantha Mendis

In the present context – In America a Black president ruling that most powerful nation in the World would not even have been the topic of a bar stool argument in a black ghetto a quarter of a century ago. But, Barak Obama a lawyer from Kenyan origin has proved that those misnomers and other general theories on who rules the world are total fallacies.

The above political commentary lends credence that at times history comes out with certain individuals and places them at the right place at the right time against the common belief of a majority of people.
Just over a year ago Muttiah Muralitharan was Sri Lanka’s version of a Trojan horse against the rest of a the World and he alone turned the entire cricketing globe on its head while fighting tooth and nail against the disbelievers that a man from a tiny island could make it to the top.

The thirty-six-year-old off spinner who made his first appearance against the Australians in 1992 gradually took control of the situation till he became the undisputed champion in the bowling arena in Test cricket. His tally of 756 plus wickets may not be overhauled in the foreseen future, especially when one looks at the cricketing calendar a top level cricketer faces these days. Even in ODIs his 490 wickets is awesome and that too may count on till the year 2011.

Nonetheless while Muralitharan was forging ahead with his exploits, there was a notable vacuum in the Lankan arsenal. Through Murali`s decade and half exercise there were spinners tailored on board to go tandem with him, but the pair never clicked off. Always it was Murali the lone fish in the well.
Then suddenly a year ago Ajantha Mendis was drafted into the Army from nowhere, and thus the trouble to the batsmen facing up to him began.

There is a nice little background story about Ajantha. Once he made it to the national squad he was still a novice but, his deeds compelled selectors to take him to the West Indies especially on a tour without injured Muralitharan.

Generally a player with a little exposure is not given the major games and at times come back without even a single outing. That is common in international cricket. Taken on tour and while at practices he was troubling the entire top guns in the Lankan line-up. Then a tour selector took the bold decision and suggested that Ajantha should be tried out and the other rather reluctantly agreed and the rest is history.

Muttiah Muralitharan

Now in three Test matches Mendis had taken 26 wickets and in ODIs with 48 wickets in only 19 outings he is closing in on a World record.

More than the youngster’s individual exploits, what is more important is that his advent into the national grid has given a new twist to the Lankan cricketing cause. Now Muralitharan is no more alone.
They together, bamboozled the much venerated Indian batting line-up, thus prompting the retirement of a part of the Indian-fab-five.

Now any one can see even the aging Muralitharan is bowling with new vigour. Now Muralitharan has paired off with Mendis in thirteen ODIs and taken 26 wickets. Prior to that in the same number of matches he bagged only 16 wickets. The difference shows.Mendis is almost certain of not making it to Bangladesh for the two tests and the tri-series through injury. Then with bad management and sparse cricket Sri Lanka may limp onto the 2011 World Cup and few other engagements in between. Still whenever these two bowlers get together the opposing batsmen are sure to find a new meaning to the word bewilderment.

Even now that it has been proved that a spin duo is always more useful than a single unit, are we going to live with the status quo? After the Next World Cup Muralitharan then closing up to his forties may decide to pack up his boots.

A cricket insider described the present duo as a unique set. From one end Muralitharan uses his experience, guile and variety to fox the opposition and mostly bowls outside the wickets as a result of his prodigious turn.

At the other end Mendis bowls wicket to wicket with very little movement, but with a different blend in each delivery.

The result is a lethal bowling cocktail hard to understand.

Then once again are we going to let Mendis go his way alone? Even by 2011 Ajantha Mendis will be a relatively new bowler besides his tremendous talent.

According to news reaching us the two bowling camps at the SLC – spin and seam are not functioning as efficiently in the way it did under Ruwan Kalpage and Champaka Ramanayake.

The Mumbai setback will soon be over and cricket in the sub-continent will once again be in the driving seat. Now cricket is a multi-million dollar business and it is the cricketer who has to make all the new dollars that the management wastes through short-sighted bad decisions.

At least now look to the future. The date has not passed as yet like for many more others. Once the flame is burnt out the resurrection will not be easy. Even now please look for beyond 2011.

In short what history has produced sporadically, the Lankans have done in quite quick succession. Both bowlers are unique, mysterious and one in a million.

Mendis to miss Bangladesh Tests | Sri Lanka in Bangladesh 2008-09

2008-12-11T06:16:00.000-08:00

Ajantha Mendis injured his ankle while bowling for Army SC against Tamil Union

Ajantha Mendis, the Sri Lankan spinner, will miss the two-Test series in Bangladesh, which begins on December 26, after injuring his ankle while bowling for Army SC in his first match of the domestic season against Tamil Union last weekend.

Ranjith Nanayakkarawasam, the Sri Lanka team physio, said Mendis had strained his right ankle and was undergoing treatment. "The injury will take at least three to four weeks to heal," he said. Mendis is expected to be back for the ODI tri-series against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, scheduled to start on January 10.

Rangana Herath, the left-arm spinner, will take Mendis' place in Sri Lanka's 15-man Test squad. Herath's last Test was in March this year, against West Indies in Guyana.

Mendis has had a successful run in 2008, announcing his arrival with 26 wickets at 18.38 apiece in his debut Test series against India earlier this year. He had a superb run in ODIs as well - he took 48 wickets in 18 matches - and is set to become the fastest to 50 ODI scalps: Ajit Agarkar achieved the milestone in 23 games.

Ajantha Mendis for county ? | by Damith.S

2008-12-09T21:06:00.000-08:00

The scrap is on.

There are rumours that the English counties are targeting our young spin maestro Ajantha 'Splendid' Mendis. Its not often that young Sri Lankans are spotted by the counties. The most notable players in the English domestic game have always been the big names from the island.

Sanath

Murali

Sangakkara

Aravinda.

Them be some really big names.

This is a wonderful opportunity for Splendid Mendis, (doesn't it just roll off the tongue). Its also a sign of just how big an impact he has made in the world game in his very short career.

I have always felt that Mendis needs to develop stock ball.

Warne had his leggie.

Murali has his big spinning offie.

Mendis bowls about 6 or 7 different variations in an over. But in the long run what's going to bag you most of your wickets is your stock ball. Even if it does not directly get you the wicket, the stock ball will ensure your variations are that much more dangerous. The county game, depending on how long he gets to play, will offer him a great chance to do just this.

But where will he go ?

Most Likely
The most likely scenario is that Mendis will go to Lancashire because of the Murali tie -in.

I'm sure Murali will have plenty of nice things to say about the county. Including yarns about every ones favourite man- Freddy.

