Since Sri Lanka reached the finals of the ICC Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean two years ago, the teams’ fortunes in ODI cricket plunged to new lows. It all started with a first ever series loss at home against England, as the tourists won despite not having the services of their main match winner - Andrew Flintoff. There were also back to back home series defeats against India and in between a disappointing show in the Commonwealth Bank tri-nation series in Australia, also involving India.

At the same time, Sri Lanka were enjoying a remarkable run in Test cricket, the highlights being home series wins against both India and England and an inaugural Test win in the Caribbean. However, Sri Lanka’s form in ODI cricket dipped plunging them to the number seven position despite the team winning the Asia Cup in Karachi at the same time.

In a country where ODI cricket is revered ahead of Test cricket, Mahela Jayawardene, the man who had led Sri Lanka to World Cup finals threw the towel in resigning as captain from all forms of the game following the series loss to India.

He was replaced by Kumar Sangakkara, earmarked as future captain for a long time and Sangakkara took on the job like a duck taking to water first reaching the finals of the ICC T-20 World Cup, followed by a Test series win against Pakistan and then the ODI series success against the same country.

The success has given Sri Lanka a launching pad to regain the past glories in one-day cricket and with the World Cup two years away, the team management may be thinking that it was good the slump took place earlier so that they could take stocks of things and prepare better for the challenges ahead.

The short tri-nation series involving New Zealand and India is a major event for the Sri Lankans to stamp their authority before by the most important ODI event of the year, the ICC Champions Trophy Tournament in South Africa later in September.

At the start of the series, Sangakkara stressed the need for batsmen to fire to win the series. Sri Lanka’s batting in ODI cricket had remained a major concern in the last two years and to a certain degree they sorted out their batting woes in the series.

Mahela Udawatte, who had cracked a match winning hundred in the warm up game in Kurunegala just before the series was unfortunate to miss out while Upul Tharanga, who was named in the squad was under pressure having made a first ball duck in the same warm up game.

He looked out of sort in the first two games making 17 in 44 balls in the series opener and just ten runs in the next game. Sri Lanka had reasons to persist with him as all other batsmen too had struggled in the first two games in bowler friendly conditions.

His time arrived in the third ODI at Dambulla, where opening the innings with Jayawardene, who fitted in for the sick Sanath Jayasuriya, added a record breaking 202 run stand for the first wicket and chasing a tough target of 289, the hosts got home with 21 balls to spare thanks to the opening combination. Tharanga contributed with a solid 76 and should have gone onto make a hundred.

Jayawardene was in sublime form. A hundred had eluded the ex-Sri Lankan captain for two years with his last century coming in the World Cup semi-final in Kingston against New Zealand. Jayawardene had in fact made just a solitary half-century in his last 19 innings before his exploits in the last game in Dambulla.

Sri Lanka didn’t have a third opener and as the team had got to know Jayasuriya’s condition only on the morning of the game, there was no time to rush in an opener and Jayawardene volunteered to open.

And what a decision it proved to be as Jayawardene hit back at his detractors with his 11th ODI hundred, a class act that was an absolute treat to watch. He took only 108 balls for his 123, hitting 14 boundaries and a six, slog-sweeping Shahid Afridi over mid-wicket during Power Plays.

The attacking instinct Thilan Samaraweera had displayed in his last few Test innings, at times outscoring some of his flamboyant partners like Jayawardene and Sangakkara, earned him a place in the ODI side. Skipper Sangakkara is a firm believer of Samaraweera’s talent and he was seen as a player who could play the anchor role in a line-up that was full of stroke makers.]

In the first four ODIs, Samaraweera hasn’t done anything noteworthy other than being involved in an unfinished 95 run stand with Chamara Kapugedera for the fifth wicket as Sri Lanka chased a target of 169 to win the second ODI. Samaraweera contributed with 38 runs, but the exciting thing for the hosts in that game was a match winning knock by Chamara Kapugedara.

Kapugedara has been an exciting talent, who has underachieved over the years and his half-century last Saturday won him his first Man of the Match award and hopefully there’ll be lot more to come.

There’s one match to go in the five match series and it provides an opportunity for the selectors to take a last look at the combination they want to take for the Champions Trophy. With Tillekeratne Dilshan expected to return from injury, the only area the Sri Lankans need to decide on is the middle order combination and the last slot could be a toss up between Thilina Kandamby and Thilan Samaraweera.

While Sangakkara has led the side admirably, his wicket-keeping overall has been below par. He’s been consistent with the gloves over the years and his ability to keep wickets, while being the team’s one of the leading batsmen, has allowed the Lankans to balance their sides over the years. But starting from the third Test at SSC, Sangakkara has struggled somewhat behind the stumps. What has made Sangakkara the complete cricketer he is at the moment, is the hard work he puts into whatever he does and you can be rest assured that he will work on the grey areas and comeback a better wicketkeeper.

Of the bowlers, Thilina Thushara finished off an excellent series having claiming nine wickets at an impressive average of 20.22 and in Dambulla he was instrumental in giving the side vital breakthroughs. Lasith Malinga, meanwhile was disappointing picking up just a solitary wicket in three games and throughout struggled with his line. He conceded a whooping 26 wides in the fourth ODI at R. Premadasa firing way down the leg-side too often.

The player who pushed his credentials further during the series was Angelo Mathews, another player highly rated by his captain. He kept a cool head in enabling Sri Lanka to reach a competitive total in the first ODI after a middle order collapse and although he managed only three wickets, the catch he took to dismiss Fawad Alam in the third ODI was breathtaking.

No doubt we are yet to see the best of Mathews, but at the rate he’s going, we have all the reasons to believe that the Emerging Player of the Year award won by Ajantha Mendis at last year’s ICC Annual Awards Presentation will remain in Sri Lanka.

If there is another player who is threatening for that award, that has to be young Umar Akmal. The 19-year-old Pakistani who is batting like a veteran having already hit a half-century and a century in the three matches he has played so far.

His unbeaten 102 at R. Premadasa cemented his place in the side. A diminutive right-handed batsman, Umar, the younger brother of wicket-keeper Kamran provided plenty of entertainment for the packed house on Friday and narrowly missed out in scoring the fastest hundred on Sri Lankan soil. Virender Sehwag had scored a hundred at SSC in 2001 against New Zealand in 69 balls while Umar took 71 balls to reach the milestone in the final over of the innings.

The crowd was waiting to see Shahid Afridi coming into bat at the fall of the fifth wicket at R. Premadasa, but what entertainment did we have from Umar. It wasn’t slogging, but clean and crisp hitting by the youngster, who timed everything to perfection.