Romesh Kaluwitharana, a cheeky batsman able to startle fast bowlers with his power-hitting in the 50-overs format, is part of the Sri Lanka Legends squad in the Unacademy Road Safety World Series.
The Lankan opener and member of the 2006 World Cup-winning team, admires Mahela Jayawardene’s batting, rates Virat Kohli as favourite batsman among the current lot and advises youngsters below 19 to keep away from the Twenty20 format.
Excerpts:
On playing for Sri Lanka Legends
We had a good start, happy to have beaten the mighty Australia Legends. They played good cricket, we sneaked through.
It feels great to be back in Mumbai and play cricket for a cause.
Present player across formats he will pay to watch
There are many players I like. I would like to watch most the India captain.
Virat Kohli gets runs all the time, consistency and hard work pay off. I like to see him bat because in any format, under any conditions, he is successful.
On Jayawardene’s success in T20s
Mahela has been a great ambassador for Sri Lankan cricket. He was an intelligent player, maximised his ability. He put a lot of thought into his batting.
Never a power-hitter, he got big scores in T20 because of his ability to find the gaps.
Value of skills to be effective across formats
Any batsman with skills can do well. Even in T20 you don’t need to be a power-hitter, because what is necessary is to get more than run-a-ball when you are batting. Placing the ball into gaps and playing intelligent cricket is effective.
Advice to young cricketers hooked on T20s
At 19, I don’t think you should look at T20 cricket too much. Because at that age you are developing and learning how to build innings, build your career.
There is always a risk factor if the focus is on T20 alone. It will not give you the necessary edge to become a tactically and technically sound cricketer. I would not advise any player to start off with T20.
