Though Ranatunga bowed out gracefully, brushing aside the couple of solid cricket yet in front of him, de Silva thought otherwise and did not permit the former BCCSL selection committee to prove that the time is right for him to hang his boots. He fought his way back to the Test squad and stroked a fluent hundred against England on home soil. Naturally, he will not be the same Aravinda that one saw a half a decade back. For that matter, is Brian Lara the same willow wielder that we saw five years ago? But both these batsmen can still be a nightmare to any bowling attack once they get their eye in.

There is no doubt that Aravinda de Silva will be a great asset to the Lankans, especially in England where the wickets normally suit the pacemen. Aravinda is a fluent player on fast wickets and the Lankans will bank a great deal on him to score heavily in England. The million dollar question? If Aravinda proves his worth in the Test series,will he be recalled for the one-dayers involving England and India?

"I'd love to fit into the one day squad. My first love is the one day game and I was extremely disappointed when I was axed from the 50 over encounters," Aravinda said in an exclusive interview with The Sunday Leader. De Silva along with Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara were rated as the three leading batsmen in the world, a couple of years back.

Following are the excerpts from the interview:

Q: Are you fit and ready for the England series?

A: I was never unfit but I have been a bit slow on the field due to my weight factor.

Q: Have you reduced your weight?

A: Yes. Over 11 kilos, I feel much younger and very much fitter.

Q: Being the most experienced member of the Lankan squad what are your views of Sri Lanka's chances of winning the Test series against England now that your main weapon, Muttiah Muralithran is out of action.

A: Muralitharan would have made a world of a difference to the outcome of the Test series. No one is indispensable. Time is ripe for the other members of the team to rally round and do their best to make up for Murali's absence. Depending on one individual will certainly have adverse effects on the rest of the team members and also on the final result of a game. Each individual has an important role to play in any game, Test or one day. If one fails to deliver the goods, the others must take over the reins and do well to put their country on top. Our pattern was the same earlier. They depended heavily on Arjuna and myself. When we failed, the rest too collapsed. We mast inspire each member of the team and make them realise that they too can be match winners. I think the same thing happened in the final against Pakistan in Sharjah this time. Muralitharan's injury crippled the entire team. The result, a pathetic defeat.

No player is a superman. Players are prone to injury. BCCSL administrators, coaches and the knowledgeable ones should have expected a crisis of this nature. If they have thought of grooming up a couple of genuine wrist spinners earlier, we would not have felt so bad at the loss of Muralitharan. Of course it's silly even to suggest, that a young wrist spinner could fit into Murali's boots, but it would have been a great relief to know that we possessed another couple of spinners to worry the batsmen.

Q: In which position do you prefer to bat, now that you are entering the Test arena after a long lapse.

A: I will be comfortable at number four or five.

Q: Have you lost your fluent touch with the bat as a result of your long absence from international cricket?

A: Naturally, I need a little time to get my eye in and middle the ball to perfection. I had played only a couple of first class matches in Sri Lanka before this tour and I surely will need two or three games on wickets in England to get back to my normal style. Hashan Tillekeratne too had some problems early in his re call to Test cricket after a long absence. But now he is performing even better than he did before.

Q: How do you rate Sri Lanka's strength in batting?

A: Our batting line up is second to none in the international scene today. Sanath Jayasuriya, Marwan Atapattu, Mahela Jayawardena, Kumar Sangakkara, Hashan Tillekeratne and Russel Arnold have all proved that they are seasoned campaigners in the five day game. They are more than capable of tackling any lethal attack. Now that we might be minus Muralitharan for the entire Test series, which obviously will make the bowling department weak, the batsmen will have to make amends by piling up huge totals to put the opponents on guard.

Q: Whom do you think should be the ideal partner for Vaas, now that young Dilhara Fernando who had been very impressive with the new ball, too is on the injured list.

A: Charitha Buddhika, though lack in experience has impressed me, he maintains a strict line and length. It's not the speed that counts but accuracy, specially in Test cricket. If a bowler can tie down a batsman for a long period, the batsman is most likely to make a mistake and get out. Anyway, we'll have to play a minimum of three fast bowlers on English wickets and I pick Vaas, Charitha Buddhika and Nuwan Zoysa to deliver the good.

Q: Who do you pick is the best available spinner to replace Muttiah Muralitharan?

A: Muthumudalige Pushapakumar. Though he is not in the squad he is capable of worrying the English batsmen.

Q: How do you rate Kumar Sangakkara as a wicket keeper.

A: He is new to the job. True he has a lot to improve to reach the standard required in Test cricket. As we may not have room to include a specialised wicket keeper Kumar will have to stand behind the stumps. He is a solid batsman and the Lankans must play him in the side. He certainly will improve if he is allowed to keep without being shifted on and off. When this happens he loses confidence.

Q: Do you hope to be re called to the one day side too?

A: Certainly. As I said, my first love is the one day game and if I do well in the Test series on English wickets, I hope they will absorb me to one day squad.

Q: Is it true that you are planning to announce your retirement from cricket in England after the current series?