We had 3-4 fielding lapses which cost us the match: Asghar Stanikzai

Sri Lanka earned a well-fought victory against Afghanistan in their Super 10 opener at the Eden gardens, Kolkata. The match was highly exciting. The Afghans batted first and posted 153/7 in 20 overs.  The skipper Asghar Stanikzai led from the front with a wonderful 62 runs off just 47 balls. The Lankans, in reply, did not look up to their standards. However, the 39-year-old veteran Tillakaratne Dilshan took charge and hit an unbeaten 83 from just 56 balls to guide Sri Lanka to a hard-earned 6 wicket victory. The spirited Afghans showed great fight till the last ball of the match However, sloppy work in the final overs cost them the match.

Sri Lankan skipper Angelo Mathews in the post match conference also appreciated the Afghanistan’s efforts and credited their batsmen for the great show. Matthews said: “It was a much-needed victory for us. We haven’t played well in the past. Bowlers bowled well early on and then credit to Afghanistan batsmen for playing well. The attitude in the practice games was superb and we just had to go out there and express ourselves. We are not looking too far ahead. Just want to take it game by game. Can do wonders if we click as a unit.”

Afghanistan skipper Asghar Stanikzai accepted that poor fielding costed them the match. Stanikzai said: “The total was 10-15 short. And Dilshan played well. Unfortunately, we had 3-4 fielding lapses which cost us as well. The pressure is there when playing big teams. Hope we do well moving forward. We have a message of thanks for the President as they sent our ministers and Parliament members to support us.”

Tillakaratne Dilshan was adjudged as the Man of the Man for his match–winning efforts. Dilshan said: “Two games and two ducks in the warm-ups. Needed some runs and really happy that I was able to stay not out and finish it off. 150 was a good total, wicket was slow and the spinners found turn. Later it became slightly easier with the dew factor. They had quality bowlers but we batted well and the running between wickets was good. Didn’t try anything fancy in the first 10-15 overs. Just looked to have partnerships. When you come to these kind of tournaments, it’s important to get runs in the first match. Senior guys need to stand up and then youngsters can bat around us. Looking forward to next game. We are looking to carry on in the same positive way for the rest of the tournament. Thisara can change the game with a couple of big hits. He was sent ahead of Angelo to finish the job. It was not easy to score with the wicket being on the slower side. I am really enjoying my cricket and haven’t decided on my retirement yet.”

Inzamam ul Haq said: “The pitch was good to bat. We were 20 runs short. We failed to capitalize in the 1st 10 overs. We need to learn how to handle pressure better in big tournaments. I am not disappointed, neither is the team. We will give our 100% in the remaining games. Dilshan won the match single handedly. We thought we had a chance with 153 runs on the board. Our lower order batted really well. We did well in the final overs to put up a decent target. I am happy the boys did not give up and kept fighting till the very end. In my opinion, our team performed well against defending Champions.”