The race for the best-of-three finals has got more interesting. Australia has 14 points from five matches and India, 10 from the same number of games. Sri Lanka, with seven from four, will be seeking to go past India when the two sides meet here on Tuesday.
Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene was cautious with his words here despite India losing its captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni for the match.
“Dhoni is a match-winner and he has struck form. But we cannot be complacent because of his absence. India has some very big players and any of them could come good. We will have to play good cricket to win the match.”
Despite a sluggish start, Jayawardene felt his side had improved with every game. “The important thing now is to maintain that level of play and be more consistent. That's what we'll aim for in the next few games.”
He added, “Our bowlers have been hitting good areas and I hope they will get the best out of the pitch here. Until we play on it, it will be difficult for me to say how it will pan out. Our pacemen bowled extremely well against Australia and I expect them to do the same against India here.”
On the forecast for rain, Jayawardene said, “We'll just have a good game plan and try and execute it. If the weather intervenes, we'll change our plans accordingly. But we'll just go in there with a clear head before the game.”
Due to new factors like use of two white balls and the completion of the Power Plays before the 41st over, Jayawardene said a side needed to be dynamic. “I want my side to be flexible. The batsmen should be ready to bat at different positions.”
Jayawardene said his side would want to keep its destiny in own hands by winning its next four games. “We want to give it our best shot and make the finals. That's our goal. We do not want to be looking at the other results to qualify.”
