Darren Lehmann laments Australian players’ decision making

Having just recently signed an extension to his contract, Darren Lehmann has lashed out at his group of players, lamenting their decision-making ability following a loss in the first Test. Initially, it seemed as though the Aussies were destined for an impressive victory. However, some incredible batting from Kusal Mendis and some impressive bowling from Rangana Herath saw the Lankans clinch the first Test. They will be hoping for a similar performance in the second Test at Galle.

“They’ve got to be better at decision-making. The disappointing thing was we gave up a big lead,” Lehmann said of his batsmen. “We should’ve made more runs in the first innings. We let them off the hook there. The positive was we got 20 wickets again. If we keep getting 20 wickets, it gives you a good chance that if your batters are making runs win games of cricket.

“That was the pleasing thing for us, especially when we had a bowler down in the second innings. And there’s enough upside there that we know we’re on the right path with the type of team we want to play. It gets down to just the execution against their spinners really. We’ve been very good at first-innings runs in the last 12 months, and that was the big challenge. Your first-innings runs to set up games, and that was what we needed to do.

“I thought some of the guys really applied themselves better in the second innings than the first. Probably decision-making cost them at the end of the day. That sort of innings was very good from Steven. The wicket might be different batting first here at Galle if you win the toss. I think it’ll still spin from day one, but it just is what it is.”

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“Well, when they’re getting hit on the pads, it’s probably not spinning,” Lehmann said. “I think we had the problem in Dubai with Zulfiqar. So we’ve addressed that, we addressed in Dubai, obviously a different playing group, we addressed it before the series here. They’ve just got to get better at it. [Herath] Bowled at the stumps. Consistently at the stumps. Something that we’ve got to do.

“I can’t remember a better preparation. I know that sounds a bit silly when you get bowled out for 200 and 160. I think the batters are in a really good space, probably their decision making wasn’t quite up to scratch in this Test match – well, it wasn’t up to scratch. We had started but no-one goes on with it, we had partnerships but no one had a big one, which is something we have done really well in the last 12 months – we have had big partnerships. That’s a challenge for the batting group, getting through those tough times.

“Now they have seen [Lakshan] Sandakan, it is going to be a lot easier to play and Herath is obviously a very quality bowler. They have got to work out a plan. We have talked about it a lot so they know what to do, it’s just executing more than anything else.”

“He’s obviously a very crafty left-arm spinner,” Lehmann said. “We obviously had that loss of SOK in the second innings which hurt us. But injuries happen so you can’t complain about that.

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“He’s tall, he’s got good shape on the ball, he bowls at a decent pace. I’m sure he’ll have success here. We think it’s a really good way to go. We’ll have to wait and see what the wicket is, but I’m pretty sure we’ll play two spinners again. He’s always been thought of really highly. Especially with the Shield final – he ended up with eight for the game and he bowled very well. So his record when he’s up and fit has been excellent, he’s just had a lot of injuries the last few years.”