Internet Desk: After suffering a whitewash against India, Sri Lanka’s ODI skipper Upul Tharanga has called for the support of the fans after Sri Lanka Cricket announced a 15 man squad.
Asela Gunaratne is still recovering from his thum injury which he got in the first Test, the selectors have decided to bring in all-rounders Thisara Perera and Milinda Siriwardana for the five-match ODI series. Perera was not the part of the side during the home series against Zimbabwe. On the other hand Siriwardana last played for the side during the limited-overs series against Bangladesh during the month of March-April.
Nuwan Kulasekara, who played the final ODI against Zimbabwe has not been given the chance this time. Asitha Fernando and Lahiru Kumara too will not be part of the squad, and the selectors have given the chance to Malinda Pushpakumara, who recently debuted against India and young seamer Vishwa Fernando.
“Every team goes through a rough patch,” skipper Tharanga said. “This is something that happens in cycles to every team and every nation no matter how great a cricketing nation they are.
The Lankans were crushed in the three tests where they were set to follow in two occasions. The Lankan’s were not expecting a victory however they were certainly not expecting such a defeat. India will play 5 ODI and a T20 game.
“Sri Lanka dominated in all three formats for a good 18 years – don’t forget this now when we are going through a rough patch. Obviously there are some things we can’t openly discuss due to strategic reasons but there are certain areas behind the scenes that need to fall into place for us. These areas are being taken care of, and we are seeing the results behind the scenes – however it will take a little more time for it to be seen externally, so please have patience, and most importantly have faith.”
Tharanga believes that their limited over format side will far better than the test side.
“Sri Lanka have always been stronger in our white-ball format, and I am confident that we will come out strong and beat India. We have the talent, we have the skill. We have been putting in the hard work, we just need the spirit, and for that we need your support too.
“The support of our fans plays a big role in the morale of the team. We play for our country and our goal is to bring pride to our family of 20 million in this nation – so your support is something that matters greatly to us.
“Yesterday despite the defeat, we saw spectators cheering us and applauding us – this is what we need. It inspires us to fight harder too – so as the captain of the ODI & T20 teams, I want to appeal to each every one of you,” concluded Tharanga.
ODI Squad: Upul Tharanga (c), Angelo Mathews, Niroshan Dickwella, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Chamara Kapugedera, Milinda Siriwardana, Malinda Pushpakumara, Akila Dananjaya, Lakshan Sandakan, Thisara Perera, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lasith Malinga, Dushmantha Chameera, Vishwa Fernando