My Pick

Personally Id like to see him move to Sussex. I quite like the idea of Mendis trying to fill the 1800+ wickets hole that Mushy has left there. Sussex do have Ollie Rayner to who has been under the astute apprenticeship of the bearded one. So it will be interesting to see what approach they take.

Wild Card

Durham - who might want to mix things up next year as their attack is pace heavy. With Paul Wiseman reaching a 153 years of age next year and proving to be highly ineffective with 16 wickets to his name, Mendis might slot in well for the reining Division 1 Champions.

Verdict

What ever county he goes to, its a guaranteed investment.

Considering how the Englishmen went against Murali during his stint, Mendis will eat the English men alive and spit them out for good measure.

by Damith S : www.hilalscricket.com

Ajantha Mendis set to break world record

2008-12-09T20:59:00.000-08:00

Colombo: Sri Lanka’s mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis is set to break the world record for the fastest bowler in One-Day Internationals to take 50 wickets. The 23-year-old Sri Lankan soldier has been mesmerizing opponents since his debut early this year and so far has claimed 48 ODI victims in 17 matches leading up to Sunday’s fifth and final ODI against Zimbabwe in Harare.

The record is held by India’s Ajit Agarkar, who in 1998 went pass Dennis Lillee’s record that had stood for 18 years. Lillee had taken 24 matches to claim 50 victims while Agarkar did it in 23 games.

Mendis has enjoyed a successful series so far having claimed 15 wickets in four games at a miserly 7:06 apiece.

Ever since he made his debut against the West Indies in April this year, Mendis’ mixture of off-breaks, leg-breaks, googlies, flippers and top-spinners has troubled the world’s best batsmen.

He claimed six for 29 on Thursday in Harare, the eighth best bowling figures by a Sri Lankan in one-dayers.

He also broke a World Record that had stood for 62 years on his debut series when he claimed 26 wickets in a three match series breaking Sir Alec Bedser’s record that had been established in 1946.

Saturday, November 29, 2008 9:16:01 PM

Ajantha Mendis & Murali spin Zimbabwe out in Harare

2008-11-21T23:21:00.000-08:00

Sri Lanka had little trouble capitalising on Zimbabwe's batting capitulation, reaching their victory target in a little over 33 overs to win the first one-day international by six wickets in Harare.

The hosts lost their last seven wickets for three runs - including six successive ducks - to be bowled out for only 127 by Sri Lanka spinners Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis.

And despite the early run out of Upul Tharanga, Sri Lanka cruised to victory with Kumar Sangakkara (50 not out) leading the way.

Zimbabwe seemed well placed at 124 for three but collapsed to be all out in only 31 of their scheduled 50 overs as Murali (four for 14) and Mendis (three for 26) ran riot.

It was the introduction of Murali which set the slide in irresistible motion, with wicketkeeper-batsman Tatenda Taibu powerless to stop the procession of potential partners.

Former captain Taibu finished unbeaten on 36, having shared a 41-run fourth-wicket stand with Stuart Matsikenyeri which appeared to be putting the hosts on course for a 200-plus total.

Instead, once Matsikenyeri was bowled by Murali the Sri Lankan spin twins were unstoppable.

A shellshocked Zim side got the start they needed as Tharanga was run out after just three balls.

But a partnership of 57 between Mahela Udawatte (38) and Sangakkara settled Sri Lankan nerves, before Elton Chigumbura removed the opener.

Spinner Ray Price bagged a couple of wickets of his own but could not match the devastation caused by Murali and Mendis and, with the scores level, Sangakkara struck the ball to the long-on boundary to bring up his own half century and Sri Lanka's victory.

Mendis a bigger threat than Murali - Utseya

2008-11-20T03:54:00.000-08:00

November 20, 2008

Prosper Utseya, the Zimbabwe captain, believes Ajantha Mendis will be a bigger threat than his Sri Lankan spin partner Muttiah Muralitharan in the five-match one-day series starting on Thursday in Harare.

"We were lucky to play Mendis in a four-day game and we have an idea of what to expect from him," Utseya said. "Murali didn't play in that warm-up game, but I don't think he's as effective as Mendis. But basically it's all about us reacting to whatever they dish out."

Voted the ICC Emerging Player of the Year for 2008, Mendis has enjoyed a rich vein of form since his debut earlier this year. He was the highest wicket-taker in both the Tests and the ODIs during Sri Lanka's previous home series against India in July-August, and was also top of the bowling charts in the T20 Canada. He took 11 wickets from three matches, more than making up for the absence of Muralitharan, who was rested for the tournament.

Though the Sri Lankan squad bears a young look - Sanath Jayasuriya and Chaminda Vaas among the notable absentees - Utseya said he was expecting a tough series. "Obviously, on paper they are better than us, but in terms of what we can do I think we have done well in our preparations and we can only expect positive results to come out of those preparations," he said. Zimbabwe have not had much action this year due to the political turmoil in the country. At home, they last played West Indies in a five-match ODI series back in December 2007, which they lost 1-3.

A poor start to 2008 saw them being blanked 5-0 in Pakistan in an ODI series. There was not-too-productive T20 Canada in October, and though they shared the honours in the tri-series in Kenya, they currently find themselves at No.11 in the ICC ODI rankings, behind Associate member Ireland.

"We haven't played much cricket this year, but from the little action we've had and the preparations, I think we are prepared for the challenge," Utseya said. "We can't be using lack of international matches as an excuse.

"We just need to stick to the basics because whenever you play against top bowlers, you have to go back to the basics. We just need to believe in ourselves and do the right things, because a good ball will trouble any batsman, including the best in the world, and that's all we need to work on."

Ajantha Mendis hurts Zimbabweans | Srilanka's Tour of Zimbabwe 2008

2008-11-20T03:48:00.000-08:00

November 12, 2008:

Sri Lanka began their tour of Zimbabwe in bullish fashion, dismissing a Zimbabwe Select XI for 159 on a rain-affected first day of their warm-up match in Bulawayo. Ajantha Mendis picked up four wickets and in reply, Upul Tharanga and Mahela Udawatte propelled the tourists to 50 without loss in 14 overs.

The umpires twice suspended play because of drizzle and eventually ended the day 20 minutes early due to bad light.

Zimbabwe’s innings began poorly when Chamu Chibhabha steered a very wide delivery to gully, and it never gained any real momentum other than a brief seventh-wicket renaissance of 46 from Elton Chigumbura and Prosper Utseya which lent the score a degree of respectability. They missed the experience and bravery of Tatenda Taibu, who was dropped in rather odd circumstances. Dilhara Fernando took full advantage early on, picking up two of the first four wickets to fall, including the promising Hamilton Masakadza leg-before for 26.

