Mahela Jayawardene - 14 March 2001
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Whatever the controversy in Kandy, the Second Test Match contained some wonderfully tense and exciting cricket. We are though surprised to hear so much said about apparent acrimony between the two sides. Players of both sides were clearly frustrated at times and have been aggressive, but we have no problems with the English players; in fact we have tremendous respect for them.
The incidents that have occurred were the result of understandable, if regrettable, player frustration and should not be misconstrued as animosity between the two sides. The relationship between England and Sri Lanka has never been as bad as the media have tried to portray it. We just want to play hard, clean cricket. Things may be said in the heat of battle, but they are not taken off the field.
International cricket has changed and so too has Sri Lankan cricket. Since winning the World Cup in 1996 we have grown in confidence and toughened up. We are no longer willing to bow meekly before the opposition. Dav Whatmore has taught us to stand up for ourselves and encouraged us to play aggressively. We are not alone, as most sides now play the same way. Perhaps some people though have been surprised to see such aggression from a relatively young side.
We were obviously disappointed to have lost the Test Match in Kandy, but the result is not everything. We are particularly worried about the performance and there were some positive things to reflect upon. The team gave 110 per cent and battled hard throughout the match. Although I thought we were unlucky, we made England fight every inch of the way.
Nevertheless, we should not have lost that game and as a young team, we must learn from it. We made mistakes at crucial times, the first of which was to waste a wonderful position in our first innings, when we lost five wickets for 20 runs. Then, having been forced to work extremely hard for wickets in the England first innings, we relaxed a little to allow Gough and Croft to add 41 precious runs for the tenth wicket. Then we suffered that collapse on Friday night, losing six wickets in the evening session.
England's fast bowlers are the major threat and Darren Gough is by far the most dangerous because he is trying to take your wicket all the time. He may go for runs, but his variations - the bouncer, yorker, off cutter, reverse swing - make you think as a batsman and you have to take great care. With the new ball he is particularly dangerous and can bowl quickly. We will have to be wary in Colombo.
The spinners are much easier and are not too difficult to play on these wickets. They don't do much with the ball and have not been very accurate. You just have to make sure you don't do anything rash.
Personally I was obviously delighted to score a hundred. I enjoy batting with Russel Arnold, as we make a good team, encouraging each other and working out strategies for each bowler. I thought I played pretty well and had been positive throughout. It goes without saying that I was distraught to have given my wicket away so soon after reaching my hundred. In Test cricket you have to score big hundreds and I wasted an opportunity.
We are now looking forward to the final Test Match at the Sinhalese Sports Club, my home ground. I went out to look at the pitch yesterday for the first time and was surprised to see it so dry. I feel that it will be more like Galle than Kandy, which offered the English fast bowlers some pace and bounce. Historically the SSC pitch is excellent for batting and there have been plenty of draws here. I feel, however, that there will be a result. We know where we went wrong in the Second Test, have put it behind us, and are very confident that we can now win the series in Colombo.
© CricInfo
| Teams | Sri Lanka. |
| Players/Umpires | Mahela Jayawardene. |
| Tours | England in Sri Lanka |
