ICC World Cup 2019 | It is must win game against Afghanistan, says Lasith Malinga
Lasith Malinga has stated that the encounter between Sri Lanka and Afghanistan at Cardiff today is a must-win match for them. Sri Lanka find themselves in a tough spot with the form not on their side, especially after a ten-wicket defeat against New Zealand in their opening game.
Sri Lanka were whitewashed in South Africa in a five-match ODI series prior to the World Cup, with the defeat margins of the touring team being huge. They did manage to win a game against Scotland, who are still an associate nation. The Dimuth Karunaratne-led side also lost the two warm-up games comprehensively followed by the confidence denting defeat against New Zealand in the first game of the ten-nation tournament. Lasith Malinga vowed that the team will try its best in the game against Afghanistan.
"I feel players need to get confidence. We need to get mentally tough. The pressure is with us, yes, but we have to play free and do our best. At the moment we want to be concerned with our own skill and how we’re going to play. (It is) a must-win game tomorrow. We’ll try our best, in accuracy and tactically, everything hopefully will be there tomorrow,” he said in a press conference, reported Reuters.
Karunaratne was the only batsman who stood till the end on Saturday while the rest of the batting order collapsed to end up on 136 in 29.2 overs. The ‘slinger’ stressed on the importance of batsmen playing a long innings.
“Patience is very important. We know these conditions, we can have someone get 60-70 runs and still the ball can move. Whoever the batsman is, he has to finish the game,” asserted the 35-year-old.
Afghanistan possesses dangerous players like Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi who have had their fair share of experience in different leagues around the world. The side did win one warm-up match against Pakistan while they put a good fight against Australia in their first match. Malinga did not shy away from the fact that his side will not find it easy against the 2018 World Cup Qualifier winners.
“I think they have experienced players because most of them play in franchise cricket. The important thing is handling the pressure, that’s the big challenge for us. They know how to accelerate and they have confidence,” he signed off.
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