It wasn’t long before Mendis was brought into the attack and he soon bowled Regis Chakabva to get his name on the scoreboard. When he followed that up with the wicket of Keith Dabengwa, also bowled, Zimbabwe had slipped to 90 for 6. However, Chigumbura and Utseya staved off the collapse with a vital seven-wicket stand of 46.

Aware of the situation, both players dropped anchor and gradually shovelled Zimbabwe’s total past 100, but Fernando returned to have Utseya caught behind for 22 while Chigumbura - who had spent over two hours at the crease - was beaten by Mendis. Angelo Mathews mopped up a flaccid tail.

Zimbabwe squandered an early chance when Mahela Udawatte edged Christopher Mpofu but Stuart Matsikenyeri at second slip failed to hold onto a routine catch. Tharanga went on the attack and cracked five fours in his unbeaten 31 while Udawatte ended on 17 as Sri Lanka made brisk headway to reach 50 in 14 overs.

Unless the weather plays a major part, this match appears unlikely to go into a fourth day.

Brief scores: Sri Lankans 50 for 0 (Tharanga 31*, Udawatte 17*) trail Zimbabwe Select XI 159 (Chigumbura 33, Mendis 4-59) by 109 runs

Ajantha Mendis is a freak, says Lanka’s first Test captain Bandula Warnapura

2008-11-12T00:36:00.000-08:00

AJANTHA Mendis is a ‘freaky phenomenon’ who could surpass spin greats Shane Warne and Muthiah Muralitharan if he stays injury-free for at least 10 years, Sri Lanka’s first Test captain has said.
Bandula Warnapura, who led Sri Lankan greats such as Roy Dias, Duleep Mendis and Arjuna Ranatunga against England when the island nation got Test status in 1982, even compared Mendis to Don Bradman, calling them ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ cricketers.
“From what I have seen so far of Mendis I have no hesitation in saying that he could be to bowling what the great Don Bradman was to batting,” the former opener told the Gulf Times yesterday.
“In fact, if you permit me, I’d even say Mendis is a freak. He is a freaky phenomenon, a once-in-a-lifetime player like Bradman who could break all records if he stays healthy,” enthused Warnapura, who is visiting Qatar as part of his work as a development officer with the Asian Cricket Council (ACC).
“Look at Bradman. He has a Test match average of 99.96. Can anyone beat it? Never. Mendis could also end up breaking all bowling records,” predicted Warnapura.
Mendis shot into the limelight at the Asia Cup earlier this year where he foxed batsmen by sometimes bowling six different balls in one over. His mesmerising spells helped Sri Lanka win the tournament beating India and Pakistan in the process.
Bowling off a longish run-up, he delivers a mixture of googlies, off-breaks, top-spinners, flippers and leg-breaks and is credited with inventing the carom ball, a fizzing delivery released with a flick of his middle finger.
In the final of the Asia Cup against India he claimed figures of 6 for 13 and his 17 scalps in the event earned him the man of the series award.
Mendis proved his performance at the Asia Cup was no fluke when he made his Test debut against India last July and almost single-handedly routed them, taking a whopping 26 wickets in three Tests which Sri Lanka won 2-1.
His first scalp was Rahul ‘The Wall’ Dravid bowled by the carrom ball that pegged back the batsman’s off-stump after pitching on middle. He claimed eight wickets for 132 in the Test, the best figures recorded by a Sri Lankan bowler making his debut.
Mendis was praised to the skies by the master Muralitharan himself after the match.
“When I started playing Test cricket, I was not as good as Mendis. He is exceptional. He is the future of Sri Lankan cricket,” Muralitharan said.
Mendis collected his first ten-wicket haul in the very next match, but Sri Lanka lost the match thanks to a double century by Virender Sehwag and some fine bowling by Harbhajan Singh who also claimed 10 wickets.. But with 26 wickets (ave.18.38) in the series, Mendis set a world record for most scalps by a bowler on his debut in a three-Test by series.
Mendis won the player of the series award for his efforts and the Indians’ reputation as the best players of spin bowling took a hammering. Adding insult to injury was the fact that the Sri Lankans lived up to captain Mahela Jayawardene’s promise of not allowing Sachin Tendulkar to break Brian Lara’s Test record of most runs on Lankan soil.
Warnapura said Mendis made his international debut at the right time.
“Some say Mendis should have been thrust onto the world stage much earlier, but if you ask me he was introduced at just about the perfect time because many promising spinners have just faded away after making their debuts as teenagers,” said Warnapura.
“At 23 Mendis was seasoned enough. He had the maturity to handle pressure unlike some so-called prodigies who just disappeared after being mauled, their confidence totally shattered.
“They were not ready, but the selectors were ready to expose them and they suffered badly.”

Must-Read Books >> | Mystery Spinner UNCOVERED

2008-11-12T00:25:00.000-08:00

Gideon Haigh's biography of Iverson painstakingly unearths the story of a talented misfit

Steven Lynch

October 18, 2008

Suddenly "mystery spin" is back in the cricket news, thanks to Ajantha Mendis of Sri Lanka. Mendis' mesmerising carrom delivery, flicked out by a finger curled up underneath the ball, has only been seriously attempted in international cricket before by a couple of Australians: there was John Gleeson, for a few years from the late 1960s, and a generation before that, there was Jack Iverson.

Big and awkward, Iverson couldn't bat, and he couldn't field. He was mentally fragile, convinced that he could never get certain batsmen out, and easily discouraged. All round, as his biographer claims, he was probably the worst pure cricketer ever to play at the highest level.

But what Iverson could do was bowl, mainly using the homespun finger-flicking method he'd honed by fooling around with a table-tennis ball, and he was remarkably accurate with it. In his one Test series, against England in 1950-51 when he was already 35, he took 21 wickets at 15.23, confounding several decent players of orthodox spin. In a short first-class career - 34 matches over five seasons - he claimed 157 wickets at less than 20 apiece. Many judges, Richie Benaud and Keith Miller among them, thought that Iverson would have won Australia the 1953 Ashes series (they eventually lost it 0-1), but worried by what he thought was a loss of form, Iverson had played only twice for Victoria in the preceding home season.

Such a short career doesn't, on the face of it, seem to warrant a biography running to nearly 400 pages. If the writer was anyone other than the erudite Gideon Haigh, you'd be worried by the admission that he never met Iverson, who committed suicide in 1973, and never saw him bowl (mind you, they did go the same school). Others might have resorted to listing the matches Iverson played and reeling off tedious club performances, but that's not the Haigh style, fortunately. He spoke to everyone he could who had seen Iverson play. He tracked down his daughters (one of whom wasn't terribly co-operative at first) and his sister. And he looked up obscure articles in the Tarrengower Times (reading every edition from 1934 to 1936, the years when Iverson was working nearby) and the Romsey Examiner. At the end you really feel you know this mystery man. The whole thing is a delight, a gripping (no pun intended) read, and an object lesson to anyone tempted to try their hand at biography.

