Jayasuriya sets his sights on 2011 World Cup

Sri Lankan batsman Sanath Jayasuriya, who turned 40 on Tuesday, has said he wants to carry on until the 2011 World Cup. "I would love to. I am taking each series at a time. Hopefully I will get there. Age is not a problem, it is how you stay mentally and physically fit to remain on top of the game, to try out new variations in the bat and ball," Jayasuriya told AFP.

The hard-hitting batsman, who also bowls left-arm spin, made his one-day debut against Australia in Melbourne in 1989 and was impressive as an allrounder during Sri Lanka's victorious World Cup campaign in 1996. He is the second batsman after India's Sachin Tendulkar to pass 13,000 runs in ODIs and also holds the record for being the oldest batsman to score a one-day century, at 39 years and 212 days against India in Colombo.

"I don't really worry about records any more these days," Jayasuriya said. "I focus on putting runs on the board, to help the team win matches."

Jayasuriya retired from Tests in 2007, but continues to shine in the shorter versions of the game. He scored freely during the recent World Twenty20 in England where Sri Lanka finished runners-up, and ended as their joint second-highest run-getter with 177 at 25.28.

He said the emergence of talented young players meant he could never take his place for granted in the national team. "Playing with youngsters is extra hard these days," Jayasuriya said. "There is an abundance of raw talent constantly knocking at the door for a berth in the team. And that puts pressure on me. I have to perform to retain my place."

Jayasuriya, who captained Sri Lanka from 1999 to April 2003, knows that life is not easy for youngsters either. "They also need to live up to expectations, sometimes the pressure on them is much more than what it was when I was starting out."

Jayasuriya announced his retirement in 2006, but made a comeback during Sri Lanka's tour of England in the same year. His next outing will be the home series against world Twenty20 champions Pakistan, who will play five ODIs and a Twenty20 game after the three-Test series that begins on July 4.

"Pakistan has variety in batting and bowling and we are also working on a few things. Let's see, it should be an interesting contest," Jayasuriya said.

Source : Cricinfo

Jayasuriya - Still going strong at 40

Sanath Jayasuriya turns 40 on Tuesday and it will be no exaggeration to say that he is one of the marvels of the contemporary game. How many players at his age are playing in Twenty20 internationals a format, of, by and for the young?

He is in his 20th year of international cricket and is still the evergreen Jayasuriya who enjoys hitting the ball around and conveying this enjoyment to spectators and a worldwide TV audience.

Surely this is the main reason that still keeps him going long after his contemporaries have ridden off into the sunset

Jayasuriya on the other hand shows no signs of calling it a day. Why, only earlier this month he played a notable role in Sri Lanka making it to the title clash of the Twenty20 World Cup and will no doubt figure prominently in next month's ODI home series against Pakistan.

Sri Lanka just cannot take the field without him in the abbreviated forms of the game.

A decade ago Jayasuriya was the most feared batsman in the one-day game intimidating bowlers even as he walked jauntily to the crease. Not much has changed since then and the Peter Pan of cricket just carries on.

The tally of runs and centuries against his name just keeps bulging and his average and strike rate keeps getting better.

Jayasuriya made his ODI debut in December 1989, just a few days after Sachin Tendulkar played in his first such game. Today he is well past the 400 mark - in fact he was the first to play 400 ODIs and he has since been joined by Tendulkar.

He has retired from Test cricket but there is no indication that he will be quitting the limited overs scene. Why should there be any such talk when he is batting as fluently as ever.

The secret behind Jayasuriya's successful career is that he is still young at heart. That's why even as Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and Tendulkar all a few years younger have opted out of Twenty20 internationals, Jayasuriya is still very much around to regale audiences.

It is a tribute to Jayasuriya's skill, enthusiasm and fitness levels that he has lasted so long and like good wine, seems to be getting better with age. Why, his birthday century last year came up off only 55 balls the sixth fastest in ODIs. Certainly the end of his career is nowhere in sight as yet.

He did in fact announce his retirement a couple of years ago but almost immediately retracted his decision.

