Top order collapse is the reason for defeat, says http://www.senore.com/Cricket/DPMD-Jayawardene-c1397– Cricket News update
Sri Lankan skipper, Mahela Jayawardene, has blamed the top-order collapse for the defeat against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755, after his side was bowled out on a paltry total of 188 in the 46th over in their 2nd match of the Asia Cup.
In contrast to his earlier decision in the opening encounter against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750, the Lankan Captain decided to bat first after winning the toss in a must win match against Misbah-ul-Haq’s side. However, the team failed to capitalize upon the opportunity and remained
dismal in dealing with the exquisite bowling prowess of their opponents.
The Lankan skipper was visibly disappointed with his side’s batting display after he and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/TM-Dilshan-c2691 had provided a brisk start.
“When you win the toss and bat first, the challenge is to get a good score on the board that the bowlers can bowl at; a par score on this track would have been around 250. We didn't get anywhere near that”, opined Mahela.
He conceded that the poor show with the bat had put his bowlers under pressure, who needed to perform exceptionally in order to defend a below par total.
He however, remained adamant over his decision to bat first on a pitch that is considered good for batting second, claiming that the surface actually gets slower during the course of the innings, which makes it tough to chase.
"By playing the extra bowler, we could have defended a competitive total. But the wicket gets slower and slower as the day progresses, and we thought that if we scored 250-plus, it would have been hard for them to chase with six batsmen," remarked the 34-year-old
captain.
Mahela appreciated the efforts of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/WU-Tharanga-c2802, who added valuable runs on the board after the initial debacles, but lamented the loss of Tharanga on the third ball of the batting power-play
When asked about whether fatigue is playing on the team’s mind following a hectic series Down Under, the Lankan skipper felt that the disappointing losses against Pakistan and India were owed mainly to their own lackluster performances rather than stress.
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