From the book:
"I was offered myriad examples of Jack's cricket naivety, particularly in the field. Apparently, he sometimes had difficulty remembering the names of fielding positions - Lindsay Hassett would have to point out where he wanted Jack to stand. He also found elusive the understanding that fielders should move in as the bowler approached - he preferred to stand still, and rarely tried to stop a ball running either side of him.

On the field, he sometimes said things that to lifetime cricketers sounded a little strange. Bill Johnston recalls how, during the first Shield match he played with Jack for Victoria at the Adelaide Oval in November 1950, Jack came up to him between overs while Lance Duldig was batting and said: 'You've got to get this fellow out, Bill.'

'Hang on,' Johnston replied. 'You've got eight balls in your over, same as I have.'

'Well,' said Jack, 'he got a century against us last time.' Johnston walked away wondering at the assumption that a batsman who'd scored a century once would naturally do so again.

[But] no-one ever seems to have been too fussed by Jack's idiosyncrasies, and no-one told a story against Jack more often than Jack himself."

Mystery Spinner: The Story of Jack Iverson
by Gideon Haigh
Text Publishing, 1999

The legend of Splendid Mendis | by Damith S

2008-10-24T05:36:00.000-07:00

Legend has it that Splendid was conceived at the foot of the mythical Adams peak. Thus people believe this is where Mendis draws his supernatural powers, enabling him to run through a batting line up with a mere flick of his fingers. When Splendid Mendis entered this mortal earth, it is said that that he thanked his mother for her troubles and told his dad “Ill take it from here”. Splendid then proceeded to create a horse drawn carriage from a few sticks outside the hospital and pulled the thing himself with his parents on board and took them home. He later returned to pick up his dads car from the car park. At age 7 Splendid Mendis’s legend was known only to a select few in the outer regions of the country. But all that changed over night when, playing back yard cricket with his friends, Splendid dismissed the entire opposition by himself. That alone might not seem that impressive. But when he repeated the same 10 times over in the next 10 games everyone took notice. 3 years later , 10 year old Splendid completed his degrees. When he wanted to do a octagon degree – a combination of 8 different disciplines, no university offered it. So he studied in 25 universities at the same time and completed 25 different degrees. It was a combination of Mechanics, Mechatronics, Advanced Physics, Biology and some other thing even we cant pronounce. For his dissertation he did part time consultancy for NASA and promptly discovered a new universe. NASA offered to call it the Splendid Universe but Mendis shied away from the spot light. Splendid was a humble man from the beginning. At age 11 Splendid was picked by the Australian Cricket team and offered Aussie citizenship. He declined and instead went on to join the Sri Lankan army. Both the cricket team and military. Mendis once destroyed an entire fleet of rebel battleships with nothing but a leather ball and a flick of his legendary fingers. When not destroying rebel battalions Splendid was destroying batting line ups in club cricket at 12. He has taken a 1000 wickets in every season he has played in with a average of –(minus) 155. A recent poll conducted revealed that 99.99% of the males in Sri Lanka want to be Splendid Mendis. The 0.01% was Mendis himself. Another poll revealed that 87% of the worlds women want to sleep with Splendid. 100% of the men want the same. Mendis can drink 50 kegs of beer in one go. And still do 100 Everclear shots one after the other. Splendid was in fact picked for the Sri Lankan test team at age 13 but he declined as he dint want to steal the spotlight from Murali. The official name for Sri Lanka is actually The Republique of Ajantha Splendid Mendis, but its more commonly know as Sri Lanka, which is one of the many nick names for Splendid Mendis. The Large Hadron Collider project was actually in ruins before Splendid offered his help. He dug the tunnel and connected the tubes in 15 minutes. The first particle they will collide will be Splendid running in opposite direction at the same time. The Sri Lankan test team hired Mendis as a bowling Machine as net practice for their test tours to India but soon gave up the plan after 300 000 balls of playing and missing. Splendid coached Terry Jenner. His bowling average has reached minus infinity. Thrice. Shane Warne said he was glad he is not playing in the Era of The Splendid. Splendid doesn't use pick up lines. He merely looks at women and they want give him their number. Women have been asked not to look directly into his eyes. If they do they will shudder with multiple orgasms. Splendid has been nominated and has won the greatest human ever award in each of his 20 years on earth. This has largely gone unnoticed to the world because he has requested that his name be kept out of the papers. And Finally, Don Bradman has said that he would never have got a test run if Splendid had been around when he played.

These are but a mere snippet of the folklore surrounding the great man.
Many of his legendary feats have been lost through the times or been forgotten. However flyslip has dedicated himself to unveiling all the great stories surrounding Splendid.

Thanks to : http://fly-slip.blogspot.com/

Mendis to play for Rajasthan in Ranji

2008-10-21T05:27:00.000-07:00

Sri Lankan spin sensation Ajantha Mendis will turn up for Rajasthan in the forthcoming Ranji Trophy season. The BCCI had recently allowed each state to rope in an international player in a bid to improve the status of the country's biggest domestic competition and Rajasthan seems to have made a big scoop in this regard. RCA sources confirmed that talks are on with Mendis and the deal is almost finalised. Mendis though first has to get a clearance from the Sri Lankan Army team, which he represents in the country's domestic competitions. The mystery spinner had bamboozled India with a six-wicket haul in the Asia Cup final and continued to trouble India during the Test series in Sri Lanka. He took an astonishing 26 wickets in just three Tests and carried on with his good form in the following five ODIs snapping 14 wickets. He was also honoured in the recent ICC awards ceremony. Bengal has already roped in the services of Mendis' teammate and ace spinner Muttiah Muralitharan.

T20 show makes Ajantha Mendis richer

2008-10-21T05:23:00.000-07:00

The recently concluded four-nation Twenty20 tournament in Canada has made Sri Lanka's 23-year-old mystery bowler Ajantha Mendis richer. "He (Mendis) has been awarded an apartment in UAE," Atul Ahuja, Cricket Canada's CEO said from Toronto. "Mendis has been given this special prize by the sponsors (Al Barakah) of the tournament," he said. "The details of allotting the apartment in Ajman (UAE) is being worked out," he added. Mendis, who has had a sensational start to his international career, took 26 wickets in his debut Test series against India. The mystery spinner also bagged the man of the series award in the T20 competition, which Sri Lanka won by beating Pakistan in the final.

