NEW DELHI: With the Olympics going on, the India-Sri Lanka limited-overs series has hardly raised the fervour among fans. Sanath Jayasuriya, the interim head coach of Sri Lanka, however, believes the series holds “massive importance” for young players from both sides. The Lankan legend spoke to TOI on a number of topical subjects related to the two teams in this exclusive interview.
Excerpts…
It will be a full-strength Indian team for the series, how do you see the series panning out?
We know how good they (India) are. They are playing really well – in the IPL, in the T20 World Cup. If someone isn’t playing well, the other one is taking responsibility. We have a tough task in hand, but I am confident that our players can win the series.
The Lankan team couldn’t perform to their potential in the 2023 ODI World Cup and also the recently-concluded T20 World Cup in the Caribbean. What are the reasons that the team isn’t able to convert their immense potential into desired results?
In the T20 World Cup, our batters were in good form, they were getting starts but weren’t able to convert the starts into big scores. There were some little things that we were missing. The players also know that. Batters need to fire and fire big to win a match. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. In this series (against India) when our batters get starts, they need to convert those starts into big scores. We have a good bowling side which can win us games.
In Yashasvi Jaiswal, India has a left-handed, top-order batsman in the aggressive mould just like you. What’s your take on him and the progress he has made so far?
Jaiswal is another great talent from India. He has the passion and the want to do well, and to do that he has been working very hard. He has made sacrifices and is a dedicated kid, that’s why he is performing. I have heard about his work ethic, and that’s quite impressive. Recently, we had a session with Zubin (Bharucha), the director of high performance at Rajasthan Royals, and he told us how hard Jaiswal trains.
You were a pioneer in terms of aggressive batting at the top of the order. How would you’ve countered a bowler like Jasprit Bumrah, who seems to get the better of every batsman in contemporary cricket?
He (Bumrah) is a unique bowler. We need to respect him and his skills. On his day, you’ll need to respect him, but then there are days when he is not up to the mark, it’s on those days you need to capitalise. Bowlers like him are on top because they’ve clear thinking in what they want to execute.
Sri Lanka too is known to produce unique bowlers. Even in the present team, you’ve Pathirana, Theekshana, Hasaranga… how do the Lankan bowlers manage to retain their uniqueness, considering there is a tendency among coaches at different levels to coach a talent too much?
We always tell the bowlers to keep their natural way of bowling. We don’t change much, but we make sure that they learn from their mistakes. Pathirana, for example, has also learnt a lot while playing for Chennai (Chennai Super Kings) in the IPL. He has improved a lot under (MS) Dhoni’s captaincy. Sri Lanka Cricket is also working with them quite a lot. We just make sure that we continue giving them confidence.
There are changes at the management level in the Indian team with Gautam Gambhir assuming the role of head coach, Suryakumar Yadav getting the T20 captaincy, and Shubman Gill being elevated as the vice-captain in both limited-overs formats. What do you make of these changes?
All these changes have been made thinking about the future. They (India) are backing their players and giving them opportunity with responsibility. That’s how progress is made.
Watch the live coverage of India tour of Sri Lanka, 7 PM onwards starting July 27, 2024, Live on Sony Sports Ten 5 & Sony Sports Ten 1 in English, Sony Sports Ten 3 in Hindi. Sony Sports Network is the official broadcaster for India’s tour of Sri Lanka in India – comprising 3 T20Is & 3 ODIs.
Excerpts…
It will be a full-strength Indian team for the series, how do you see the series panning out?
We know how good they (India) are. They are playing really well – in the IPL, in the T20 World Cup. If someone isn’t playing well, the other one is taking responsibility. We have a tough task in hand, but I am confident that our players can win the series.
The Lankan team couldn’t perform to their potential in the 2023 ODI World Cup and also the recently-concluded T20 World Cup in the Caribbean. What are the reasons that the team isn’t able to convert their immense potential into desired results?
In the T20 World Cup, our batters were in good form, they were getting starts but weren’t able to convert the starts into big scores. There were some little things that we were missing. The players also know that. Batters need to fire and fire big to win a match. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. In this series (against India) when our batters get starts, they need to convert those starts into big scores. We have a good bowling side which can win us games.
In Yashasvi Jaiswal, India has a left-handed, top-order batsman in the aggressive mould just like you. What’s your take on him and the progress he has made so far?
Jaiswal is another great talent from India. He has the passion and the want to do well, and to do that he has been working very hard. He has made sacrifices and is a dedicated kid, that’s why he is performing. I have heard about his work ethic, and that’s quite impressive. Recently, we had a session with Zubin (Bharucha), the director of high performance at Rajasthan Royals, and he told us how hard Jaiswal trains.
You were a pioneer in terms of aggressive batting at the top of the order. How would you’ve countered a bowler like Jasprit Bumrah, who seems to get the better of every batsman in contemporary cricket?
He (Bumrah) is a unique bowler. We need to respect him and his skills. On his day, you’ll need to respect him, but then there are days when he is not up to the mark, it’s on those days you need to capitalise. Bowlers like him are on top because they’ve clear thinking in what they want to execute.
Sri Lanka too is known to produce unique bowlers. Even in the present team, you’ve Pathirana, Theekshana, Hasaranga… how do the Lankan bowlers manage to retain their uniqueness, considering there is a tendency among coaches at different levels to coach a talent too much?
We always tell the bowlers to keep their natural way of bowling. We don’t change much, but we make sure that they learn from their mistakes. Pathirana, for example, has also learnt a lot while playing for Chennai (Chennai Super Kings) in the IPL. He has improved a lot under (MS) Dhoni’s captaincy. Sri Lanka Cricket is also working with them quite a lot. We just make sure that we continue giving them confidence.
There are changes at the management level in the Indian team with Gautam Gambhir assuming the role of head coach, Suryakumar Yadav getting the T20 captaincy, and Shubman Gill being elevated as the vice-captain in both limited-overs formats. What do you make of these changes?
All these changes have been made thinking about the future. They (India) are backing their players and giving them opportunity with responsibility. That’s how progress is made.
Watch the live coverage of India tour of Sri Lanka, 7 PM onwards starting July 27, 2024, Live on Sony Sports Ten 5 & Sony Sports Ten 1 in English, Sony Sports Ten 3 in Hindi. Sony Sports Network is the official broadcaster for India’s tour of Sri Lanka in India – comprising 3 T20Is & 3 ODIs.