Sri Lankan captain Angelo Mathews has hit out at his team for their inept displays in the first two matches of the ongoing 5-match one-day series against India, adding that they have been embarrassed by the Indians.
With the current series having been arranged at the very last minute after West Indies’ unexpected pull-out, it was clear that Sri Lanka were going to be under-prepared coming into the series. But considering the vast experience of the Sri Lankan one-day outfit, especially in Asian conditions, it was thought that they will at least be competitive and provide the Indians a run for their money. However, it has been anything but until now as India have thrashed the Lankans by a whopping 169 runs and 6 wickets in the first two games at Cuttack and Ahmedabad, respectively.
Reflecting on yesterday’s 6-wicket defeat, Mathews said: “I think we’re slowly getting better, but I’m disappointed and embarrassed by the fact that we were not competitive enough against the Indians,” he said. “They thrashed us in the first ODI and also here. It was a convincing performance by them. We need to get our game up in the next few games to win against them.”
‘Happy with personal form’
While Sri Lanka definitely need to lift their standards if they are to have any chance of coming back in the series, Mathews’ own form has been exemplary. Coming in at 3/64 yesterday, he was continually losing partners at the other end, but that didn’t deter him as he went on to make 92* off 101 deliveries with 10 fours and a six to lift Sri Lanka to a competitive total of 274/8 from their 50 overs. Mathews’ unbeaten innings of 92 also meant that he is now the leading run-scorer in ODI cricket for this calendar year, having scored 838 runs from 22 matches at an average of 64.46.
Talking about his effort yesterday and his form with the bat this calendar year, Mathews said: “It would have been better if I had got a 60 and we won the game,” Mathews said. “Unfortunately we ended up on the losing side. I’ve been pretty good with the bat in the past six-eight months, so I’m trying to continue that and be as consistent for as long as I can, and to try and contribute with either bat or ball for the team. Whoever gets a start with the bat needs to get going for the team.”
‘Tried everything I could’
Although chasing 275 is no mean target, India cruised to victory with no less than 33 balls to spare with Ambati Rayudu earning the Man-of-the-Match award for his 121* off 118 balls. Mathews was disappointed about the ease with which Rayudu & co. went about their run chase, and added that he tried everything he could in order to prise out wickets but in vain.
“We tried all the bowlers and I couldn’t get any wickets. I kept changing bowlers to see if we could get any,” he said. Sri Lanka used all eight bowling options in the XI for the second match in a row, but so far, they have managed only nine wickets across two games.
“We don’t have a few of our best bowlers here – Lasith Malinga, Rangana Herath, Suranga Lakmal, Sachithra Senanayake. But it is a learning curve for the bowlers. This is a difficult place to bowl. It takes a lot out of them mentally and physically. Our bowlers are quite inexperienced.
“But that’s not an excuse, because we are playing international level, so we have to try and do well when we have the opportunity.”