Canada T20 | Sri Lanka lifts Twenty20 Canada Cup thanks to Jayasuriya & Mendis show

2008-10-21T05:17:00.000-07:00

TORONTO, Oct. 13 (APP):- Sri Lanka lifted the inaugural Al-Barakah Twenty20 Canada Cup Cricket Championship at Maple Leaf Stadium on Monday in style with five wickets win over Pakistan in the final with Ajantha Mendis and Sanath Jayasuriya leading the way. Sri Lankan mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis captured top wickets for 23 runs in four over as Pakistan inserted to bat first, were restricted to 132 for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs. Sri Lanka after little hiccups in reply romped home for the loss of five wickets with one over to spare. Veteran Jayasuriya set the tune for victory with a dazzling knock of 40 in 34 balls with three 4s and brace of 6s, providing Sri Lanka a flying start of 66 runs in seven overs with fellow opener Mahela Udawatte, who smashed three boundaries and one six his 19 ball knock of 25. Pakistan pace trio of Shoaib Akhtar, Sohail Tanvir and Umar Gul made a disappointing start with their wayward bowling. Akhtar was smashed for boundary by Jayasuriya and then pulled him for two back to back sixes into the mid wicket stand Gul conceded 17 in his first over. Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik put Pakistan back into the game with three quick wickets. Udawatte beaten in the flight by Afridi and was caught by Shoaib Akhtar at long-off. Malik then bowled Jayasuriya round his legs and picked up the all important wicket of Jayewardene for five. Lankans were slightly under pressure at 94-4 in 14th over. Though Gul clean bowled Weeraretne for 12 with two boundaries to make it 115-5. But Kapugedera made steady undefeated 17 to steer his team to their first triumph against Pakistan in twenty20 international. It was a sweet revenge for the Lankans in front of estimated crowed of 10,000 after they lost their league round match to Pakistan two-days ago due to heroics from skipper Shoaib Malik and Fawad Alam. But this time Pakistan failed to repeat their magic with the return of Captain Mahela Jayawardene and Mendis. CEO of Al-Barakah Imran Khan and Pakistan High Commissioner in Canada Moosa Chohan presented the glittering golden trophy to Sri Lankan Captain Jayawardene with cash prize of Canadian$60,000 while Shoaib Malik collected C$30,000. Man of the final Jayasuriya got the brand new Ford Focus Car key from Zakir Bhay. Man of the series Ajantha Mendis got apartment key in Ajman. Earlier southpaw opener Salman Butt held Pakistan innings together with an enterprising 44 off 41 balls laced with four boundaries and one six. Ajantha Mendis caused the trouble in Pakistan batting ranks With three wickets to end the event with 11 scalps to his credit in the competition.

Regulars | The List >> Mendis beats a Bedser best

2008-09-27T00:55:00.000-07:00

Which bowlers have taken the most wickets in debut series of varying length

Travis Basevi and George Binoy August 13, 2008

The last time a Sri Lankan bowler took more wickets than Muttiah Muralitharan in a Test series - barring the one at home against South Africa in 2004 where he played only one match - was when West Indies visited in 2001-02. Murali would have topped the wickets tally again against India had it not been for a record-breaking performance from Ajantha Mendis in his debut series. Mendis' 26 wickets at 18.38 apiece was the record for most wickets by a debutant in a three-Test series. This week's List looks at bowlers with the most wickets in debut series of varying length.

The record that Mendis broke belonged to Alec Bedser, which he set during a three-Test rubber against India in 1946. Bedser took 24 wickets in five innings at 12.41, including 11-wicket hauls in the first two Tests. His 7 for 49 at Lord's was the second-best performance in an innings on debut, after Albert Trott's 8 for 43 against England at the Adelaide Oval in 1895.

Does anyone remember Franklyn Saliya Ahangama? He was a Sri Lankan medium-pacer fast-tracked into the Test side less than two weeks after his first-class debut with Sri Lanka Colts in 1985. He dismissed Mohammad Azharuddin with his fourth ball in Test cricket - the first of his 18 wickets at 19.33 apiece in the three-Test series against India. He took five wickets in his second match, at the P Saravanamuttu Stadium, which was Sri Lanka's maiden Test victory. Injuries, combined with the short supply of Tests, curtailed Ahangama's career and though he toured England in 1988 and 1991, the 1985 series against India remained his only Test appearances.

Player	Mat	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	Ave	5	10	Series	Season
BAW Mendis (SL)	3	979	478	26	6/117	18.38	2	1	v India	2008
AV Bedser (Eng)	3	866	298	24	7/49	12.41	2	2	v India	1946
SR Clark (Aus)	3	708	317	20	5/55	15.85	1	0	v South Africa	2005/06
J Cowie (NZ)	3	839	395	19	6/67	20.78	1	1	v England	1937
FS Ahangama (SL)	3	801	348	18	5/52	19.33	1	0	v India	1985
Shabbir Ahmed (Pak)	3	714	341	17	5/48	20.05	1	0	v Bangladesh	2003
MRCN Bandaratilleke (SL)	3	960	339	16	5/36	21.18	1	0	v New Zealand	1998
RO Collinge (NZ)	3	655	265	15	3/41	17.66	0	0	v Pakistan	1964/65
RJ Shastri (India)	3	882	277	15	5/125	18.46	1	0	v New Zealand	1980/81
BKV Prasad (India)	3	855	375	15	5/76	25.00	1	0	v England	1996

The West Indian spinners Alf Valentine and Sonny Ramadhin are first and third on the list of highest wicket-takers on debut in a four-Test series. Both played their first Test at Old Trafford during the tour of England in 1950, which West Indies won 3-1. Valentine finished the series with 33 wickets while Ramadhin took 26. John Goddard was West Indies' next highest wicket-taker, with six. Valentine and Ramadhin bowled 800.2 overs between them and, bizarrely, finished with the same economy-rate of 1.59 per over. Their performances helped West Indies secure their maiden Test and series victory in England.

