We’ve seriously had way too many India vs Sri Lanka matches in the recent past, and do not want to watch the three Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is beginning 16th November. There was a time when this rivalry was fascinating. Our southern neighbors had stalwarts like Muttiah Muralitharan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Chaminda Vaas to name a few. All of them capable of turning a game on its head.
Unfortunately, the new generation of Sri Lankan cricketers are not even half as good. Leave alone defeating India, they struggle to even compete. They lost an ODI series at home against Zimbabwe. People say that when you do something really embarrassing, you should take a handful of water in your hands and drown in it. The Sri Lankan team needed to do something worse than that. Angelo Mathews, the skipper didn’t hide his disappointment and said that it was one of the lowest points of his career.
On the other side of the spectrum is the Indian cricket team – a side with tremendous depth. (Even the A team can beat Sri Lanka.) They are winning matches easily, and mauling even the most determined opposition with ease. You can say that currently there is no team in the world who can pose a stiff challenge to them in Indian conditions. Right from the top order to the bowlers, everyone is firing all guns.
Recently, India toured Sri Lanka, and made them suffer the ultimate humiliation. They lost three Tests, five ODIs and the only T20I without recording a single win. This was in their own conditions. Imagine what will happen if they play India in India. Such tournaments are okay once in a while, because it gives the stronger side a chance to experiment and the weaker side a chance to grow.
But if they keep happening again and again, it’s really unfair on us audiences. We want competitive cricket where all three results are possible. We want to bite our nails and forget about our problems while watching a match. We don’t want to yawn so much that the advertisements seem like a welcome break.
Instead, it’ll be great to have India play their other neighbor Pakistan more often. In England, if possible. The Pakistani team did tour India during the World Cup, so there’s no reason why given proper security, they can’t tour more often. Not like they are the most intimidating team, but the heat of the rivalry does throw up some exciting matches. Something that is rare to see in India vs Sri Lanka encounters.
