Charith Asalanka Is Making Us Care Again, Making Us Care Again in Asalanka Way!

As Wanindu trapped Litton Das plumb in front, it looked criminal for it to be not given out on the field.

Sri Lanka was contemplating. Asalanka, the man in charge, had to take the call. The camera zoomed in, and our man signalled for a review with no drama, drama that's commonly expressed as a form of aggression. He had that look of a next-door boy, all neighbours love. A boy incapable of violence. Asalanka is everything but not the last part of that description. Violence or agreession can be in different forms. It can vary, Asalanka seems to have constructed his own way of inflicting violence on opponents when it's needed. He can be violent but you wouldn't know it. That's the beauty. A beauty associated with very few.

In Asalanka, Sri Lanka has a white ball captain who has earned his slot on merit and has validated the promotion with performance. Reasonable, the statement may seem, but in reality, it's an injustice. Because it would be an understatement. Asalanka's clutch shows have come when Sri Lanka has been pushed against the wall with the opponents iron fists wrapped around the throat. Not once or twice but many times.

Every time Asalanka has taken us out of those seiges, he has done it in his own way. In a world that follows the rash, my way or high way approach, using the hit out or get out method, Asalanka has pulled off the heists like a knife slicing through an icing cake. No noise, No spillage, No splashes, but the job is done. Job done, perhaps even without opponents realising, because of the calmness and composure with which the missions are accomplished.

Wednesday night was no different. The adorable boy next door inflicted the damage in his own way. But it would be unfair to focus on Wednesday alone. Almost all of Asalanka's big knocks have come when Sri Lanka has been under the pump. Every time, irrespective of opponents, contexts, and stakes, Asalanka has executed in style, proving it's not luck but skill. A rare skill.

Now, that's an aspect that was taken for granted during our golden era. We had players who stepped up when it mattered. Who instilled hope when all seemed lost and took us into a bubble where we believed it would be forever. Once the bubble burst, there seemed to be no going back. Until Asalanka, the prodigal talent, and later on, Asalanka the leader arrived.

Having arrived in style, Asalanka, the leader, is making us care for this game, slowly but surely to the levels we did before. He is doing it in his own way, with his signature, which is a hallmark of many leaders who have climbed himalayan heights. Asalanka, for one, would know that the climb in front of him is perhaps far tougher than a Himalayan climb, slippery too with many vultures that have gobbled up most of his predecessors. However, Asalanka and his bat seems to say, we know what we are up against and we know how to deal with it. Music to the ears of Sri Lankan fans who have been plagued by headaches resulting from controversial noises around the game we love for too long. Way too long.

For now, he is making his team believe through his deeds delivering tough runs, winning games. He is making fans believe with consistent results. Results that have taken us to unprecedented rankings in recent times.

But most importantly, he is making us care. He is making us care in his own signature style. The Asalanka way.

Calm, composed, devoid of drama, with a smile true to the most loved next-door boy demeanour that's signature Charith Asalanka style. Also Read, The Story You Didn’t Hear About Lasith Malinga’s 100th Test Wicket: This Small Detail Got Sachin Out!