Player	Mat	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	Ave	5	10	Series	Season
AL Valentine (WI)	4	2535	674	33	8/104	20.42	2	2	v England	1950
FS Trueman (Eng)	4	718	386	29	8/31	13.31	2	0	v India	1952
S Ramadhin (WI)	4	2267	604	26	6/86	23.23	3	1	v England	1950
W Ferguson (WI)	4	1296	567	23	6/92	24.65	3	1	v England	1947/48
S Venkataraghavan (India)	4	1545	399	21	8/72	19.00	1	1	v New Zealand	1964/65
JC Laker (Eng)	4	1120	548	18	7/103	30.44	1	0	v West Indies	1947/48
W Voce (Eng)	4	1130	584	17	7/70	34.35	1	1	v West Indies	1929/30
GAE Paine (Eng)	4	1044	467	17	5/168	27.47	1	0	v West Indies	1934/35
NGB Cook (Eng)	2	812	275	17	5/35	16.17	2	0	v New Zealand	1983
W Bates (Eng)	4	964	334	16	4/52	20.87	0	0	v Australia	1881/82

Australian legspinner Arthur Mailey's 36 scalps during the 1920-21 Ashes is the record for most wickets by a debutant in a five-Test series. He beat Frank Foster's tally of 32 against Australia during the 1911-12 Ashes. Mailey did not bowl in the second Test, in Melbourne. He took six wickets in Sydney, ten in Adelaide, 13 at the MCG (in the fourth Test), and seven more at the SCG. His haul of 9 for 121 in Melbourne is the best in an innings by an Australian bowler.

Player	Mat	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	Ave	5	10	Series	Season
AA Mailey (Aus)	5	1465	946	36	9/121	26.27	4	2	v England	1920/21
CEH Croft (WI)	5	1307	676	33	8/29	20.48	1	0	v Pakistan	1976/77
FR Foster (Eng)	5	1660	692	32	6/91	21.62	3	0	v Australia	1911/12
AS Kennedy (Eng)	5	1683	599	31	5/76	19.32	2	0	v South Africa	1922/23
WW Hall (WI)	5	1330	530	30	6/50	17.66	2	1	v India	1958/59
GB Lawrence (SA)	5	1334	512	28	8/53	18.28	2	0	v New Zealand	1961/62
WM Clark (Aus)	5	1585	701	28	4/46	25.03	0	0	v India	1977/78
AE Hall (SA)	4	1505	501	27	7/63	18.55	2	1	v England	1922/23
MW Tate (Eng)	5	1304	424	27	6/42	15.70	1	0	v South Africa	1924
WS Lees (Eng)	5	1256	467	26	6/78	17.96	2	0	v South Africa	1905/06

Terry Alderman has the highest wicket-aggregate for a debutant in a six-Test series, a mark unlikely to be bettered for there hasn't been a series of such length since 1998. Alderman took 9 for 130 on debut at Trent Bridge during the 1981 Ashes and went on to take 42 wickets in the series, beating Lillee's 39. Alderman bettered Rodney Hogg's record of 41 wickets, set in the 1978-79 Ashes, and his 42 wickets is the second highest series-tally for an Australian after Clarrie Grimmett's 44 in five Tests against South Africa in 1935-36.

Most wickets in a six-Test series on debut
Player	Mat	Balls	Runs	Wkts	BBI	Ave	5	10	Series	Season
TM Alderman (Aus)	6	1950	893	42	6/135	21.26	4	0	v England	1981
RM Hogg (Aus)	6	1740	527	41	6/74	12.85	5	2	v England	1978/79
DR Doshi (India)	6	1838	630	27	6/103	23.33	2	0	v Australia	1979/80
DG Cork (Eng)	5	1106	661	26	7/43	25.42	1	0	v West Indies	1995
NS Yadav (India)	5	1407	577	24	4/35	24.04	0	0	v Australia	1979/80
PM Such (Eng)	5	1439	541	16	6/67	33.81	1	0	v Australia	1993
DW Headley (Eng)	3	788	444	16	4/72	27.75	0	0	v Australia	1997
Ehteshamuddin (Pak)	3	748	270	14	5/47	19.28	1	0	v India	1979/80
RMH Binny (India)	6	725	399	11	3/53	36.27	0	0	v Pakistan	1979/80
MA Holding (WI)	5	1125	614	10	4/88	61.40	0	0	v Australia	1975/76

In one-day internationals, the most wickets by a debutant in a series is 13. Shaun Pollock broke the 11-wicket mark, set by South Africa medium-pacer Eric Simons against the visiting Australians in 1993-94, when he took 13 in the seven-match series in 1995-96. That was equalled in 2008 by New Zealand medium-pacer Tim Southee, who took 13 wickets during the five-ODI series in England.

Shane Bond made the biggest splash on debut in a multi-nation one-day tournament. He took 21 wickets at 16.38 apiece in nine matches during the tri-series in Australia in 2001-02, beating established bowlers such as Glenn McGrath and Makhaya Ntini by seven wickets. The previous record was held by Simon Davis and Tony Dodemaide of Australia, who took 18 wickets each in the 1985-86 and 1987-88 World Series Cup.

Most wickets in a multi-team ODI tournament on debut
Player	Mat	Wkts	BBI	Ave	5	Series	Season
SE Bond (NZ)	9	21	5/25	16.38	1	VB Series	2001/02
SP Davis (Aus)	12	18	3/10	16.61	0	World Series Cup	1985/86
AIC Dodemaide (Aus)	10	18	5/21	16.05	1	World Series Cup	1987/88
MC Snedden (NZ)	10	17	3/27	21.94	0	World Series Cup	1980/81
BA Reid (Aus)	12	17	5/53	25.17	1	World Series Cup	1985/86
GD McGrath (Aus)	8	16	4/24	17.25	0	World Series	1993/94
B Lee (Aus)	9	16	5/27	20.00	1	Carlton & United Series	1999/00
IK Pathan (India)	10	16	4/24	31.06	0	VB Series	2003/04
DR Doshi (India)	10	15	4/30	20.86	0	World Series Cup	1980/81
CG Rackemann (Aus)	6	15	4/39	16.46	0	World Series Cup	1982/83
CJ McDermott (Aus)	11	15	3/30	32.13	0	World Series Cup	1984/85
SP O'Donnell (Aus)	13	14	2/19	37.35	0	World Series Cup	1984/85
MG Hughes (Aus)	9	14	4/44	22.07	0	World Series	1988/89
DR Gilbert (Aus)	9	13	5/46	28.92	1	World Series Cup	1985/86
SR Gillespie (NZ)	8	13	4/30	20.38	0	World Series Cup	1985/86

Click here for the full tables.

What's a Carrom Ball? | by Hilal

2008-09-17T21:53:00.000-07:00

Ajantha's away spinning delivery to the right handed batsman is released with a Carrom like flick of the middle and index fingers, hence the term Carrom Ball.

Understanding the Carrom Ball

Carrom is a table-top game and the goal is similar to pool. The video here shows the use of the middle and index finger in Carrom.

Why is it hard to pick?

As opposed to the conventional spin bowler Ajantha releases the ball at a much quicker speed and as a result the batsman has little or no time to make an adjustment off the wicket. The grip is similar to an off spin delivery which would turn into the right handed batsman but in this case the middle finger flicks the ball in the opposite direction at the point of release.

