Jayasuriya rues batters not converting starts after South Africa Test series loss

The Sri Lankan men’s Test team suffered a disappointing 0-2 defeat against South Africa. After losing the first Test in Durban by a massive margin of 233 runs, the visitors played much better in the second Test.

However, the batters were disappointed in the second innings because they were dismissed after being set. Six out of the top seven Lankan batters got starts but failed to convert any of those scores into a big one as Sri Lanka fell short of the target by 109 runs. The same issue was reflected in the first innings itself, where every single batter in the top five scored more than 20, but only Pathum Nissanka scored a fifty.

Sri Lanka’s coach, Sanath Jayasuriya, pointed out this batters' failure as one of the main reasons why Sri Lanka couldn’t win the Test. 

“Batsmen have to convert their scores into hundreds - 30s and 40s aren't enough," Jayasuriya said, as quoted by ESPNCricinfo. 

"It's tough on these wickets, but at least two batters have to score hundreds on a tour like this. We didn't get that. All we got were two 80s. I think the batters by now know the value of hundreds on the road, having played in a place like England recently as well. We missed that this time.

“Although there was a lot of effort from the senior batters, I think if they assess themselves individually, they will realise it wasn't enough.”

Jayasuriya, however, dismissed concerns regarding Kamindu Mendis. After a stellar start with the bat in Test cricket, he suffered his first setback with a lacklustre series against the Proteas. He could score only 13,10,48 and 35, which brought his Bradman-esque average of 91.27 down to 74. 

“Kamindu Mendis is a key player," Jayasuriya said. 

"In every Test match almost he was in the runs, aside from this series. If you saw the way he batted in this series, it was still with a lot of confidence. In his last innings especially, you saw that. You can't expect a batter to hit 50 or 100 every innings - that's why you have six or seven batters. As a player, he's a quality player. If he's got shortcomings, he works with the batting coach to figure those out.

“I know that oppositions are quite concerned, and South Africa were as well. Now, he will have to work hard to counter that. But I love watching a player like him in the team - he scores at a run-a-ball, and plays positively. What I've told everyone is to play their natural game and play positive cricket.”

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