Moody vows to shake up Sri Lanka, end ‘survival’ culture
Former Australian Test player Tom Moody Thursday asked lowly-ranked Sri Lanka to end its culture of merely “surviving” and vowed to shake up the national team ahead of the next World Cup.
In his first public remarks since being hired last month by Sri Lanka’s cricket board to revive the team, the 55-year-old said he was planning a major cultural shift.
He said his observation so far was that Sri Lankan players were “just holding on” without making an extra effort and were merely trying to “survive”.
“We need to create an environment within the playing group… within the community of Sri Lanka cricket that (will make them) feel like they are thriving in the organisation, not surviving,” Moody said.
Moody was Sri Lanka’s head coach for two years until 2007 and was chosen for the new post of director at the local board because of his experience in Sri Lanka and abroad, the board said.
“My direction would be very much around allowing people to grow within the business and uplifting them,” Moody said. “Supporting them and giving them direction.”
His contract is for three years, going beyond the 2023 cricket World Cup.
Former skipper and technical advisor to Sri Lanka cricket Aravinda de Silva said the side would ensure stricter discipline and greater emphasis on player fitness.
“We sometimes see compromises made regarding the fitness of certain players,” he said.
Anyone who did not measure up to the new standards will not be considered for selection, he added.
Sri Lanka finished eighth of nine teams in the inaugural World Test Championship — Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Ireland were not included.
In the ongoing tour of the West Indies, Sri Lanka has so far lost the T20 series 2-1 and the ODI series 3-0. The first of two Tests is underway.
They have lost both their recent Test series 2-0. Sri Lanka were beaten by an innings and 45 runs and then by 10 wickets in South Africa in December and January and then returned home and were outplayed by England in a pair of Tests.
(AFP)
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Wish you all the good luck in the planet Moody. Sri Lankans are taught to rub rub and rub their culture and hide behind millennia old granite structures and tanks built by old kings, from the very small age. So rather than seeing things as is the present and realising how low they have fallen and been ranked in the world in almost every aspect compared to other societies and do something about it (ie. work hard) they hide behind the glory of the past and keep rubbing it, talking big hot air even when somebody try to open their eyes.
Just make sure you have a spoonful of SL Peniya, if you have any concern about COVID. May I suggest you start the work by giving a spoonful to each player of the team. Just one is enough for the lifetime! Bye for now.
An excellent piece of advice to the Moody by Aunty Indra !
Mr Moody,
Mate, SL is not Australia, my dear pal.
We will ‘just hold on’ and ‘survive’ in typical SL fashion. That’s how we survive and prosper.
You talk of ‘performance’ and ‘fitness’ dear Sir.
When you are given the boot soon, I will see you off at the Airport,
So Mr Moody, please refrain from passing wind from the wrong orifice, in public.
Shake up??? Head of the Sri Lanka Cricket apparatus is rotten. When the so called ‘head’ is rotten, other body parts malfunction and gradually get rotten. First, Sri Lankan Cricket board has to be cleaned. Then, every thing will be in place and no need to shake the other body parts. Just one example, see what happened in SA yesterday. Young player (22 years scored a century in SA soil). Dikwella knew that if he failed his ‘guaranteed’ position will be in danger and scored a gutty 96!!