Sri Lanka begins New journey today
Sri Lanka’s cricket begins a new phase under a different captain, coach and manager when they take on India in a replay of last year’s World Cup final in the second game of the Commonwealth Bank Series Tri-nation tournament at the super fast WACA Grounds in Perth today.
Mahela Jayawardene, the third captain of the country in the past ten months is incidentally the most successful captain in the history of the game in Sri Lanka and would be hoping for an even better record as he begins a second stint at the helm.
The team may be seen as not going through its best phase of the game’s history right now, but would take hear from the two scintillating victories they posted in their last two ODI games in South Africa a mere fortnight ago, successfully chasing 300 plus scores.jayawardene’s deputy Angelo Mathews, who his skipper confirmed a few days ago as the captain in waiting of the Sri Lankans, said that the South African victories had indeed given them a load of confidence to play on the Western Australian Cricket Association (WACA) pitch, widely regarded as one of the fastest and bounciest pitches in the world.
"We have been playing in South Africa recently. It's likewise pacey and bouncy here. We played well in the later stage of ODI series in South Africa and, but for Duckworth-lewis (rule), could have turned things around," said Mathews.
Meanwhile, a lot of interest has built up around the possibility of Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar completing the amazing landmark of 100th international century but the little master may not play today if India decides to rest him.
India has decided to rotate the openers and as such Virender Sehwag has been confirmed to play today, and either Tendulkar or Gautam Gambhir will be rested.
Tendulkar has been waiting on 99 international centuries for the past 11 months and Mathews paid tribute to the maestro on the eve of the match.
"His stats say it all. He is one of the best ever produced in cricket's history. Playing against him, it's a great opportunity for us to learn. He's a very seasoned campaigner. We have a lot to learn from him."
However the Sri Lankan all rounder stressed that his team was not bothered about the opponents and claimed they had the resources to match any team in the world.
"We have got a few brilliant youngsters, so we need to focus on our own game, feel free and play our natural game. That's when we come out best."
Mathews also said that the world cup final loss would have no bearing as his team meets the neighbours for the first time since that historic match.
"Unfortunately, I personally couldn't play the final as I was injured. It was a great loss for me as well as for the team. Losing World Cup finals hurt but the past is past. We need to look into this series. It's not the subcontinent so we need to adapt quickly,” said Mathews.
"We've been playing them for quite a while. It's great to be playing against the Indian team. It's a world class team and keeps you on your toes" Mathews said but revealed that India’s recent slump Down Under has given them hope, though it was not enough reason to be complacent.
"They haven't played well in Tests and that's a plus point for us which we can take into the game. But it's a different team when it comes to ODIS. They are current world champions. They could come really hard at us" said Mathews.
The fact that Sri Lankan cricketers have not been paid their salaries for the past ten months has astounded the Australians who are used to seeing professional sportsmen and the plight of the islanders has hit the headlines on a regular basis ever since they landed in Australia.
"There have been a few hiccups. It's a bit of an unfortunate situation. We were not consulted (by the Sri Lankan board) on the coach and the captain. But we are here to play cricket. Our job is to concentrate on our cricket and that's all we can do," said Matthews.
"Eventually we would get paid. Cricket board is trying to sort it out. Hopefully, they would come up with a good answer in near future…we are playing for the love of the game," said Matthews.
Mathews claimed that the ex-skipper Tillakaratne Dilshan was not upset about the sacking he received ahead of the current tour.
"Dilshan is a great character. With all the pressure and the situation, he's ready and set to go and perform tomorrow,” he said.
Mathews hinted that he would be taking over as Sri Lanka captain shortly as Jayawardene has already stated that he would hold reins only temporarily.
"There's been all sorts of saying regarding captaincy. I wasn't looking to captain the country. I have so many years ahead of my career. Vice-captaincy is given to me to groom and I take it as a challenge. I try and cope with it, whatever the situation and try and give my best for the country," Mathews said.
“Mahela took the job to steady the ship. He has mentioned he wouldn't be captaining for long. It's the correct decision for Mahela. He knows the game, he reads the game and he knows what needs to be done to steady the ship," he added.
By Channaka De Silva
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