South Africa need to bounce back when they face Sri Lanka in the second Test at Colombo this week.
Sri Lanka completely and utterly trounced South Africa at picturesque Galle in the first Test and will be looking for more of the same in Colombo this Friday.
A massive improvement is needed by the tourists who must bounce back after being succumbing to Dilruwan Perera and Rangana Herath in fewer than eight sessions.
Sri Lanka vs South Africa | 20 July – 24 July | R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
To Win Match
Sri Lanka 11/10
Draw 3/1
South Africa 7/4
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka were full value for their mammoth 278-run victory over South Africa in the first Test at Galle. Dimuth Karunaratne helped himself to 218 runs while Perera’s performance with the ball saw him rip through the South African line-up as he finished with match figures of 37-12-78-10.
Despite such a massive win, however, there were a few issues that Chandika Hathurusingha and his team will need to address. Chief among these include the lack of any real batting support for Karunaratne. A couple of 20’s and a couple of 30’s hardly hints at a comprehensive batting performance.
Without his contributions with the bat, the Sri Lankans would be looking at totals of 129 and 130.
That’d still be enough to have beaten the South Africans in the context of the first Test, but they’ll want to pull together as a unit in the country’s capital.
Bowling wise, there’s not really much you’d want to change. You want your spinners to dominate in the Sub-Continent, and dominate they did. Herath and Perera were sublime, although they were aided by some pretty ordinary South African batting. It’ll be interesting to see how they get on in Colombo where the visiting top and middle order will no doubt be more watchful.
South Africa
Well, at least it can only get better for the Proteas… right? Well, it certainly has to get better for a team who looked as though they’d turned a corner under the tutelage of Ottis Gibson. Their wins over the touring Indians and Australians suggested as much, however, a heavy loss appears to have set them back somewhat.
Poor shot selection is one area of the game the South Africans will have to improve. There was clearly there was a plan to attack the Sri Lankan spinners, a plan that backfired spectacularly in the end.
A more measured approach will most certainly be the order of things in Colombo. They have demonstrated in the past that they can grind out results with a less than exciting run rate – something which will be required after the disaster in Galle.
Looking ahead, Tabraiz Shamsi has left the tour for family reasons with Shaun von Berg likely to get earn his first Test cap as the second spinner. Another change that we could see would involve Veron Philander – who only bowled 11 overs in the first Test – dropped for an extra batsman. Either Heinrich Klaasen or Theunis de Bruyn would be in business if this change is made.
Verdict: South Africa 7/4
Winning against Sri Lanka in Colombo certainly isn’t beyond the reach of the Proteas, however, a different approach certainly is required from the batsmen. Back them the right the wrongs of Galle and bounce back with a win to draw the series.
