Mendis pledges to bowl all five variations in T20

By Ranga Sirilal
COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka spinner Ajantha Mendis has promised to deliver all five of his bowling variations in the Twenty20 World Cup tournament which begins next Tuesday.
Mendis, who holds the best bowling figures in the T20 format with 6-16 from four overs against Australia in 2011, has been included in Sri Lanka's squad after spending nine months out with a back complaint.
He is known for his unique style of spin bowling in which he applies finger techniques similar to those used while playing a popular Indian subcontinent board game called Carrom.
Mendis's own "Carrom ball" is bowled using his middle finger to push the ball out of the hand. It often troubles batsmen who fall victim to lbw after failing to spot its hidden characteristics.
"Now I'm ready to bowl all five deliveries," the 27-year-old told reporters.
"The difficulty I had was that I wasn't able to bowl all five variations I used to deliver, with the injury. But after my recovery I can tell you that I have come back to my old form."
Sri Lanka, hosts of the Twenty20 World Cup, have included Mendis, Rangana Herath and the uncapped Akhila Dhananjaya as three spinners for the tournament.
Sri Lanka open the tournament with a match against Group C rivals Zimbabwe in Hambantota next Tuesday, followed by a game against South Africa at the same venue four days later.
(Writing by Shihar Aneez; Editing by Mark Pangallo)