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Chanderpaul the hero but all the talk is of a certain Mendis

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Andrew Hughes wasn't surprised by Chanderpaul's match-winning innings in the 1st ODI against Sri Lanka but is fascinated by Sri Lanka's new "mystery spinner"

Shivnarine Chanderpaul plays cricket like a reluctant superhero, a mild-mannered, clumsy sloucher at the crease by day but when the floodlights are switched on and his team are in danger, he becomes Super Shiv. His flu-ridden heroics at Port of Spain on Thursday gave West Indies cricket fans a rare chance for a mini-carnival and it would be a hard-hearted cricket fan who didn't smile at the elation of pitch invading spectators and wide-eyed joyous onlookers as the impossible became reality with a six off the final ball of the match. But though that moment as the ball sailed over the head of a frantically backwheeling Sri Lankan captain was the one that imbedded itself in the cricket consciousness, the match might be remembered in years to come for another reason.

After sixteen overs of their run chase, West Indies were nicely poised on 63-1 and were nonchalantly picking off Sri-Lanka's understudy seamers. The ball was thrown to an innocuous-looking slightly built young man with jug ears and as he tossed the ball from one hand to the other and marked out a truncated run-up, you could almost hear the flicking of programmes as spectators searched for yet another Sri Lankan name they had never heard before. Ajantha who? Somebody Mendis? Was he related to that other Mendis?

What followed was a debut of great maturity and thrilling promise. His first few balls were fast fizzing off-breaks, on an immaculate length. Gayle and Sarwan treated him with caution, then puzzlement and finally complete bewilderment. Switching between off-breaks and leg-breaks, off-cutters and doosras, flippers and in-swingers, he had these highly experienced Test cricketers groping, edging and lunging at thin air as the ground resounded with the regular thud of ball into pad. Eventually, it was Gayle who succumbed, completely defeated by a leg break that had him plumb in front. His job done, Mendis was taken out of the attack, reappearing to run rings around the tail in the closing overs.

He is at first glance an ordinary looking bowler. Holding the ball in the tips of his long fingers, he scurries in just a few steps and bowls at a pace reminiscent of Graham Gooch or Sourav Ganguly. But he is no part-time dobbler. He has more variations than Shane Warne could possibly envisage allied to impeccable accuracy and an unusual grip that makes him hard to read. Even his own team mates and coach Trevor Bayliss haven't got to the bottom of all of his variations. He is a bowler unlike any other in the modern era. Whisper it quietly, but we could just have found the new Sydney Barnes

To have unearthed a bowler like Mendis is a welcome bonus for Sri Lanka on what has been a tough tour. With Muralitheran rested and injury depriving them of Maharoof, Malinga and Fernando, Chaminda Vaas has been carrying the pace attack by himself with most of the stand-ins disappointing. They have also struggled at the top of the order where neither Upal Tharanga nor Mahela Udawatte has taken the chance offered by the dropping of Jayasuriya. But if a decent opening partnership can be found, the longer-term prospects remain good. The middle order batting is a solid backbone, from Sangakkara down to the hard-hitting Kapugedara at seven. When the regular pace bowlers return and Muralitheran combines with Mendis, Sri Lanka should continue to be a threat in one-day cricket up to the next World Cup.

After the first match thriller, West Indies clinched the series in a damp, Duckworth-Lewis tainted affair on Saturday, sauntering to a comfortable 7 wicket win. Understandably, they are favourites at [1.76] for the final match in St Lucia on Tuesday. But meaningless matches in dead rubbers are notorious in more ways than one. If you think Sri Lanka can restore some pride from their Caribbean adventure, you can back them at [2.06]. It might also pay to keep an eye on the weather forecast with thundery showers predicted for today and tomorrow.

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