Why can't Sri Lanka produce the goods on the road?

For a clinical South Africa side, a victory on home turf over Sri Lanka was all too easy.

The visitors crumbled under attack, and were dismissed for 192 and 130 by tea on day three.

Before touring England this year, Sri Lanka had displayed a rich vein of form, building up a run of nine consecutive Test wins - but all were at home.

And a subsequent series defeat by England, followed by the embarrassing first Test against South Africa, have raised questions as to whether Sri Lanka can live up to their earlier promise.

This debate is now closed, a selection of your emails appear below.

It's very frustrating to see the performance of such a talented batting line up. They have all the talent the only thing lacking is the mental toughness; it's the same thing for India. They have never won a Test match in South Africa & lost to Australia three-nil abroad.
B Ananda, USA

Sri Lanka needs to prepare fast tracks at home and groom players who can adapt to these conditions. Until this happens they will continue to dish out ordinary performances in places like S. Africa.

I also sense there is too much fuss about winning on fast tracks. India and Sri Lanka get such bad rap when they lose abroad, but when Australia lost the two recent away Test series in the subcontinent, they managed to avoid much of the negative publicity. Surely the true measure of a champion is to win anywhere in the world?
Niranjan, USA

These Sri Lankan players are no slouches. Their batsmen are true class, from Attapatu right down to Tillekaratne. No matter where you play, it is no easy feat to achieve the Test averages that they have. (Just ask Michael Bevan!)

What is more disappointing though, is that the South Africans can produce these clinical performances against Sri Lanka, but cannot do it against Australia. It just goes to show how good South Africa are that they can outplay and outclass this Sri Lankan team.

I, for one, am very intrigued by the upcoming series against Pakistan.
Reuben, USA

If Sri Lankans think that they can win abroad, then they are in the middle of a wonderful dream that's never going to translate into reality.

You need to practice on sporting tracks to gear yourself for foreign pitches. But most of the pitches they make are ridiculous like the one they had for the ICC semi-final game against Australia earlier this year.

Like India, they rely too much on spinners like Dharmasena and Chandana who can be a threat at home, but who are at the receiving end elsewhere. Chaminda Vaas is inconsistent and Fernando has only a few good deliveries in a whole match.

And as for their batsman, only Attapattu has the technique and skill to play on foreign surfaces. Jayasuriya is always a mere shadow of himself trying to get into double digits but rarely succeeding and Jayawardana and Sangakara show glimpses of form every now and then.

Russel Arnold looks totally at sea and De Silva barely manages to notch up one good innings. You cannot expect to win if you fail in two of the three departments. On surfaces outside the subcontinent, the Lankans tigers are just sitting ducks for the opposition pacemen!
Prashanth, India/USA

Sri Lanka are a competent side, they just need to mentally toughen themselves for Test cricket outside the subcontinent. Muralitharan and Vaas cannot be relied upon each time to bowl the opposition out. They need two other pacers to stand up and deliver the goods.

Their batting is decent, but their batsmen tend to play their shots too early on in their innings, as is the wont on the hard, dusty flatbeads of the subcontinent. They need to get in, set themselves up for the big innings, and then let loose.

Jayasuriya, Atapattu, Sangakarra, Jayawardene, these are all natural strokemakers, but they need to curb their aggressive instincts abroad. Dave Whatmore should focus on this aspect of his side's cricket.
Jamie Alter, USA

In any sport the mark of a true champion is the ability to win anywhere under any conditions. Clive Lloyd's Windies had it, so too do Steve Waugh's Aussies. India does not have it and neither do Sri Lanka. It's as simple as that.
Greg, Australia

Sri Lanka can not play in fast tracks - Period. They are good in the subcontinent. They are lucky to manage a draw in the second match. It's time to go back to drawing board folks. You have a long way to go.
Alvin Doull, Canada

Murali is their only true match winner and once the opposition sorts him out Sri Lanka is impotent. On away tours they don't get spinning tracks and without a world class seam attack (maybe except for Vas) they cannot expect to win.
Zuhaad Mustafa Anwar, USA, NY

Apart from lacking a second world class bowler, their batsmen like many others from the sub continent look uncomfortable on fast bouncy wickets.

SL need to prepare faster and bouncier wickets for home Tests even at the risk of losing a few initially. This will stand them in good stead in the long run. Otherwise their dream of winning Test matches in SA and Australia will remain a dream forever.
Ravi Sarma, India

First and foremost there are no easy solutions. The cricket authorities in Sri Lanka will need to do some hard thinking and make a few major changes in the cricket infrastructure and administration.

