Sri Lanka head coach Sanath Jayasuriya has asserted his facet does not have a “mental block” against India after happening within the Super Over to Suryakumar Yadav and Co in an inconsequential Asia Cup Super 4s match.
Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh produced a superb Super Over to win the sport for his facet right here on Friday after Sri Lanka matched India’s 202 runs on the finish of 20 overs with opener Pathum Nissanka smashing a belligerent century.
The legendary cricketer stated that he was pretty happy along with his boys, saying this team can go very far regardless of Sri Lanka dropping all three Super 4s video games within the event.
“I would’ve preferred to finish games in normal time. No captain or coach wants to go to a Super Over,” stated Jayasuriya throughout the post-match press convention.
“Unfortunately, Dasun (Shanaka) missed completing the third run. But no, there’s no mental block against India. Our batting line-up is strong, and we’ve given them confidence. Chasing 200 (203) is never easy, but we almost did it, which shows the quality we have,” he added.
Sri Lanka had suffered an identical defeat in 2024 throughout the third T20I in Pallekele once they made a multitude of a simple chase to be on the mercy of a ‘Super Over’, which India gained.
Jayasuriya praised Nissanka (107) and Kusal Perera (58 off 32 balls) whose second-wicket stand yielded 127 runs in simply 70 balls.
“When you’re chasing 202 (203), you have to keep finding boundaries. Their partnership was the key. The momentum shifted when we started losing wickets. That’s natural in a chase because someone has to take risks.
“Sadly, Pathum received out on the unsuitable time, and in a while, the ball started to show extra. Still, it was a very good recreation of cricket.
“Kusal is one of the best players of spin in our team. He played that role well again, though I’d have liked him to bat longer. Both took calculated risks, and when they wanted boundaries, they executed them. Pathum also had a bit of a hamstring issue recently but still gave 100 per cent for the team, which shows his commitment.” The batting nice added that one of many causes for Sri Lanka’s defeats was the team’s sluggishness in adapting to the wickets.
“In T20 cricket, assessing conditions quickly is everything. In Abu Dhabi, for example, the first-round pitches had pace and bounce, but in the second round, things changed, and we were too slow to adapt. That cost us.
“The disappointment was the Bangladesh match within the Super Fours — 168 on that pitch was rating, however we did not bowl properly sufficient to defend it. Against Pakistan, we did not assess the situations (in Abu Dhabi) shortly sufficient, and have been late to adapt.
“Today (Friday), India played very well to get over 200. Our boys showed they’re capable of chasing that, but again we just fell short. Apart from that Bangladesh game, I’m fairly satisfied, though disappointed not to reach the final. We have the batting and bowling quality.
“The key’s to execute plans in keeping with situations and opposition. If we do this constantly, this team can go very far,” he stated.
