'Whatever the score, we will have to defend'
Twenty wickets fell on the second day at Kandy and Sri Lanka finished with a lead of 182 and two wickets in hand. Here's what Mahela Jayawardene had to say on the day's events
Cricinfo staff
04-Apr-2006
Twenty wickets fell on an enthralling second day at Kandy. Sri Lanka were bowled out in their first innings and then proceeded to dismiss Pakistan before losing eight second -innings wickets to end the day 182 runs ahead. Here's what Mahela Jayawardene had to say on the day's events
 |
|
On the day's play
It was an interesting day's cricket ... We did not start well with the ball but then made a brilliant comeback. We bowled in good areas and were rewarded for that. But when we batted again in the second innings they came really hard at us. They knew they had to strike early. There was something in the wicket and they bowled really well.
It was an interesting day's cricket ... We did not start well with the ball but then made a brilliant comeback. We bowled in good areas and were rewarded for that. But when we batted again in the second innings they came really hard at us. They knew they had to strike early. There was something in the wicket and they bowled really well.
On whether Sri Lanka batted badly
I would not just say we batted badly - they bowled really well and there was something in the wicket. Some of the batters got really good balls. Mohammad Asif bowled particularly well - his delivery to get rid of Thilan Samaraweera was a peach. Obviously, though, it would have been nice to have still had a specialist batsman at the crease overnight. On the whole, though, we have played five good sessions of cricket but made a couple of mistakes in the final sessions.
I would not just say we batted badly - they bowled really well and there was something in the wicket. Some of the batters got really good balls. Mohammad Asif bowled particularly well - his delivery to get rid of Thilan Samaraweera was a peach. Obviously, though, it would have been nice to have still had a specialist batsman at the crease overnight. On the whole, though, we have played five good sessions of cricket but made a couple of mistakes in the final sessions.
On whether a target of around 200 will be enough
Whatever the score is we will have to defend that - that is the bottom line. We have to make sure we bowl in the same areas we bowled earlier today and make sure we get a result in our favour. We have played six sessions and everything is in the balance. I think we are in a good situation because there are chasing. When I lost the toss I thought they had grabbed an early advantage, but then they now have the disadvantage of chasing late in the game which will be hard. The fast bowlers need to bowl really tight and support [Muttiah] Muralitharan who be lethal out there
Whatever the score is we will have to defend that - that is the bottom line. We have to make sure we bowl in the same areas we bowled earlier today and make sure we get a result in our favour. We have played six sessions and everything is in the balance. I think we are in a good situation because there are chasing. When I lost the toss I thought they had grabbed an early advantage, but then they now have the disadvantage of chasing late in the game which will be hard. The fast bowlers need to bowl really tight and support [Muttiah] Muralitharan who be lethal out there
On Sanath's injury
It's very unfortunate what happened to Sanath [Jayasuriya] - would have been really nice to see him opening the batting in his farewell performance. Unfortunately, that is cricket - especially in Kandy. But you never know with Sanath. He may turn up tomorrow and bat for us - he is that kind of person. But I have not yet heard an exact assessment.
It's very unfortunate what happened to Sanath [Jayasuriya] - would have been really nice to see him opening the batting in his farewell performance. Unfortunately, that is cricket - especially in Kandy. But you never know with Sanath. He may turn up tomorrow and bat for us - he is that kind of person. But I have not yet heard an exact assessment.