Kohli Facing World Cup Axe?

By Harsha Amarasinghe 

When Sri Lanka put an end to the bloody war 13 years ago, irrespective of their actual contribution Rajapaksas looked destined to rule Sri Lanka for decades. Around the same time when Virat Kohli was in his prime, many expected him to go on and be the highest runs scorer in each format. However, we are now living in an era in which Rajapaksas have been kicked out by the power of people and Virat Kohli’s place in the upcoming World Cup is a hot talking point among cricket fans. 

Virat Kohli at the age of 33, still has ridiculously good stats averaging nearly 50 in each format, but the right hand batsman has been struggling for form for ages now. The ongoing series against England has not been kind to him either - scoring 11 and 20 in the Test match and  1, 11, 16 and 17 in the white ball series thus far.
It all started with another very average IPL campaign for the champion batsman and his stats over the last couple of years do not look great. On the other hand with India already planning for the T20 World Cup, there are huge question marks over Virat Kohli’s role in the side. 

India is certainly not short of ridiculously good talents with Deepak Hooda being the new kid on the block pushing really hard for a permanent spot in the national team. Suryakumar Yadav has already become a rock in the Indian middle order, and this put Virat Kohli’s place under serious doubt.

India have made brave calls in the past such as not considering the likes of Sachin Tendulkar for the T20 World Cup in 2007 which they would go on to win. So, perhaps the world of cricket is witnessing the end of an era. 
Prabath Jayasuriya out of nowhere

When Prabath Jayasuriya was left out of the national side due to fitness issues nearly a year ago, his chances of making it to the Test side looked all but gone.

However, a series of Covid cases to the national team and the leading left arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya’s awful form saw the 30-year-old finally getting his chance in the longest form.

He has since been in unbelievable form having bagged 17 wickets in his first three innings. The SSC spin wizard shocked Australia on his debut finishing with 12 wickets setting up a series leveling victory in which he dismissed some world class batters including Steven Smith.

While Australia’s spin woes are no secret, Jayasuriya was expecting a much tougher challenge against Pakistan on his second match, but Jayasuriya continued his form in grand style taking a five far on the first innings.
Many believe that he had to wait too long to play Test cricket, but perhaps his success was down to the fact that he was able to gather a huge amount of experience at first class cricket. The selectors must stop picking players who are not ready for international cricket, especially when it comes to bowlers. 

Prabath Jayasuriya has had a phenomenal start to his career in terms of wickets, but he has so far only played in rank turners down in Galle, his real challenge is when he has to travel abroad and bowl on less spin friendly conditions.