The very obvious clue to the problem is that Sri Lanka is far better at the ODI game than at Test level. Therefore the cricket establishment in the island requires a major overhaul to remedy this defect.
Neville Wijesinghe, Australia

The Sri Lankan team, apart from its fluke World Cup win, has a long way to go before it attains a reasonable degree of respectability. Murali may be good but that is just about it. The other players would struggle to get selected to county teams were they born in a different country.
Vivek Singh, India

Because of recent performances from Sri Lanka the expectations have raised. But on the Test arena they still are much the same old side when it comes to playing abroad.
Shyamal Shah, USA

Sri Lanka need to keep their basics right, put the ball in the right areas, stop/catch the ball when fielding and play the ball totally on merit when batting, nothing else matters.
Aadhar Sharma, UK

Sri Lanka should adapt a fine system to impose on players when they loose so badly. They are talented and they can win. They are on a cricket tour not on a safari in S. Africa.
Ravi, Canada

Sri Lanka have a very talented team. However, they struggle on the road due to a lack of discipline and patience. If the team wants to be a force to be reckoned with, they need to stick to the basic principles and apply them diligently no matter where they play.

Australia are very good at this. The Sri Lankan cricket board should pursue a program that improves the skills their batsmen and bowlers need to play on quick pitches.
Umesh, USA

I think Sri Lanka, like any other team, have a very good chance to perform well on fast tracks away from Sri Lanka. However, they have to prepare for such tracks. They have capable batsmen who only need to get used to such tracks day in and out.

It also appears that our fast bowlers are not being coached and motivated correctly. The amount of extras bowled shows that they had no control whatsoever. With good preparation and discipline Sri Lanka can do well away from home and so can any other team.
Murali, USA

Pure and simple, Sri Lanka are a very good one-day side. They often struggle to reproduce this in longer Test matches.
Iain, Scotland

Sri Lanka have got what it takes to beat anyone, but internal conflicts like the one with Jayasuriya and the selectors doesn't help much within the team - can anyone name me a county where a minister gets involved with sports.
Hesh, UK

The Sri Lankans, currently, are not strong mentally. When Ranatunga was in charge they were very committed and fought well. Jayasuria is simply too nice a guy, a captain has to be tough.

Ranatunga turned the Sri Lankan team from a bunch of smiling, good-natured boys into a thoroughly focused efficient team. He may have made a few enemies along the way but, because of him, Sri Lanka have earned the respect of the other cricketing nations.

Sri Lanka needs an aggressive captain to cope with the harsh circumstances that touring can sometimes provide.
Rajiv Radhakrishnab, UK

Only Murali can save Sri Lanka, but the pitches are made unsuitable for him.
Dinkar Khakhar, Canada

It was suicidal to send Arnold as a opener. His open stance does not help - take into consideration his dismissals and one will find that the majority of them were where he was caught behind. This is because he needs two movements; a new ball leaving him does not give him the seconds required.

At this level every second counts. Send him lower down the order where he, at test level, has scored most of his runs. Regarding the talk of Sri Lanka producing quick bowlers; the Sri Lankans are not big built. The majority of great fast bowlers have been towering men running in to bowl.

The Sri Lankans should concentrate on swinging the ball, they have got to use what they have in the most profitable manner. They should not be sulking because they do not have this or the other, their strength is their batting and they should try and get the best out of all 11 players.
Joseph, UK

Sri Lanka just haven't got the talent to win. Without Aravinda, they only have an out of form Jayasuriya and Muralitharan. Sangakkara is alright, but the rest of their middle order have failed to establish themselves, and the fast bowling attack has a lot to be desired - Dilhara Fernando being the exception.

South Africa will win, simply because they are better at all three elements of the game than Sri Lanka.
Viraj, England

Sri Lanka have a team that can compete with anyone on their day, so it is frustrating to see them struggling abroad. Their batting is a strength more often than not, so mainly I would like to see a second world-class bowler emerge to bowl in tandem with the great Murali. Currently, Sri Lanka are only creating pressure from one end, and this is simply not a test-winning characteristic.

Also, the players seem to thrive on the special atmosphere created by a partisan Sri Lankan crowd. Maybe the fans should stop complaining, and instead turn up in greater numbers to cheer them on to victory.
Muttiah Fernando, London

The Sri Lankans lack mental toughness. They should try to play county cricket in England. Aravinda became a complete batsman after a stint with Kent, and this is just one good example.
Namasi Navaretnam, USA

Sri Lanka need to unearth a quality fast bowler before they can ever compete in countries like South Africa or Australia. They need someone who can consistently take wickets with the new ball.

A quality pacer will give a new dimension to their cricket and take the pressure off Muralitharan, their only match-winner. Their batsmen also need to take greater responsibility and bat with improved concentration for longer periods. To do this they will have to play less one day cricket.
Omar Mirza, UK