We will do well in the World Cup says Jayasuriya
Lanka chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya feels that the Lankan team stands a good chance of making a good impact in this year’s Cricket World Cup which will be held in New Zealand and Australia next month.
He said “We have one of the most experienced sides once again even at this cricket World Cup. We may have lost the Test matches against New Zealand, but our One-Day squad reads different and has gained a lot of experience. When players of the calibre of Mahela Jayawardena, T.M. Dilshan, Lasith Malinga, Sachithra Senanayake and Thisara Perera join the playing XI it adds a lot of strength, experience and recognition into the squad. “I know it is difficult to get adapted to the conditions in New Zealand in a hurry, but, the seven match series is a real blessing and by now half side have had their share of exposure and by the time the World Cup arrives the whole team would be acclimatised to play in these conditions”.
Legendary Mahela's last innings on Lankan soil. Now he will make this his final run into complete retirement.
The Chief National Selector also said that though it was disappointing to see the new look Lankan side losing both Test matches to high riding New Zealand; there were some factors which was encouraging. He said “It was good to see the youngsters coming up with impressive batting performances, though not consistently. The knock of 152 by Dimuth Karunaratne was good. Then the half centuries by Lahiru Thirimanne, Dinesh Chandimal and Kaushal Silva too were good. Especially, the fighting half century by Chandimal was an encouraging factor and it is good to see him scoring regularly at this level of the game. “
Speaking about fast bowler Lasith Malinga, Jayasuriya is of the view that he would be fit enough to take part in the World Cup and that he is shaping up very well and is reacting very positively to his rehabilitation process.
When asked about the wisdom of selecting Dimuth Karunaratne as opener, after they had persisted with Kusal Janith Perera for over a year. Jayasuriya said “I was not my sole decision. There were a lot persons in the decision making process who wanted Karunaratne in as an opener because of his ability to build an inning. However I am also disappointed with Kusal Janith Perera. He was given enough chances to prove his mettle, but he did not grab the opportunity”.
Then once again the former Sri Lanka opening batsman said “I know the Lankan cricketers. I am very sure that we are going to make a huge impact at this year’s World Cup”.
By the time you read this, the first ODI between the two countries would have already got underway at the Hagley Oval, Christchurch.
One hopes that the influx of the experience of Mahela Jayawardena, T.M. Dilshan and Thisara Perera along with the bowling talent of off spinner Sachithra Senanayake chase out the demons on the Hagley memories, where the Kiwi skipper Brendon McCullum took the Lankan attack by its scruff and hammered 195 runs in 134 balls in a Test match.
Today’s match is reported to be more of a docile type void of grass along with a hint of turn, wonder how the Lankan bowlers would exploit it and keep the high riding New Zealand batsmen at bay.
The results of the last five outings of both team reads alike – three wins and two losses overall. However, the Lankan winning ratio in New Zealand have not been great and have lost as many as seven matches in the last ten games played on their soil.
Finally, in spite of being an FTP encounter where the results of the series would reflect in the ICC list of fortunes, this is mostly a precursor to the World Cup preparations and grooming from this point onwards should be the priority of all the Lankans players.