Mendis the mysterious maverick : Will not sit back on laurels

2008-09-16T20:54:00.000-07:00

Dubai: Ajantha Mendis's enigmatic run in international cricket has caught the game's fraternity with as much surprise as the Sri Lankan sensation's unpredictable deliveries.

From just three Tests the 23-year-old unorthodox bowler has bagged 26 wickets apart from pocketing 33 wickets from 13 One-dayers.

Mendis's sensational run has made him one of the nominees for the International Cricket Council Emerging Player of the Year award.

The soft-spoken Mendis, who answers every question with a smile, needed the help of his captain Mahela Jayawardene to translate from Sinhalese to English.

When asked whose wicket does he cherished the most, Mendis said: "Sachin Tendulkar's wicket is the best among all. I could not get his wicket in the first two matches and I felt I might not be able to get him out. Finally, I got him in the second innings of the last Test and thus stopped him from reaching a world record," he said with a twinkle in his eyes.

However, in his opinion the master blaster was not the toughest batsman to bowl to. Instead, he rates Virender Sehwag the toughest among all the Indians, who are generally good players against spin.

"Sehwag tried to take too many chances against me and I had to bowl at good areas to contain him," said Mendis.

This young spinner admitted that the series against India had added to his confidence.

"Before the series everyone told me that Indians are the best players of spin. So it turned out to be a big challenge for me. When I got the Indian batsmen out it added to my confidence. My goal now is to try and work hard and go on to do well against all countries," he added with great enthusiasm.

Rich tributes

Mendis refused to take all the credit for himself and paid rich tributes to Muttiah Muralitharan.

"I picked up a lot of wickets mainly due to Muralitharan bowling at the other end. He put a lot of pressure on the batsmen and so I got the opportunity to get the wickets. He also kept guiding me on how to control the ball and how to be patient while bowling against top class batting line-up."

What is his best advice from Muralitharan?

"The most important thing he told me is never to be afraid of the opposition. He also taught me the importance of planning to get a batsman out," he said.

Mendis has been compared with great spinners of the past like Jack Iverson and Johnny Gleeson and when asked about them, he said: "Frankly I have not heard about them."

Mendis, after an astonishing run, is still keen on improving his bowling.

"Right now I am concentrating on my accuracy and also want to be more aggressive. I need to learn to bowl in different conditions too," he concluded.

Opinion | Mukul Kesavan >> Spin kills

2008-09-14T21:51:00.000-07:00

Never before Mendis has a spinner dominated Indian batsmen so comprehensively and collectively

August 22, 2008

I had followed India's Test fortunes for 45 years, and never once in that time had I seen the Indian batsmen devastated by a slow bowler through a whole series. Just before the Indian tour of Sri Lanka began, India were beaten by Sri Lanka in the final of the Asia Cup. Mahendra Singh Dhoni confessed that his batsmen couldn't read Ajantha Mendis at all. I was intrigued by the prospect of Tendulkar and Co. - who hadn't taken part in the ODI tournament - playing this latter-day John Gleeson over a Test rubber, but not especially worried because of India's record against spin bowlers.

They had played some good ones. The first Test series I followed was the MCC's tour of 1963-64, and England's main strike-bowler was that fine offspinner, Fred Titmus, who took 27 wickets in five Tests. Every one of those Tests, though, was drawn. In the last Test in Kanpur, India followed on, thanks to a marathon spell of fine slow bowling by Titmus, whose bowling analysis in the first innings read: 60-37-73-6. But he made no headway in the second innings, managing one wicket in 34 overs as India saved the match comfortably.

This set the tone for India's encounters with opposing spinners: the good ones like Titmus, Lance Gibbs, Derek Underwood, Ashley Mallett, Abdul Qadir, Saqlain Mushtaq, Shane Warne and Muthiah Muralitharan got wickets, but not consistently enough to instill fear. Underwood claimed one five-wicket haul in 20 matches. Warne, the greatest legspinner in the history of the game, averaged some 47 runs per wicket against India, and like Underwood managed five wickets in an innings once.

There was something purposeful about the way in which Indian batsmen set about spinners. I remember Tendulkar going after Warne in a first-class game in Mumbai in 1998-99, when the legspinner arrived, riding the crest of his reputation as the greatest spinner in the world. Tendulkar hit a double century, and Warne went for more than 100 for no wickets. Then Navjot Singh Sidhu decided Warne had to go in the Test series, and we were treated to the rare spectacle of convergence in cricket: a spinner walking up to the stumps to bowl and a batsman running down the wicket to hit him. VVS Laxman and Tendulkar, in the 2000-01 home series, nearly ended Warne's career; by the time India won the last Test in Chennai, Warne was reduced to bowling bouncers.

Murali has a better record against India than Warne: 88 wickets at a little over 30 runs per wicket, and more significantly he has bagged six five-fors. I remember a sensational spell of bowling by Murali at the Feroz Shah Kotla, where he went round the wicket, and for half an hour had the Indians groping as his doosras spat off the pitch and jagged away and his offspinners straightened. But for all his genius, Murali was never feared by Indian batsmen in the way that men like Fred Trueman, Wes Hall, Alan Donald and Glenn McGrath were.

Till the helmet arrived, most Indian batsmen were so vulnerable to quick bowling, that spinners, regardless of quality, were seen as light relief. After the helmet, they improved against the fast men, but retained the traditional view of opposing spinners as extras, men who made up the numbers. Occasionally, when the stars were strangely aligned, India lost a Test to spinners, as in Bangalore when Tauseef Ahmed and Iqbal Qasim caught India on a breaking pitch in 1986-87, but it was a happening rare enough to be remembered and brooded over.

Indians were excellent players of spin because the quality of spin bowling in domestic cricket was exceptional. In that Kanpur Test against England in 1963-64, India played three legspinners and two left-arm orthodox slow bowlers: BS Chandrasekhar, Baloo Gupte, Chandu Borde, Salim Durani and Bapu Nadkarni. The bowling was opened by the fearsome tearaway, ML Jaisimha, along with Durani. The proliferation of first-rate spinners meant that any successful batsman in domestic cricket played slow bowling very, very well.



	"Till the helmet arrived, most Indian batsmen were so vulnerable to quick bowling, that spinners, regardless of quality, were seen as light relief. After the helmet, they improved against the fast men, but retained the traditional view of opposing spinners as extras"

This basically meant that even the average Indian batsman read turn from the bowler's hand, not off the pitch, and used his feet to get to the pitch of the ball to minimise spin. Gundappa Viswanath, Sunil Gavaskar, Mohinder Amarnath, Mohammad Azharuddin, Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Laxman, Rahul Dravid, all played slow bowlers in this way. Even Indian batsmen of the second rank, like Ravi Shastri and Sidhu, treated decent spin bowlers with nimble-footed contempt.

