News

Do we think about tail-enders batting ability?

Published

3 years ago

May 12, 2023

Editor

In the game of Cricket, tail-enders are the ones who are at the bottom of a score sheet or the players who have a lower level of batting ability. Normally, in a match, if a side loses 6 or 7 wickets, their tail-enders start coming to bat and that batting team’s innings probably finish in a short time period. But there are some tailenders who show great resistance to the bowling team and frustrate the bowling team when these tailenders come to bat.

But most of the time these tailenders come and just throw the bat at deliveries and give away their wicket irresponsibly. Sometimes tail-enders or these proper bowlers don’t think about their batting because they think their duty is just bowling or sometimes teams and their management don’t pay attention to the batting of their tailenders or sometimes teams and their management think and talk about uplifting the batting ability of their tail-enders but not implement them in the practice sessions.

For example, history and records tell that Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and West Indies produce tail-enders with the worst batting ability while England, Australia, and New Zealand produce tail-enders with enough ability in batting. Also, the Indians produce tail-enders who have the ability in batting from the last few years.

If a side has strong tail-enders, that team can put extra 30-40 runs or more to their tally and that team will increase the confidence of their team and their batting department.

For solving this problem, basically, teams and coaches must put these tail-enders on nets and to side wickets and must practice them regularly or individually these tail-enders have to focus on their batting as well as their bowling. And that can increase the batting ability of tail-enders and can cause the success of a team. But this would not be a long-term solution or the most effective solution because it’s not easy to learn a skill when players come to the elite level and not easy to put a skill into muscle memory when players become adults.

Because of that, the best stage to uplift the batting ability of tail-enders is School Cricket. Most of the time in school cricket, the bowlers of a team don’t get a chance to bat in practice sessions and they just bat two, or three times a month in the middle and ask to do well in match situations when they don’t have enough batting practice and confidence. Because these school tail-enders carry this cycle for a longer period of time, they become typical tail-enders who don’t have the ability to bat, and who just have to hang around in the crease when coming to bat after they become elite international players. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and West Indies face the consequences of this. For that school coaches must get the responsibility to train tail-enders in batting and coaches must influence their tail-enders to do training in batting individually. Also, school coaches can give batting tasks in practices as well as in matches for their tail-enders, and coaches must give confidence and uplift the confidence of their school team tail-enders.

By Chathushka Kalunayaka

Cricket

Afghanistan’s White-ball Series against Sri Lanka officially postponed

Published

6 hours ago

March 11, 2026

Editor

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) announces that the Afghanistan vs Sri Lanka bilateral series, originally scheduled to commence on 13 March in the United Arab Emirates, has been rescheduled to the last quarter of 2026 due to logistical challenges, including flight constraints arising from the ongoing regional situation.

The series, which was to mark the first occasion of Afghanistan hosting Sri Lanka, was scheduled to feature six white-ball matches. The three T20 International matches were planned to be staged at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on 13, 15, and 17 March, followed by three One Day Internationals at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on 20, 22, and 25 March.

Following the receipt of the required sanction from the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), preparations had been finalized for hosting the matches across the two venues. However, in early March, unforeseen developments created logistical constraints that affected travel arrangements and operational planning for the series.

To address the situation, the Afghanistan Cricket Board held a series of consultations with key stakeholders, including the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), Sharjah Cricket Stadium (SCS), and Dubai International Cricket Stadium (DICS). A joint meeting convened by the ACB on 4 March resulted in a recommendation to monitor the situation and reassess by 6 March, in the hope that conditions would improve. A subsequent follow-up meeting on 7 March recommended waiting until 9 March before making a final determination.

Despite the collective efforts of all parties to proceed with the event as planned, the logistical challenges remained beyond operational control, leading to the decision to postpone the series and explore rescheduling options.

Throughout this process, the Sri Lanka Cricket Board (SLC) was kept fully informed, and the decision to postpone the series was made in consultation and with the consent of Sri Lanka Cricket.

The preferred venue for the rescheduled series remains the United Arab Emirates, and the new dates will be announced in due course following further coordination between the respective boards and stakeholders.

Cricket

Gary Kirsten Appointed as Head Coach of Sri Lanka National Men’s Team

Published

10 hours ago

March 11, 2026

Editor

Sri Lanka Cricket has officially announced the appointment of Gary Kirsten as the new head coach of the national men’s team, effective from 15 April 2026. His tenure will run for two years, concluding on 14 April 2028.

Kirsten, a former South African international cricketer, brings with him a wealth of coaching experience and a distinguished playing career. Between 2008 and 2011, he served as head coach of the India men’s national team, guiding them to victory in the 2011 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup. He later took charge of the South Africa men’s national team from 2011 to 2013, during which South Africa rose to become the number one ranked team across all formats.

Most recently, Kirsten worked as a consultant with Cricket Namibia during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, further expanding his global coaching footprint.

As a player, Kirsten represented South Africa from 1993 to 2004, amassing 14,087 international runs across Tests and ODIs. His record includes 21 Test centuries and 13 ODI centuries, cementing his reputation as one of South Africa’s most reliable batsmen.

Sri Lanka Cricket has emphasized that Kirsten’s appointment is part of a broader initiative to revamp the National High Performance Center. His primary responsibility will be to prepare and lead the Sri Lanka National Men’s Team in their campaign for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2027, which will be jointly hosted by South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe.

Cricket

Sri Lanka–Afghanistan Series Postponed Amid Regional Tensions

Published

4 days ago

March 7, 2026

Editor

Sri Lanka Cricket has decided to postpone the upcoming limited-overs series against Afghanistan in the United Arab Emirates due to the current situation in the Middle East, sources confirmed.

The series, which was scheduled to run from March 13 to 25, included three T20 internationals in Sharjah and three ODIs in Dubai. However, growing security concerns following reports of Iranian strikes across parts of the region have forced officials to reconsider travel and hosting arrangements.

Both cricket boards are understood to be in discussions to reschedule the fixtures once conditions improve. The decision comes at a time when Sri Lanka is also focusing on strengthening its domestic fitness programme, with selectors emphasizing that physical readiness will be a key factor in future squad selections.