<p>His stance oozes perfection -- balanced and upright with eyes firmly set on the ball. Add to that an ever-ticking brain, a pair of light feet, quick hands and a wide range of strokes, you will get the picture of a complete batsman. Pragyan Ojha will certainly endorse that the Sri Lankan skipper owns all these said qualities.<br /><br />The left-arm spinner, who had a good run on his debut Test in Mumbai, might have hoped to snaffle the big wicket. But Sangakkara told the bowler who was the night’s boss with a lofted shot over the bowler’s head off the first ball – a testimony of the left-hander’s timing and ability to place the ball precisely where he wants.<br /><br />The elegant Lankan went on to add another four and a six in the next two balls as Ojha’s ambitions to inflict some damage lay in tatters. It was Sangakkara the perfectionist was on view, but a few overs later the street-smart batsman in him surfaced when Yusuf Pathan came onto bowl.<br /><br />The offie bowled a bit wide of the off-stump to prevent the Lankan from carting him down the ‘V’, but Sangakkara played a reverse sweep this time sending the blob past the third man ropes and without changing the grip too! It was an incredible shot.<br /><br />By the time he was run out for a 37-ball 78, Sangakkara had scored 34 runs off the 14 balls he faced from India’s main spinners, severely denting MS Dhoni’s plans. <br />However, against pace bowlers too he was equally effective, bludgeoning 34 runs from 16 balls against Ishant Sharma and Ashok Dinda.<br /><br />It is this adaptability that makes Sangakkara a major force in all formats of the game as a Test average of 55.10 and an acceptable one-day average of 35.79 testify.<br />Sangakkara might not have the brute strength of a Sanath Jayasuriya or Tillkaratne Dilshan, but the Matale player still outpaces them at times. “I certainly would like to bat like a Dilshan or Jayasuryia,” he said before adding with a hearty laugh, “but I don’t have their power.<br /><br />“I need to look for other ways to score as quickly as them keeping the team’s needs in mind. So I will have to resort to some improvisations and innovations to keep the board ticking. But yes, cricket is always a skill-game irrespective of what format you play. I guess blending skill and power is one of the better ways to be successful at this level,” Sangakkara said.<br /><br />This innings might also have relieved Sangakkara a bit from the not-so-pleasant memories of the Test series, in which he could manage just a hundred in a losing cause in Mumbai.<br /><br />“This is not a consolation for my moderate show in Tests. Yes, it is always a nice feeling to score for your team in victory and hopefully I can make more impact in the remaining matches,” Sangakkara noted.<br /><br />Connoisseurs will be itching to watch some more Sangakkara classics, though the Indians will certainly not relish that prospect.<br /></p>
<p>His stance oozes perfection -- balanced and upright with eyes firmly set on the ball. Add to that an ever-ticking brain, a pair of light feet, quick hands and a wide range of strokes, you will get the picture of a complete batsman. Pragyan Ojha will certainly endorse that the Sri Lankan skipper owns all these said qualities.<br /><br />The left-arm spinner, who had a good run on his debut Test in Mumbai, might have hoped to snaffle the big wicket. But Sangakkara told the bowler who was the night’s boss with a lofted shot over the bowler’s head off the first ball – a testimony of the left-hander’s timing and ability to place the ball precisely where he wants.<br /><br />The elegant Lankan went on to add another four and a six in the next two balls as Ojha’s ambitions to inflict some damage lay in tatters. It was Sangakkara the perfectionist was on view, but a few overs later the street-smart batsman in him surfaced when Yusuf Pathan came onto bowl.<br /><br />The offie bowled a bit wide of the off-stump to prevent the Lankan from carting him down the ‘V’, but Sangakkara played a reverse sweep this time sending the blob past the third man ropes and without changing the grip too! It was an incredible shot.<br /><br />By the time he was run out for a 37-ball 78, Sangakkara had scored 34 runs off the 14 balls he faced from India’s main spinners, severely denting MS Dhoni’s plans. <br />However, against pace bowlers too he was equally effective, bludgeoning 34 runs from 16 balls against Ishant Sharma and Ashok Dinda.<br /><br />It is this adaptability that makes Sangakkara a major force in all formats of the game as a Test average of 55.10 and an acceptable one-day average of 35.79 testify.<br />Sangakkara might not have the brute strength of a Sanath Jayasuriya or Tillkaratne Dilshan, but the Matale player still outpaces them at times. “I certainly would like to bat like a Dilshan or Jayasuryia,” he said before adding with a hearty laugh, “but I don’t have their power.<br /><br />“I need to look for other ways to score as quickly as them keeping the team’s needs in mind. So I will have to resort to some improvisations and innovations to keep the board ticking. But yes, cricket is always a skill-game irrespective of what format you play. I guess blending skill and power is one of the better ways to be successful at this level,” Sangakkara said.<br /><br />This innings might also have relieved Sangakkara a bit from the not-so-pleasant memories of the Test series, in which he could manage just a hundred in a losing cause in Mumbai.<br /><br />“This is not a consolation for my moderate show in Tests. Yes, it is always a nice feeling to score for your team in victory and hopefully I can make more impact in the remaining matches,” Sangakkara noted.<br /><br />Connoisseurs will be itching to watch some more Sangakkara classics, though the Indians will certainly not relish that prospect.<br /></p>
