Follow UsSri Lankan opener Pathum Nissanka expressed his disappointment over yet another batting collapse after the defeat against Australia in Lucknow on Monday (October 16). Sri Lanka have now lost all their three encounters in the 2023 World Cup and have only themselves to blame.
They were 125 for no loss against Australia but then lost all their 10 wickets in the space of 84 runs to get bundled out for just 209. Even against Pakistan, they were 283/4 at the end of 40 overs but could only manage 61/5 in the last 10 overs.
“Despite our promising start, we deeply regret not being able to sustain it, resulting in us being limited to a score of 209. On a wicket like this, I believe we should aim for a total closer to three hundred runs, and this was a contributing factor to our defeat,” said Nissanka.
“As a team, we play every game hoping to win. Unfortunately, we have lost the last three matches. we had played well before that. And we hope to play well in the remaining matches.”
Sri Lanka batted well in the first two encounters, but against Australia, it was only Nissanka and Kusal Perera who got runs. Nissanka got 61 off 67 and added 125 runs for the opening wicket. However, it all went downhill thereafter. Nissanka registered his second half-century of the tournament, but the other batters failed to chip in.
“I believe I've given my best for the team. I'm hopeful that I can contribute significantly by scoring a substantial number of runs and playing substantial innings in the upcoming matches.”
Talking about the collapse, he said: “The opposition's bowlers consistently hit good areas during the middle overs, which created a challenging situation for our batsmen. Unfortunately, we couldn't handle it as effectively as we would have liked. Had we managed to play better, we could have achieved a total of three hundred runs.”
In the second innings, Dilshan Madushanka was the only Sri Lankan bowler who put up a fight. The left-arm seamer took 3/38 in nine overs, while the other bowlers leaked 177 runs for just one wicket in 26.2 overs.
“To be frank, the pitch appeared to ease up somewhat once the lights came on. This played into their favour, enabling them to bat with their usual flow and a positive approach. Our bowlers, on the other hand, struggled to maintain lengths. If we had performed better, we could have set the stage for a competitive match.”