Bangladesh coach optimistic of wrapping up ODI series
Dhaka: Bangladesh cricket team head coach Chandika Hathurusingha is hopeful that his boys will seal the series win in the 3rd ODI against Sri Lanka on Saturday (April 1).
“When you win, everything looks good. The body language and effort on the field is the biggest change I have seen in the last few matches after the Galle Test,” Hathurusingha said on Thursday.
“We are very much confident (of a series win) if we get our processes right. I think we will do well against Sri Lanka. They (Sri Lanka) are a very strong team…they have to play well, and we have to play our best game to come good,” the coach added.
“They had a good one-to-one afterwards, and the boys responded to that very well. In the last game we were a bit suffered after the first ten overs, but after that they were really good in the heat,” said Hathurusingha analysing his boys’ attitude.
When Hathurusingha was asked why many members of the second ODI's playing XI weren't at the training at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground (SSC) ground on Wednesday, he said that he trusts the players' preparation and understands how much the weather can have an impact on their physical well-being.
“The thing is, we don't need to train every day. If the players know they are prepared well enough, they can always have rest. It is very hard to play cricket in Sri Lanka. It is very hot. When players are confident, and if I know they are prepared well enough, I want them to be mentally prepared and physically be rested for the game,” he said.
Mashrafe Bin Mortaza’s men will face Upul Tharanga’s men in the last ODI which will start at 10am (Bangladesh time) at the SSC in Colombo.
Tigers won the first match by 90 runs before rain forced the second ODI to be abandoned after the hosts posted a challenging total of 311 for all in 49.5 overs that witnessed pacer Taskin Ahmed claiming a hat-trick as the 5th Bangladesh’s bowler.
Only twice - barring the 2006 series against India that was washed out - in the last 31 years has Sri Lanka not won at least one game in an ODI series at home.