So the Asia Cup defeat didn't worry me because the Fabulous Four - Tendulkar, Dravid, Laxman and Ganguly, arguably the best players of spin bowling in the world over long and distinguished careers, hadn't figured in that team. I wasn't complacent, but it was reasonable to believe that they would figure Mendis out. The last freak spinner they had played, Paul Adams, hadn't puzzled them for a minute. While Mendis was clearly the better bowler, given his limited-overs performance and Bishan Bedi's testimonial, how dangerous could a Test debutant be, given the collective experience of the best batting line-up?

Very dangerous. It was Dravid's dismissal in the first Test that set the alarms off. Nobody in the world plays later off the back foot than Dravid did. The sight of him, crease-bound, stabbing down on Mendis down a middle-stump line, missing by a mile and the ball taking the off bail was a more significant moment in the history of Test cricket than the much-celebrated ball, which Warne ripped across Mike Gatting to bowl him. For two reasons: Dravid is by some distance the better batsman, and offspinners aren't meant to bowl fast legbreaks.

Everyone has a theory about how Mendis engineered this unprecedented, spin-prompted collapse. So do I. Before going there, though, it's useful to remember that he didn't do it alone. If he took 26 wickets, Murali took 21 and the Sri Lankan seamers chipped in whenever they were needed. Still, after allowing for these supporting roles, what Mendis did was extraordinary. In the six Test innings played in the series, he dismissed Laxman five times, Dravid four times, Gambhir three times and Tendulkar once.

The consensus seems to be that they couldn't read his mystery ball, but the real problem seemed to be that even when they did read it (and by the end of the series it looked as if Laxman and Dravid had begun to recognise the knuckle-ball from the hand, in that they could distinguish it from his offspinner and his googly), they couldn't tell if the ball was going to zip straight through or turn away. Since the knuckle-ball pitched in line, if the batsman played down the wrong line he was either lbw or bowled. It must have been a bit like playing Chandrasekhar, not knowing if the googly was going to turn or shoot through like a topspinner.

The problem was aggravated by the fact that it was hard to go down the wicket to Mendis because his knuckle-ball was faster and shorter in length than his normal delivery; there wasn't the time to get to the pitch. Tendulkar, Laxman, Ganguly and Dravid were slower and less confident than they had been in their prime, so they stretched down the pitch in defence, but this didn't work as it might have done once, because the review system being tried out in this series meant that the big stride forward no longer received the benefit of the doubt.

Why did Sehwag succeed when the others failed? His technique has always been fundamentally different from that of the others. His footwork is minimal, he plays alongside the ball without committing himself to a line till the last moment and he played Mendis off the pitch. It worked for him because his hand-eye coordination is exceptional, and his instinct is to attack: Mendis never got an opportunity to set him up as he did with the more defensive Dravid or Laxman.

So is Mendis a comet or a star? The latter, I think, because unlike with other mystery men, a batsman could teach himself to recognise the grip of his knuckle-ball without ever being sure that he could read its turn. Given his accuracy, temperament and variety (we shouldn't forget that he bowls a mean offbreak and a decent googly) his debut signals someone special. Unluckily, it also announces the end of something special. Thirty years ago, in a landmark three-Test series, Zaheer Abbas, helped by Javed Miandad, caned India's great spin trio into retirement. Ajantha Mendis, I suspect, has just rung the curtain down on another great foursome.

Mukul Kesavan is a novelist, essayist and historian based in New Delhi. This article was first published in the Kolkata Telegraph

Mendis thanks Murali

2008-09-13T06:22:00.000-07:00

Sri Lanka star Ajantha Mendis hailed the influence of fellow spinner Muttiah Muralitharan after being named emerging player of the year at the ICC's annual awards ceremony in Dubai on Wednesday.

"I never dreamt of this a year ago," said Mendis, who claimed 26 wickets to help Sri Lanka win the recent Test series against India.

"I picked up a lot of wickets only because Murali was bowling at the other end. He put a lot of pressure on the batsmen, and so I got the opportunity to get the wickets."

Mendis added: "He also guided me on how to control the ball and how to be patient while bowling against a top-class batting line-up.

"But the most important thing he taught me was to never be afraid of the opposition."

ICC Emerging Player | Images

2008-09-12T07:52:00.000-07:00

He has easily been his country’s biggest revelation since Muttiah Muralitharan. But despite the impact 23-year-old Ajantha Mendis has had on the cricketing world in recent months, the young Sri Lankan spinner insisted life is as simple as it was before his arrival on the international stage.

Mendis’s trick deliveries, including the now well known "carrom ball" bamboozled Indian batsmen in the recent series. His performances generated plenty of media intrigue and it proved to be no different for the newcomer while he was in Dubai to attend Wednesday night’s LG ICC Awards ceremony along with skipper Mahela Jayawardene.

"Nothing has changed. I’m still the same person and I want to continue to be who I was before," said Mendis.

Jayawardene is not accustomed to playing second fiddle, but had little choice at a media conference as journalists and cameramen focused more on Sri Lanka’s latest weapon.

Asked for his first impressions of the mystery bowler, Jayawardene said: "He was not overwhelmed by the opposition. He knows his strength and what he can do. That’s the best thing especially the way he came into international cricket from his background. He had not played much first class cricket to have that kind of confidence."

Ajantha Mendis named ICC emerging player of the year

2008-09-12T07:42:00.000-07:00

Sri Lanka’s new spin sensation Ajantha Mendis was named as the International Cricket Council (ICC) emerging player of the year at an awards ceremony on Wednesday.

The 23-year-old burst on to the international scene this year by taking an extraordinary 26 wickets at an average of a mere 18.38 apiece in just three Tests with his unique brand of spin bowling, including the ‘carrom ball’, which helped see his country to a series win over India.

Mendis, who topped the voting for his award ahead of a 25-strong voting academy from a trio of pace bowlers in Stuart Broad (England), Morne Morkel (South Africa) and India’s Ishant Sharma, after being nominated by a panel chaired by former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd, also starred in one-dayers.

In eight one-day internationals during the voting period, he took 20 wickets at 10.25. “I am delighted to win the award,” said Mendis after being presented with his trophy by Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardane.

“It is an honour to play for Sri Lanka and I hope to continue playing for my country for a long time to come.” The Emerging Player of the Year Award was one of eight individual prizes given at this year’s awards.