For how long Thisara Perera will be Sri Lanka’s captain remains to be seen and he appears a stop-gap leader until Chandika Hathurusingha takes over and decides which way to move forward.
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However, he is on the verge of achieving which no other Sri Lankan captain has accomplished so far – to win a series in India. If he wins in Mohali on Wednesday or the third ODI in Visakhapatnam Perera will certainly hold onto the captaincy until 2019.
Sri Lanka did win the Independence Cup in 1997 but it was a quadrangular series and the best of three final was against Pakistan, which Arjuna Ranatunga’s side won 2-0. In a bilateral series, their best effort in India came later that year, when they squared a three-match series 1-1.
“This is a fine opportunity for us to win a series. No Sri Lankan team has beaten India in India. We are leading the series. We are keen to win here and settle the series 2-0. We need to put the first game away from our thoughts, focus and move forward,” he said on Tuesday (December 12).
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Top order batsman and their hero in the third Test match in Delhi, Dhananjaya de Silva, has failed to recover after being left out of the first ODI due to a glue muscle strain.
Sri Lanka conducted a training session in Mohali having arrived in the city on Tuesday morning after their departure from Dharamsala on Monday was put back by one day due to bad weather.
Conditions here are gloomy and overcast but Perera expected a high scoring contest. “I know the conditions here. I have been part of the Kings XI Punjab team for a few years and as usual, it looks a very good batting wicket. It will be a high scoring game. We have to handle situations well.”
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India’s batsmen will be under pressure after a below-par performance in Dharamsala as they slumped to 29 for 7 before a fine knock by MS Dhoni helped them to post 112 runs. “There’s no pressure on us for this game. Everyone knows that if we win tomorrow, we will win the series. We will give our best shot. Generally, I would like to stick to the winning team, but we will take a look at the combination, talk to the curator and then take a call,” Perera added.
Sri Lanka were contemplating bringing in fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera in place of left-arm spinner Sachith Pathirana.
