da bet nacional： Captain Sanath Jayasuriya has welcome the recall of veteran batsman Aravindade Silva, as Sri Lanka start their final run in to the 2003 World Cup with athree-match series against Bangladesh starting Sunday
Charlie Austin03-Aug-2002Captain Sanath Jayasuriya has welcome the recall of veteran batsman Aravindade Silva, as Sri Lanka start their final run in to the 2003 World Cup with athree-match series against Bangladesh starting Sunday.Sri Lanka have chopped and changed their side over the past two years,desperately trying to identify the correct combination at the top of theorder, a fast bowling all-rounder and a reliable number six batsman.And with the 2003 World Cup now just seven months away, the selectors havelost faith in younger players, turning back to De Silva, 36, to solidify themiddle order.”He is an experienced player, who knows how to play in the middle order,”remarked Jayasuriya, after the team’s final practice session. “He deservesthis chance and I am sure that he will perform.”We haven’t had a regular number six batsmen for some time. We have triedout a few youngsters but they failed to perform up the mark during the pastcouple of years.”De Silva, accustomed to batting at four throughout most of his career, islooking forward to the challenge of playing at the pivotal number sixposition.”It’s a position that I will have to adjust to, perhaps changing the styleof my batting,” he revealed. “It’s a tricky position – sometimes you willneed to accelerate, whilst at other times you have to dig the side out oftrouble.”Already Sri Lanka’s most capped player in limited overs cricket havingplayed a staggering 275 games, De Silva is taking his second coming one stepat a time.”I don’t want to think long term – I will take it tour by tour,” he said.”As soon as I feel that I am going to be a burden on the side, I wouldn’twant to stay any longer.”With De Silva in and pinch-hitting opener Romesh Kaluwithrana out,Jayasuriya will open the innings with Marvan Atapattu, with Kumar Sangakkarabatting at three.Sangakkara has already played 49 one-day matches, but has been shunted upand down the order so much that it’s unsurprising he averages adisappointing 24.62.Jayasuriya now expects him to bed down at number three: “We have been tryingthings out, playing him up and down the order, but we have a lot of faith inhim and want him to play in our one-day team all the time, as he’s a keyplayer.”The search for a fast bowling all-rounder – deemed crucial to the side’schances in South Africa – has taken plenty of wrong turns in the past year,so the management will be praying that in Hasantha Fernando they haveunearthed the final piece in the jigsaw.Certainly, the 22-year-old’s domestic statistics, in his virgin year offirst class cricket, are impressive. He averaged 35 with bat, hitting threehundreds, as well as taking four wickets a game with his medium pace.He is set to play on Sunday as part of a four pronged pace attack, includingChaminda Vaas, Dilhara Fernando and Buddika Fernando.Bangladesh are yet to finalise their selection, although they are expectedto pack the side full of all-rounders.Former captain Naimur Rahman, all-rounder Khaled Mahmud and left-arm spinnerMohammad Raffique have all been added to the squad, whilst Aminul Islam,Akram Khan, Alamgir Kabir and Enamul Haque have returned home.Sri Lanka:Sanath Jayasuriya (Capt), Marvan Atapattu, Kumar Sangakkara, MahelaJaywardene, Russel Arnold, Aravinda de Silva, Tillakaratne Dilshan, UpulChandana, Hasantha Fernando, Chaminda Vaas, Chamila Lakshitha Gamage,Dilhara Fernando, Muttiah Muralitharan, Pulasthi Gunaratne, Charitha BuddikaFernandoBangladesh:Khaled Mashud (capt), Habibul Bashar, Al Sahariar, Ehsanul Haque, HannanSarkar, Mohamed Ashraful, Fahim Muntasir, Manjural Islam, Talha Jubair,Tushar Imran, Khaled Mahmud, Naimur Rahman, Mohammad Raffique, TapashBaisya, Alok Kapali