Which was just as well for Jayasuriya has still much to contribute to the cause of Sri Lankan cricket and has still much by way of providing entertainment to spectators and the TV audiences all over the cricketing world.

'The Matara Mauler' has lit up one-day cricket at the highest level ever since his power-hitting at the top of the order enabled Sri Lanka to win the 1996 World Cup.

Innumerable have been Jayasuriya's notable feats in the shorter version of the game - still the fastest 50 (off 17 balls), a century off 48 balls (the fifth fastest), the highest partnership (with Upul Tharanga) of 286 for the first wicket, the only player to complete the double of 10,000 runs and 300 wickets, the second highest individual score along with Vivian Richards (189), second behind Tendulkar in the list of run getters (over 13,000) and century makers (27), a still impressive career strike rate of 91.

Remarkably he has also been an outstanding player at the Test level - the second highest run getter for Sri Lanka with just under 7000 runs at a pretty impressive average of 40 coupled with a bag of almost 100 wickets.

In the new millennium as players like Adam Gilchrist, Shahid Afridi, Andrew Symonds and Virender Sehwag have upped the career strike rate to anything between 92 and 111, Jayasuriya achieving the status of elder statesman has stayed in the background.

But he remains dizzily dangerous and no bowler or captain can take his challenge lightly as his recent exploits in the Twenty20 World Cup underlined.

One wouldn't be surprised if he was still around till the 2011 World Cup.

At 40 - A Tribute to Sanath Jayasuriya

by Vineet Sharma

Matara Marauder' Sanath Jayasuriya had a rather sedate start to his international career, and based on his first few visits to the crease, it would have taken a brave man to bet that this southpaw would go down as one of the legends of modern cricket.

Jayasuriya's first steps in international cricket were at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in a One-Day game on 26 December 1989, against the Australians. Jayasuriya walked in to bat at number five and his innings fizzled out for just three runs. In his debut series, Jayasuriya could manage a top-score of just 31 runs. The Sri Lankan southpaw's left-arm bowling skills outshone his batting abilities in the beginning of his career. In fact his batting powers did not dawn upon him until his first half-century against the Pakistanis at Sharjah, four years after his One-day debut.

A year later, Jayasuriya blasted his maiden One-Day century against the Kiwis at Bloemfontein. The knock was manufactured at a strike-rate of 97.90, which even now is a smashing rate for scoring runs in 50 overs cricket. The innings of 140 runs showed glimpses of the explosive bastman that Jaysuriya was to be in the future. Two years later in the Wills World Cup in India, Jayasuriya tweaked the burner and turned on the heat.

Given a free hand by his captain Arjuna Ranatunga, Jayasuriya assaulted the opponent bowlers right from the start. He went for boundaries off each delivery and the plan worked well for the Sri Lankan team, who then lifted the 1996 World Cup on the back of Jayasuriya's pyrotechnics at the top.

Jayasuriya's 'pinch-hitting' suddenly changed the way teams approached the start of a One-day innings. From the sedate, Jayasuriya changed it to supersonic. If the bat in the hands of Jaysuriya was a like magic wand, the ball in his spinning fingers spun a web of deception. Ranatunga and many other Sri Lankan captains used his left-arm spin in the middle-overs and also in the death.

Even in Test Match cricket, Jayasuriya kept the full-blast approach. From Colombo to the Oval, via Karachi; on seaming pitches, in swinging conditions, Jaysuriya became the all conquering master batsman for Sri Lanka. The star, the lyncpin, the crisis-man, he wore all the hats and racked up 14 Test Match centuries. Sanath seemed particulary fond of his neighbours India and Pakistan, as he has carved four and three centuries rescpectively against the two sub-continent opponents. His highest Test score was a run-fest of 340 runs against the doomed Indian side at Colombo.

In One-day cricket, Jayasuriya's records are stunning. The left-hander has scored 28 hundreds and scalped 313 wickets and is the fourth batsman in the game to stack up more than 10,000 runs in ODIs.

