Sri Lanka captain Matthews offers explanation for poor NZ performance
Sri Lanka Cricket captain Angelo Mathews addressed a media briefing in Colombo on Jan. 13 to discuss the recently concluded tour of New Zealand, stating that the absence of prominent seniors like Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardena was the main reason behind the team’s poor performance during the tour.
Sri Lanka’s slump in performance continued as they lost to New Zealand in all three formats of the game and were able to secure just one victory in the entire series.
Mathews stated: If there were more experienced players, the team would have handled these situations much better. Since it is still a young team, there were a lot of visible mistakes. The retirement of Sangakkara and Mahela, at the same time, has created a vacuum in team; but that is not an excuse.
Former Chairman of the SLC Interim Committee Sidath Wettimuny said that while everyone is asking a lot of questions regarding the recently concluded New Zealand tour, many have forgotten that the last time the team toured New Zealand, a lot of matches were lost, even with Mahela and Sangakkara on the team.
He further added that the team did well aginst the West Indies, but that in this tour, performance was poor. He said that at a time when a lot of players have retired and the team is in its transitional period, it is very important that they are supported.
“There is no shortage of talent. But we will have to give them some time to come to the correct standard,” he said
In 2015, Sri Lanka played 11 tests, winning four and losing 11. In One Day Internationals, Sri Lanka were able to win just 12 games in the 25 games they played during the year, with one game ending in a draw. In the T20 format, Sri Lanka was able to win just one of the four games played last year.
Sri Lanka is placed 7th in the test rankings while it holds the 5th position in the ODI format. Following their 2-0 series loss in the T20 format to New Zealand, Sri Lanka lost the top spot and dropped to 3rd.
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