Sri Lanka’s Twenty20 captain Dinesh Chandimal on Tuesday said that they would not like to give an inch to the hosts when they take them on in the first of the two-match Twenty20 series in Chittagong today. With the ICC number one T20 rankings on the line as well as their preparation for the forthcoming ICC World T20 also involved, the islanders are in no mood to make any experiments.
‘We are trying to keep our No1 ranking,’ Chandimal told reporters at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium.
‘We have only two games and we don’t want to do some experiment, [there’s] not enough time to do that.
‘We want to have our best team in the field.
‘We are playing one game at a time. We have some game plans up our sleeve.
‘It is really a good opportunity for us before the World [T20]. We are playing in the World Cup [at this] venue, so we are looking forward to take advantage,’ said the 24-year old skipper.
The right-handed batsman said that he was enjoying leading the side in the shortest format of the game and added that the presence of some senior players was helping him all the time.
‘There’s a lot of experience in this team. We have three former captains so there are a lot of good ideas. I really enjoy that as a captain,’ said Chandimal referring to Tillakaratne Dilshan, Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara.
‘They always give me good ideas that help me as a young captain. They work very hard in training. I am learning everyday from them. As a youngster it is a great opportunity as a captain,’ added Chandimal, who took over captaincy of the T20 side last year becoming the youngest ever Sri Lankan skipper at 23.
Chandimal also reserved respect for their opponents and said that they are well aware that the Tigers have players with the ability to change the course of a game within a short time.
‘We never underestimate Bangladesh, especially in the shorter formats,’ said Chandimal.
‘I think they have good quality batters and bowlers like Sakib [al Hasan] and Tamim [Iqbal],’ he added.
Chandimal will be looking to improve his form in the shortest format as he has just crossed fifty once in 17 innings.
‘The 100 helped me get some confidence. I am looking forward to do good things in the Twenty20 series, ODIs, Asia Cup and World [T20],’ said Chandimal, who scored an unbeaten 100 in the second innings of the second and final Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong.
‘We have some idea. Pitch seemed pretty good. First we have to see the conditions tomorrow.’
-With New Age input