Being the top player in his team Jayasuriya was eventually handed the captaincy of the Sri Lankan team , but a disastrous campaign in the 2003 World Cup, and timid form with the bat, forced his resignation in April 2003. A lean patch followed but Jayasuriya was soon back to his normal run-scoring self in 2004. Apart from this blip, Jayasuriya created a mild furore by announcing his retirement from Test cricket in 2006. He back-tracked his statement and eventually played his last Test in 2007.

Jayasuriya carried on his One-day form to the T20 way of things. In the World Twenty20 in South Africa, Jayasuriya scored a scorching 88 runs, which now remains as his top-score in the shortest format of the game. Incidentally, the left-hander at 38, was the oldest player in the T20 WC in 2007. This fact is a statement about Jayasuriya's fitness and longevity, and also his ability to adapt to all forms of the game.

At the age of 39, Jayasuriya became the oldest man to score an ODI century. The second season of the IPL saw him plundering runs for the Mumbai Indians and in the this year's T20 WC in England, Jayasuriya played his part in taking his team to the finals. Now at 40, the man seems unstoppable with his run-scoring spree. Jayasuriya is veteran now, but his heroics with the bat and his enthusiasm and passion for the game, cannot be matched by most young cricketers. Jayasuriya is truly a legend of the game, and one can only say 'Jaya Ho'!

Source : MSN

A Modern Cricket Legend named Sanath Teran Jayasuriya | Birthday Tribute to the master

The story of a legend - "Sanath Teran Jayasuriya"






SANATH JAYASURIYA the cricketing world by storm with his unusual array of shots in the early nineties. He taught his contemporary batsmen to go all out in the first 15 overs and tear the opposition bowling attack. With Romesh Kaluwitharana, he formed one of the most destructive opening pairs of the world and virtually snatched the 1996 Wills World Cup, making Sri Lanka the eventual World Cup winners. His slow left-arm marked the death knell for many batting barons all over the world. A fierce competitor on the field with his willowing and bowling blitzkriegs, he is equally gentle and friendly off it. He is none other than Sanath Jayasuriya, one of the greatest modern stalwarts of the amazing game.

Known for his trademark cuts and pulls which rattled the most persevering of bowlers, he is the one who always goes by his instincts rather than the cricketing grammar book. A large number of cricketing pundits including maestro Greg Chappell are of the opinion that, on his day, he is the most dangerous batsmen for any opposition and can turn around the game in a jiffy. Having been the premier match winner for Sri Lanka for over a decade and a half, he is still going strong and there are few who doubt his abilities even today. The fact that Sri Lanka has gone on to win more than 80 per cent of the matches whenever he scored more than fifty, testifies to the amazing prowess of this diminutive left-hander.

He follows a simple and uncomplicated philosophy towards batting, which is - if the ball is in his zone he will hit it come what may. Dry and arid statistics cannot summarise his contribution towards the development of Sri Lankan cricket. He virtually brought out cricket from shambles in his country. He unified a country eternally reeling under racial conflict between the Sinhalese and the Tamils. He was the one who gave the much needed conviction to his team mates, that even Sri Lanka can be part of the big league. He was selected as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1997 when he was at the peak of his form and served as captain of the Sri Lankan team in 38 Test matches from 1999 to 2003. This period was one of the most fruitful stints in Sri Lankan cricket.

He is an extremely valuable all-rounder with an awesome batting average in both Test and One Day International cricket. But the plus point of his batting is his ability to maintain the strike rate according to which he scores his runs.

Making his debut in ODIs against Australia in the 1989-90 season, he attributes his success to the mentoring he got from Arjuna Ranatunga, the former World Cup winning skipper of the island nation’s cricketing team and a very good batsman in his own right. He eventually went on to become the highest run scorer for Sri Lanka in both versions of the game and he is currently in pursuit of T20 glory.

There is little room for doubt that he could be one of the trump cards for Sri Lanka in the coming ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 in Asia. Although he has retired from Test cricket on account of his age, he remains as agile as he was at 20 in the two shorter versions of the game.

Hats off to you, Sanath Jayasuriya!

