Sri Lanka's weakness against spin worrying - Wijegunawardene

Sri Lanka's chief selector Kapila Wijegunawardene has said that the Test and ODI series losses against Pakistan has exposed weaknesses in a squad that is in transition. Sri Lanka lost the three-match Test series 2-1 and are trailing 1-3 in the five-match ODI series with the last match on Sunday.

Wijegunawardene admitted the side was in transition following the retirement of Mahela Jayawardene from ODIs after the 2015 World Cup and the impending exit of Kumar Sangakkara, but said that the batting line-up's weakness against spin was a matter that needed to be addressed urgently.

"These are not weaknesses that had developed overnight. The inherent weaknesses were not exposed because we had two key batsmen upfront taking on the role of countering spin bowling," Wijegunawardene said. "Otherwise how do you account for a legspinner coming on and taking 23 wickets in the Test series and career-best figures in ODI cricket? There is a clear weakness against spin and that needs to be addressed as a matter of priority.

"In today's game where every move you make is analysed scientifically I won't be surprised if every team is going to include a legspinner in their side. Under normal circumstances you find a legspinner bothering a right-hander that's the norm. But in our case we have a whole line-up of left-handers whom this guy (Yasir Shah) was bothering as a matter of routine."

Wijegunawardene's remarks came after Yasir Shah tormented Sri Lanka in the Tests and ODIs. The bowler picked up 24 wickets in the three Tests, including three five-fors and a career-best match haul of 9 for 155 in the first Test in Galle. In the four ODIs so far, Yasir has taken six wickets, including a career-best 4 for 29 in the third ODI.

While pointing out that the team also needed to improve its fitness levels and fielding, Wijegunawardene urged the senior players in the side to play to their potential. Their failure to do that in the ODIs, he said, was one of the factors for the series loss.

"A lot of the senior players didn't do justice to the talent they got. Nobody's going to dispute that - the players will be the first to admit it," he said. "I felt that we were not doing the basics right - in the bowling department we were not bowling in the right channels and not hitting the right lengths.

"The one-day format is a very simple formula about bowling dot balls and building pressure, bowling wicket to wicket so you increase your wicket-taking opportunities which I felt we failed to do because we were constantly off target. That naturally reflected in the results we got."

The series against Pakistan was Sri Lanka's first after the World Cup and Wijegunawardene said it had allowed the selectors to assess where the team stood and the areas that need improvement.

"We have to acknowledge that we had a very good run where we were at the forefront of most formats and this is the time where some of the players have retired, some have aged which is common to all of us and their reflexes have slowed down," he said. "We are taking stock of all that and we will gradually bring in changes that need to be made while not (sic) compromising the need to win.

"As national selectors we are naturally disappointed like every other cricket fan in this country by the ODI result. This is not the result we anticipated based on the team we had picked."

Wijegunawardene said Sri Lanka could learn from Pakistan, that had benefitted from the influx of youth in the limited-overs side.

"Looking at it very objectively, we were outplayed in all three departments. The Pakistanis batted, bowled and fielded better," he said. "In the past we have been far ahead of them where fielding is concerned. One reason for that I feel is the youth that has been inducted into the Pakistan side.

"This is the side that lost to Bangladesh 0-3 with a much stronger team. It's very clear that they are also in a rebuilding phase bringing in youngsters and they are just starting to see results. Sri Lanka needs to go through the same process, there's no other way. Youth doesn't mature overnight they will face their incubation period where you need to nurture the youngsters, work closely with them, give them the confidence and create the right environment which we plan to do."