"We're not looking too far ahead at the moment and we will take one game at a time," said Angelo Mathews © Getty
With the retirements of both Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka are going through a difficult transition phase. In the build up to the ICC World T20 2016, they failed to make it to the final of the Asia Cup T20 2016 and lost both their warm-up games. However, Angelo Mathews, the Sri Lankan skipper, said that low expectations from the fans and media will help them play with freedom.
"The fact that we are coming in as underdogs will help in releasing the pressure. Yes, we didn't do well in the Asia Cup but we're getting better. I'm confident of my team's progress," Mathews said a day ahead of their match on Wednesday (March 16).
Mathews stated that Sri Lanka will look at taking one match at a time and get some early momentum with a victory in the first game of the tournament against Afghanistan on Thursday. "We're not looking too far ahead at the moment and we will take one game at a time. We need one good game to get our momentum back," Mathews insisted.
Under the leadership of Asghar Stanikzai, the hardy group of cricketers from Afghanistan have made rapid progress through the lower rungs of cricket and are now ranked ninth in the Twenty20 International (T20I) rankings. Afghanistan also won all their three games to make it to the main draw of the World T20.
Mathews commended Afghanistan for their consistent performances and said that Sri Lanka won't take them lightly. "We can't call Afghanistan as minnows. They beat all the teams in the qualifiers and progressed. We are taking them very seriously. They can upset any team. We have to really play well to beat Afghanistan. They're really tough."
On the back of a persistent knee problem, Lasith Malinga resigned as the captain of Sri Lanka's T20I team and Mathews was appointed in his place. In a press conference shortly after Mathews took over the duties of leading the side, he was quoted as saying that he was not 'mentally prepared'. However, the all-rounder said: "I think I used a wrong word 'not ready'. What I meant was I was not expecting the captaincy.
"I've been a part and parcel of the side and captain of the One-Day International (ODI) and Test teams for about three years. I'm very familiar with the players. It's not a burden at all. My task now is to get the maximum out of players from the bunch that we have. I'm really confident," he added.
The retirements of Sangakkara and Jayawardene have left Sri Lanka with gaping holes to the fill in the batting line-up. Mathews, though, asked the younger lot to shoulder extra responsibility as they look to rebuild from the scratch. "It's quite hard to fill those gaps. They served us for so many years. They've retired. Cricket will live forever...no one is permanent in the team.
"Whosoever comes into the team has to take responsibility. Yes, I've had a lean patch but I have been batting well at the nets and have to carry on."
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