Dimuth Karunaratne, known for his sharp cricketing mind, is one of the best openers of his generation. He has been a key player for Sri Lanka in Test cricket. However, in a recent Galle Test, it was Rangana Herath, his former teammate and now New Zealand’s bowling consultant, who played a pivotal role in his dismissal.
Rangana Herath: A Mastermind on and off the Field
Rangana Herath is not just any former player; he’s a true cricketing genius. Holding the record as the most successful left-arm bowler in Test cricket history, Herath has always been a keen observer of the game. The two cricketers—Herath and Karunaratne—have played together in 47 Tests, with Herath even captaining Karunaratne in five matches. But on day three of this Galle Test, Herath’s strategic insight helped New Zealand target Karunaratne, something Karunaratne himself jokingly admitted.
The Background of Karunaratne’s Dismissal
Karunaratne has always been an excellent player of spin bowling, and he particularly enjoys batting in Galle. Of his 7092 Test runs, over 27% have come at this venue. This is partly because Sri Lanka plays many matches at Galle—21% of Karunaratne’s innings have been on this pitch.
Although Karunaratne rarely plays the sweep or reverse sweep, he has those shots in his arsenal. His primary strength against spin is hitting through the leg side and cutting between point and cover when on the back foot. He once said, “I love it when it turns here. With the way I play and the options I take, it becomes much easier when there’s turn.”
At the same time, Rangana Herath’s ability to understand the mindset of opposing batsmen has always been remarkable. Many would have been surprised by his tally of 433 Test wickets, but his sharp reading of the game is what made him a great bowler.
Rangana Herath’s Strategic Intervention
Just after tea on the third day, Rangana Herath came down from the New Zealand dressing room to deliver a message to bowler Ajaz Patel. Although Karunaratne recalls this happening after lunch, he had not played many sweeps before the break. At the tea interval, Karunaratne was batting on 72 off 109 balls.
Karunaratne explained, “It was after lunch, or maybe just before. Rangana aiya came down and passed a message to Ajaz Patel. Right after that, the field positioning changed against me.
“They brought square leg up, similar to the field we set for Tom Latham. When you see that setup, you know if the sweep goes wrong, you’re in trouble. Rangana aiya must have shared that insight.”
The Final Blow
Not long after tea, Patel bowled a ball perfect for sweeping. Karunaratne attempted to sweep it square but missed entirely. The ball stayed low and crashed into the stumps, ending his innings.
“I had a doubt in my mind—maybe the sweep would go wrong,” Karunaratne admitted. “These things happen when the other team has someone like Rangana Herath, who knows your game. That played on my mind, and I missed the line.”
This dismissal was rare, as Karunaratne is not often dismissed while sweeping. However, this time he faced not only Ajaz Patel but also the strategic genius of Rangana Herath, who has taken over 100 wickets on this very ground.
Karunaratne was dismissed for 83, a score that feels below par for a player of his talent at this point in his career. He has spoken about his goal to reach 20 Test centuries, but for now, he remains stuck on 16.
Though he was well on his way to a 17th century, it was Rangana Herath’s influence that brought about his downfall. You can almost be sure that, when schedules permit, Karunaratne and Herath will have a chat about that crucial moment in the game.
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