Selectors play it safe, perhaps too safe

Sri Lanka’s Chief Selector Kapila Wijegunawardene addressed the media for the first time since taking office four months ago. During his tenure, several decisions have raised eyebrows within the cricketing community. Acknowledging his mistake, Wijegunawardene admitted that selecting Lahiru Kumara for the Caribbean tour without first confirming his fitness had been a blunder.

The cost was high, as Kumara succumbed to injury after delivering just one over. When confronted with other controversial decisions, such as Dhananjaya de Silva’s defensive captaincy and the recent recall of Niroshan Dickwella after a three-year absence, the former medium pacer remained cautious. “We learned a tough lesson after what happened in the Caribbean with Lahiru Kumara and now we have made it mandatory for players to prove their fitness in domestic cricket when they come back from injuries,” Wijegunawardene stated.

This appears to be the guiding principle for this selection panel. The Chief Selector’s caution is evident; there seems to be little enthusiasm for bold moves, reminiscent of Duleep Mendis’ decision to give Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana the freedom to dominate during the field restrictions, or Sidath Wettimuny’s choice to entrust the vice-captaincy to a youthful Mahela Jayawardene.

Interestingly, while Wijegunawardene was fielding questions, NCC were engaged in a domestic T20 quarter-final in front of his eyes at the SSC. One player making an impression was seam bowling all-rounder Milan Rathnayake, who dismissed Dickwella for a duck on his second ball. When asked about Milan’s omission from the upcoming England tour, Wijegunawardene revealed that the selectors had shifted their focus to Dasun Shanaka for the all-rounder's position.

Shanaka, however, had not played an ODI for over two and a half years and had been recalled primarily due to his T20 performance. Despite this, Shanaka has repeatedly struggled to make an impact in ODIs, particularly if the selectors view him primarily as a batting all-rounder. The Chief Selector’s failure to thoroughly examine Shanaka’s batting record in ODIs could be seen as a shortcoming.

While the numbers speak for themselves, they do not capture the nuance of Shanaka’s ability to instigate "bloodless coups" akin to the legendary runs scored by General Zia-ul-Haq and General Pervez Musharraf.