GG - Amir Sohail wrote:Last active player to play a test in the 90s. Highest left arm wicket taker in tests. You wonder how many he'd got if he wasn't in Muralitharan's shadow all those years.
Murali must have had very little impact on his career, considering the amount of spinners picked over Herath in the years after his debut series, and Murali retiring. When Murali pulled out with his injury in their trip to Australia, it was Upul Chandana who was seen as the great hope, he picked up a 10-for in one test. Chandana never really lived up to the hype in internationals, but I remember seeing him play for Gloucs on the county circuit, and he looked a decent bowler. Never really got a lengthy opportunity.
In fact, Sri Lanka have been very brutal with spinners to bowl with Murali. Bandaratilleke did pretty well at the turn of the millenium, but was replaced. Herath himself on debut (we talked about this on another thread recently) had the commentators proclaiming they were witnessing a special player, that Aussie line up really struggled to pick that ball he flicked out with his knuckles (which made you laugh, because he was dropped with little justifcation, and when he reappeared people used the same mystery ball as an example of something he'd learned, and why he then went on to be good, but he always had it).
Hettiarachchi played one test v England on our successful tour. Think he took 2 wickets for nothing, then never played again. They then picked Buddhika that did nothing. then went to Kaushal Lokurararchchi (dont count me on the spelling haha), who was touted as a very special leg spin prospect, but I think he got drunk, got behind the wheel of a car, fell asleep and mowed down someone crossing the road, and after that he might have gone to prison, and became a bit of a persona non grata for Sri Lanka, to the point he ended up being a bit of a mercenary to find games, and ended up being banned for spot fixing in BD.
After Lokura failed, they went to other avenues, I cant remember the guys name, but he bridged the gap between the arrival of Mendis, who's box of tricks in ODIs never transferred to cutting edge in tests. After Mendis failed and Murali retired, they went back to Herath, and he proved to be everything he had looked before.
Only Sri Lankan selectors know why they dumped him. My guess is, he has to have done something to piss someone off in the dressing room, because his figures might not have been excellent, but he bowled magnificantly in his first few games.
Very few bowlers had Herath's control, he was in essence the totally opposite to someone like Stuart MacGill. Relied on all the subtle variations he could, without ever really spinning the ball at right angles. Wore batsman down and forced them into making mistakes. Maybe his lack of games comes down to his batting, because Sri Lanka in the 2000s really did love picking crap seamers who could at least add some runs (Fernando x 2, Maharoof, Kulasekera, Perera, to name a few).
Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2018 8:36 am
After the first test, he's calling it a day. The greatest left arm spinner we have seen, how Sri Lanka will fill that spot, god only knows!