Sangakkara, Jayawardene, Malinga Feature In Sri Lanka's Best Probable ODI XI For Last Decade

In the middle of the decade, Sri Lanka were dented by the mass exodus of many of their stalwarts and they found it really difficult to maintain the high standards which they played their ODI cricket with over the last two decades. P

Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene (Image: AFP)

Sri Lanka's exploits in the one day international format during the last decade could best be defined as a period of two distinct halves. While, the first half of the decade saw the 'Islanders' locking horns with the best in the league to compete at the very top,  the second half saw them languish at the bottom of the table after a spree of retirements which hit their cricketing fortunes really hard. In the first half of the decade, Sri Lanka inherited a strong team from the golden generation of the previous decade and gelled well to enjoy a good spell in ODI cricket. The trio of Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakarra and Mahela Jayawardene were the cornerstone of their power packed batting which looked world class by any standards. While the belligerent opener Dilshan provided the thrust upfront with his flashy strokeplay, Upul Tharanga played the perfect foil to Dilshan as the run accumulator with a penchant to score some match winning hundreds. Kumar Sangakkara, one of the finest technicians with the willow of the decade, became the epitome of consistency while batting at No. 4. The prolific and highly dependable 'Sanga' was the backbone of the Lankan middle order, around whom the other attacking stroke players played around. Mahela Jayawardene, the elegant strokeplayer who could maneuver the field like a magician with his silken touches and could bat anywhere in the order. The stylish right hander caught the eyes of many with his wristy strokeplay and deft touches. Among the stalwarts, Dinesh Chandimal with his calm and cool temperament played the sheet anchor's role pretty well. Meanwhile, the aggressive southpaw Kusal Perera who could play a few scintillating knocks when on full song. Lahiru Thirimane and Kusal Mendis were the notable contributors with the willow for the Lankans in the decade gone by. The Lankans were lent some semblance and depth with quality all-rounders in Thisara Perera and Angelo Matthews who were adepth with the willow and red cherry. While Matthews with his robust technique and was a prized asset to have in the lower middle order, the hard hitting Perera provided the pyrotechnics with his lusty blows down the order. Sri Lankan pace spearhead Lasith Malinga was their strike weapon with the ball and led the pace attack with distinction all through the decade. Bowling with an unorthodox action, the 'Slinger' could make the early breakthroughs as well as clean up the tails with his inch perfect yorkers. Malinga had a potent new ball partner in Nuwan Kulasekara who could seam the ball from the right areas. Medium pacers Thisara Perera and Angelo Matthews added depth to the Lankan seam attack.Suranga Lakmal improved by leaps and bounds and took over from Malinga as the lead of the seam attack towards the fag end of the decade. Early in the decade, mystery spinner Ajanta Mendis was a revelation with his bagful of variations and often ran through lineups with his deception and guile. Meanwhile test specialist Rangana Herath had a pretty decent run in the ODIs. In the middle of the decade, Sri Lanka were dented by the mass exodus of many of their stalwarts and they found it really difficult to maintain the high standards which they played their ODI cricket with over the last two decades. Post Sangakkara, Jayawardene and Dilshan's retirements; Lankans had some talented youngsters come up the ranks, but in all honesty they were good not great. In the second half of the decade, the Lankans had some pugnacious strokemakers in Niroshan Dickwella and Danushka Gunatilika who provided breezy starts up the order. All-rounders like Dhanajaya De Dilva and Dasun Shanaka made notable contributions with both bat and ball. The Lankans did not have a spinner of the Muralitharan's pedigree but Seekkuge Prassana, Akila Dhananjaya and Sachitra Senanayake did pretty well as run chokers in the white ball format. In a nutshell, consistency is something the Sri Lankans lacked big time and hence they lost more than what they won especially while facing the big guns of ODI cricket in the latter half of the decade. Sri Lanka ODI XI (2010-2019) - Tillakaratne Dilshan, Upul Tharanga, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Dinesh Chandimal / Kusal Perera, Angelo Matthews, Thisara Perera, Ajanta Mendis, Rangana Herath, Nuwan Kulasekara / Suranga Lakmal, Lasith Malinga Notable Mentions:

Batsmen: Niroshan Dickwella, Lahiru Thirimanne, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis Spinners - Rangana Herath, Akila Dhananjaya, Sachitra Senanayake, Seekkuge Prasanna Seamers - Nuwan Pradeep, Dushmanta Chamera, Dhamika Prasad, Asela Gunaratne

Sri Lanka ODI Record (2010-2019) Played - 256 Won - 113 Win% - 44 %