Happy 40th Birthday !!!

Jayasuriya turns 40, eyes next World Cup

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's veteran batsman Sanath Jayasuriya turns 40 on Tuesday, with a vow to carry on until the 2011 World Cup despite his being the oldest cricketer still playing at the top level.

"Age is not a problem, it is how you stay mentally and physically fit to remain on top of the game, to try out new variations in the bat and ball," Jayasuriya said.

The dashing batsman, who also bowls left-arm spin, made his international debut against Australia in Melbourne in 1989 and won praise as an all-rounder during Sri Lanka's victorious World Cup campaign in 1996.

Jayasuriya is only the second batsman after India's Sachin Tendulkar to pass 13,000 runs in One-Day Internationals. He is also the oldest batsman to score a one-day century, at 39 years and 212 days.

"I don't really worry about records anymore these days," the left-hander said. "I focus on putting runs on the board, to help the team win matches."

Jayasuriya retired from Test matches in 2007, but continues to shine in the physically challenging shorter version of the game, determined to prove he has a few more miles left on the clock.

The short but powerfully-built batsman is virtually unstoppable when on song, and scored freely during the recent World Twenty20 in England where Sri Lanka won six successive matches before losing to Pakistan in the final.

Jayasuriya said the emergence of talented young players meant he could never take his place for granted in the national team.

"Playing with youngsters is extra hard these days," said the all-rounder who led Sri Lanka from 1999 to April 2003.

"There is an abundance of raw talent constantly knocking at the door for a berth in the team. And that puts pressure on me. I have to perform to retain my place."

However, he added, life is not easy for younger players, either.

"They also need to live up to expectations, sometimes the pressure on them is much more than what it was when I was starting out," he said.

Jayasuriya announced his retirement in 2006, but made a comeback during Sri Lanka's tour of England that year.

Now he does not talk of quitting and Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara said he has left the decision with Jayasuriya.

"Sanath is a match winner and as long as he's fit and willing to play for us, we are happy to have him in the side," said Sangakkara.

"He has won us a lot of matches and I am sure he will win a lot of games as well for us in the future."

Asked if he will play the World Cup to be held in the sub-continent in 2011, Jayasuriya said: "I would love to. I am taking each series at a time. Hopefully I will get there."

His next outing will be against World Twenty20 champions Pakistan, who will play five One-Day Internationals and a Twenty20 game after the three-Test series that starts in Sri Lanka on July 4.

"Pakistan has variety in batting and bowling and we are also working on a few things. Let's see, it should be an interesting contest," said Jayasuriya.

Source : TOI

SL need Sanath, Dilshan to fire | T20 World Cup Finals

The World T20 reaches its climax today, with a dominant Sri Lankan side taking on an impressive Pakistan. Sri Lanka was my pick right from the start, and their comprehensive route to the final is no surprise at all.

They have played exceptional cricket and each and every player has put in a complete effort. Tillakaratne Dilshan had a fantastic IPL and he has carried his form here.

Dilshan and veteran Sanath Jayasuriya have been the best opening pair, and Sri Lanka needs both of them to fire. One of these two has always batted till the end when set, as we saw with Dilshan in the semifinal against West Indies.

Sri Lanka’s two fine spinners Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis have troubled quite a few batsmen, although Lasith Malinga is another unsung match-winner.

I got to take my hat off to Younis Khan and his men, as reaching two consecutive World T20 finals is nothing short of a phenomenal effort.

Shahid Afridi has been in terrific form with the ball and his batting seems to have clicked as well. If he is able to replicate his performance from the semifinal, we could be in for another upset.

In all probability, Sri Lanka should walk away with the title, as they have dominated this competition.

Source : Hindustan Times

These wins showed our character -Sanath Jayasuriya | Lanka rise up again

Just over three months ago, the Sri Lankan cricket team were being shot at in their team bus on their way to the Gadaffi Stadium.

Dealing with the trauma of March 3 would have been hard enough, but the team landed in London right in the middle of protests against alleged war crimes back home, where the Lankan army recently crushed the LTTE resistance.

