Sri Lanka has no stake in today’s Asia Cup match. This simple statement may send the wrong message to their opponents; Bangladesh. But if the Tigers heed the words of Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene they should get a clearer picture about how serious Lankans are about the match even though they have already been eliminated from the tournament.
If they win today’s match it would be just another international success for Sri Lanka while Mushfiqur Rahim’s men are on the cusp of something truly special. The soft-spoken Lankan captain however made it clear yesterday that Bangladesh must play their best cricket if they want to make history by reaching the final of the Asia Cup as Sri Lanka will not yield an inch though they are playing the match only for pride.
“We are not here to do anyone any favours. As a team we are disappointed the way we’ve played in the last two days. Our objective was to get into the final and we’ll treat it in the same way,” said Jayawardene during a pre-match press conference at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur yesterday.
All the talk centred on whether Sri Lanka will take the match lightly when the result doesn’t has no bearing on their tournament chances but Jayawardene issued a warning for the Tigers saying that Sri Lanka will desperately try to finish the tournament on a high note.
It is an altogether different situation for Sri Lanka as they started the tournament as favourites but failed to carry their CB series form into the region’s biggest cricket extravaganza.
Bangladesh, meanwhile, pulled off a magnificent victory over defending champions India to create a rare shot at glory. It is India who the Tigers will knock out of the tournament if they win the match today.
“It’s another international game for us so we are not thinking too far ahead. It has been disappointing as we are out of the tournament, so hopefully we’ll finish off with a win,” said Jayawardene when asked about the Sri Lanka’s contrasting fortunes in such a short span of time.
He also said that they will not be complacent and field the best team.
“We’ll try and play the strongest possible team we can come up with, given the condition and opposition. Bangladesh has been playing some good cricket in the last few games. We know that they are a strong team and they know what they need to do. We won’t be complacent; we want to finish the tour on a high. We have some cricket when we get back home,” explained the Lankan skipper.
Jayawardene has been watching the Bangladesh team at the international level for quite some time and is in a good position to say if there is anything differently about the team.
“Difficult to say (whether this team is different). I think they played well against us a couple of times. The last time they beat us, I remember somebody asking me if this is a different Bangladesh team. A lot of the younger guys who had started four years back are now matured players; they’re experienced. Some of the youngsters who have got in the side are really good talent. They’ve a good balanced side, couple of good match-winners as well. That’s what you need in a team,” responded Sri Lankan skipper.
The performance of the Tigers in the previous two games justified Jayawardene’s observation and now they can take it to a new level by playing their natural game in the must-win match.
-With The Daily Star input
