At the premier level, sportsmen and their teams seek perfection, attempting to deviate from chaos to linearity. An exception to this rule is the Sri Lankan cricket team in 2016. So complex were their performances, they exemplified the three fundamental tenants of chaos theory.
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Over the years, Sri Lanka has carefully chosen their number three batsman and once convinced that someone has got the technique and the patience.
They showed extreme sensitivity to initial conditions in that their performance varied with the clouds, the temperature and the opposing captain’s tattoos. The cause and effect is not proportional in their game—seemingly innocuous wide deliveries induced the most extravagant reactions from batsmen, prompting complete batting collapses. They simply conformed to non-linearity.
Akin to a mathematician studying the butterfly effect, wrangling to discover the predictable elements in an unpredictable system, the Sri Lankan cricket fan spent the year desperately searching for patterns to anticipate what comes next. Would it be the Aussie beaters? Would it be the meek wilt-ers?
It was a year the followers spent tied to a back of a roller coaster, swerving and twisting through every emotion known to mankind. They were taken to unimaginable heights when the Aussies were white washed, only for them to fall harder in South Africa. A psychologist watching the fan would be correct in detecting symptoms of recurring bi polar disorder in every series, every game, every inning, and at times every over. The last game of the year against the Proteas epitomized this vacillation of feelings between despondence, anguish, comfort, and delight.
Sri Lankan cricket has always had a difficult marriage with the fan. Over the years, the spouse watching at home has learned to expect little and cautiously glow when the men in the middle came home with a trophy. It changed this year with a set of highly talented new comers promising to set the world on fire, enticing the fans to peek out of their cautious shells. The first session at Port Elizabeth sent them right back in, only for Suranga Lakmal to drag everyone out, but not for too long. The rest is history and the fans got their comeuppance for celebrating in the open.
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But it is not as if the team was completely unpredictable. Like the fractals that repeat amid the chaos, the cricket team did conform to some patterns.
The openers repeatedly succeeded every five or so innings, so they can keep their job to open the floodgates in all others. The inclusion of Kusal Perera appears to be simply to conform to the rule of number three must fail in 2016, unless Sanath Jayasuriya wanted to remind the world how good the original was by parading an after market knockoff version of him. (Perera is obviously very talented. Developing a better temperament and an understanding of which bowlers he can get top of, will make him a great servant of Sri Lankan cricket).
Other patterns emerged in injuries to the fast bowlers, dropping simple catches, negative captaincy, over-aggressive shots when the situation least demanded it and bringing struggling opponents back to form. Through all this, Rangana Herath repeated his superman performances, even when batting.
2017 holds many dilemmas. Inadequacy of those who open the batting and bowling sits at the top of the list. While several contenders wait in line to be tested at the top order, the pace attack poses the bigger concern. Selecting a fast bowler in Sri Lanka is easier than picking a good coconut at the Pettah market. Just shake and if the bowler is still standing, they are ready to bowl (not so) fast for the country.
Unlike batting and spin bowling, fast bowling is not a natural trait of a budding Sri Lankan cricketer. The board will have to develop a comprehensive program that penetrates deep into the country to custom make the fast bowlers, without waiting for them come through the system. Without that Sri Lanka will always only be the promising cricketing nation serving despair with a dash of hope to those who watch.
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Like in any marriage, the New Year begins by letting go of the past trials and tribulations. Broken hearts will be mended and will always beat to the rhythm of Sri Lankan cricket. For that the ardent fans will have to remember to find the beauty in the chaos. Look for the fractals.
*Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of ThePapare.com.