Under the circumstances, it can’t be easy playing cricket. Under the circumstances, it’s only cricket that provides relief.

Sri Lanka beat the West Indies by 15 runs at Trent Bridge on Wednesday, their second comprehensive win on the bounce having thumped Australia by six wickets in their opener. “It’s been hard. These wins showed our character,” Sanath Jayasuriya said after the game.

Having not played together for a while, not many gave them a chance. Having lost to South Africa in the warm-ups, after they had only just managed to scrape past Bangladesh, they were expected to slink out of the group of death. Instead, with two big wins, they’re looking like strong contenders for a spot in the semis.

For the Lankan team, this event is an opportunity to reduce the hurt, and they’re intent on making the most of the painkillers.

“It felt odd getting into a team bus again to go from the airport to the hotel,” Sangakkara had said after the team landed in London, amidst high security. “For the team, the only thing that matters is the cricket,” he had said after the team bus had been blocked by protestors on their way to the ground the day they were to play Australia. There were protests against the government and the army at each of their practice games as well, but Kumar Sangakkara’s team have managed to ignore most distractions.

“The thing we’ve realised after Lahore is that life goes on.”

In control

On Wednesday, they were in control right through the 40 overs of cricket, thanks in no small measure to a blistering 47-ball 81 from Jayasuriya, the tournament’s oldest player (he turns 40 at the end of this month).

At the other end, Tillakaratne Dilshan played like he has done for the past couple of months — lots of power-hitting, lots of cheeky dabs, lots of entertainment, finishing with 74 of 47 deliveries.

The duo put on 124 runs in just over 12 overs as Lanka piled on an intimidating 192 in their 20 overs.

Source : Indian Express

FINE VINTAGE - Sanath Jayasuriya turns back the clock in style

Shortest Form Of The Game Has Enabled Sanath Jayasuriya To Turn Back The Clock In Style

When Sri Lankan batsman Sanath Jayasuriya made his debut in 1989, there were no mobile phones in India. There were no malls, no laptops, no SRK and no IPL. Cricket was a simple game then and Sanath Jayasuriya only made it simpler. He believed in a straight forward maxim: See the ball, hit the ball. Twenty years later, he still believesin that maxim. Only, he’s added another one: That age doesn’t matter as long as you are good. ‘‘So long as you are playing well and performing well, I’m not too worried about age. We have got very good trainers and physios and I work hard with them and the youngsters,’’ Jayasuriya said after scoring 81 in 47 balls and guiding Sri Lanka to a comfortable victory over Ireland at Trent Bridge on Wednesday.

While Jayasuriya was throwing caution to the wind, his opening partner Tillakaratne Dilshan was doing his best to take the limelight away from him by scoring 74 in 47 balls. Surely, it must have brought back memories of the 1996 World Cup when Sanath Jayasuriya partnered Romesh Kaluwitharana to send opposition captains on a hunt for aspirins. How does Dilshan compare with Kaluwitharana? ‘‘He has been playing really, really well and it gives you confidence at the other end. I just have to concentrate on playing well and I played my own game today,’’ he said.

His individual game was all about peppering the boundaries on Wednesday, just like he used to during his heydays. Had he been 20 years younger or had the T20 format been introduced during his glory days, this Lankan could well have broken many records. Does he regret that? ‘‘I’m still enjoying the T20 format,’’ Jayasuriya said, laughing, ‘‘It’s really good. You need to be really fit and train really hard and work really hard at your game. I’m happy to get this opportunity at this stage of my career. It suits me because I always play attacking cricket,’’ he said.

When I was a kid, they used to say about Sunil Gavaskar that the moment he played the on-drive, opponents knew that they were in for a long day in the field. Jayasuriya too has his favourite strokes. When did he realise that Wednesday could be his day? ‘‘I think the stroke I played in the second over, the extra cover drive. That was a perfect stroke and I realised that I was hitting the ball really well and today could be my day. If the ball is in my area and my zone I always hit it hard,’’ he said.

West Indies skipper Chris Gayle had recently commented that he was surprised that no one else has broken his record of scoring a 100 in a World Cup. Jayasuriya had a chance but tried a switch hit and was out leg-before. ‘‘Everyone was thinking about that today. But my thinking was to get more runs on the board. It’s a bit disappointing. What you want is for someone who is set to bat for 20 overs. Unfortunately I got out. If I had batted 20 overs, I would have scored a century. At the end of the day what we want as a player and team is to win the game,’’ the former captain said.

This legend of Sri Lankan will be turning 40 this June 30th, and we all hope he'll celebrate his birthday in style winning T20 WC for Sri Lanka. All the best Sanga & Co.

Sanath Teran Jayasuriya - Age shall not wither him

Veteran Sanath Jayasuriya insisted his age is no concern after cracking a match-winning 81 in his side's World Twenty20 Group C victory over West Indies at Trent Bridge.

The opener turns 40 this month but looked as sprightly as ever as he belted 10 fours and three sixes in his side's 192 for five. The Windies managed 177 for five in reply, with Jayasuriya also bowling three overs, including the first of the innings.

"I'm doing perfectly well and that's the only thing for me. There is no worry about my age, you just go out and play," he said. "It suits me like that because my natural game is attacking cricket."

He added: "I enjoy these Twenty20 games and it's been really good to play in them. You need to be really fit and work very hard on your game so at the end of my career I am very happy to have the opportunity.

"It's really hard work though and it's tough to keep up with these youngsters!"

Jayasuriya also believes his enjoyment of the game has been partly down to his inventive opening partner Tillakaratne Dilshan, who added 74 in 47 balls at the top of the order, with a series of improvised paddles and sweeps.

"Dilshan has been playing really, really well," he said.

"It shows good confidence when you can play that way. With the way he is playing, I know I can just play my game.

"That's a big advantage to us. When you see him playing some of those shots I can't even believe it standing at the other end. It's nice to see him doing that and I get confidence from it.

"I can't play shots that are improvised that much though; I don't even think about it. When I got out I thought about playing some right-handed shot but I can't do that, that is for Dilshan only. He never fears playing his own shots."

Source : The Press Association

Sangakkara backs Sanath Jayasuriya for World Cup 2011

Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara has backed veteran Sanath Jayasuriya to feature at the next World Cup.

Jayasuriya, 40 later this month, crashed himself back into form ahead of the Super Eight clash against Pakistan at Lord's, with 81 from just 47 balls against West Indies.

Having arrived at this tournament in poor form, it was a perfectly-timed return to prominence for the explosive left-hander.

Jayasuriya retired from international cricket in 2006 but almost immediately reneged on that decision and his worth is still acknowledged by his colleagues 20 years after his debut.

"We have a World Cup coming up in 2011, so the decision is ultimately his," Sangakkara said.

"We are just happy to have him because he has won a lot of games for us, and I strongly believe he is going to win a lot more. Can he make the World Cup? Why not.

"He can keep going as long as he is fit. In Sri Lanka we are trying to move away from talking too much about age and potential and moving more towards about performance.

"It doesn't matter how old you are, in my view. If you are fit, scoring the runs and taking the wickets and doing the work at training, those are the people that are key when it comes to building a side.

"Because they can be a great example for youngsters coming in or even watching the game.

"They see how well these guys prepare and how much hard work goes into becoming a good player."

Jayasuriya struggled in the warm-up matches and was not at his ferocious best in the second season of the Indian Premier League, so his innings of 10 fours and three sixes, was well received by the Sri Lankans.

"As a unit we have never had any questions about what Sanath can do," Sangakkara added.

"We have seen it for years and we were just waiting until he worked his way into the tournament.

"It was great for his confidence, and for that of the team in general, that he got the runs he did.

"The manner in which he got them was very encouraging: we want him to feel comfortable and not worry about having to do anything special other than just be himself and be a part of our side.

"We want him there, we think he's a matchwinner and as long as he is fit and willing to play for us, we are happy to have him."

Sri Lanka face Pakistan for the first time since being targets in the Lahore terror attacks in March.