Srinagar: Sri Lanka star bowler, Maheesh Theekshana has said that with the type of wickets provided during ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, the teams need to aim for 380 or 390 runs rather than 350.
He said this in a post match presser after Sri Lanka lost to Pakistan in a high scoring thriller in Hyderabad on Tuesday.
Below is the transcript of press conference :-
[Reporter:]
Sri Lanka lost this game even though you scored more than 350. What about the bowling side – why can’t you restrict the bowling?
[Maheesh Theekshana:]
We lost more than 20 runs because we had a chance to go for the 370 or 380. And even in the bowling we made a lot of mistakes and we didn’t execute our plans. Even in the field, actually today, all three departments we didn’t do well. So that’s why we lost.
[Reporter:]
Your bowling remains a concern. In the last match you also didn’t bowl well. In the last match, you also done nothing as far as the bowling department is concerned. Today was also not up to the mark.
[Maheesh Theekshana:]
I think because the experience that we got over the fast bowlers, even the spinners that we have, they don’t have much experience. Even they didn’t play any games all over India. Me and Wanindu are the only players that have played all over India. I haven’t played in Hyderabad. So, I think they have to get more experience and play more games. Even for the fast bowlers, the smaller boundaries that they had in Delhi, it’s really hard to bowl. So, yeah, they have to execute plans. I think they will do that in the next games.
[Reporter:]
Until the last 10 overs with the bat, all was going well. Last 10 overs you scored a run a ball. What happened exactly? Was there any difficulty with the pitch stopping?
[Maheesh Theekshana:]
Actually, the wicket was a little bit slow in the last 10 overs. They bowled a lot of slower balls and we didn’t execute our plans really well. We lost a lot of wickets in the last 10 overs.
[Reporter:]
Your team was in the driving seat. What do you think the turning point of this match was?
[Maheesh Theekshana:]
I think the turning point was the last 10 overs and the fielding and the middle overs, how we bowled.
[Reporter]:
Maheesh, your team has lost two matches so far. How do you feel about this, particularly in the context of your bowling department? In the first match, you bowled first and lost, and in this match, you were on the defensive, but still lost. What are your thoughts?
[Maheesh Theekshana]:
Indeed, we’ve traditionally been a team that wins through our bowling strength. However, playing here is significantly different from playing in Sri Lanka. The wickets here are less forgiving; a slight misstep in line and length from a bowler can easily lead to a boundary. In Sri Lanka, the slow and uneven wickets offer some room for error, especially for spinners. The other noticeable difference is the high-scoring nature of games here; the team batting second can chase down big totals. I believe if we had scored at least 370 runs today, the outcome might have been different. The conditions were favorable for us, and we had a rare opportunity to beat Pakistan, something we haven’t done for many years, even in Legends matches. Unfortunately, we lost due to mistakes in all three departments—bowling, batting, and fielding.
[Reporter]:
Let’s talk about the centuries from Kusal Mendis and Sadeera. Are these among the best performances you’ve seen?
[Maheesh Theekshana]:
If you look at Kusal’s recent performances, he has been playing aggressively and adapting well to these wickets. I’m not discrediting their talent, but these wickets do make scoring easier. We haven’t seen this level of performance from our players back in Sri Lanka. When Kusal and Sadeera played well today, we were on track with a run rate of around eight, accumulating 280-260 runs in just 30 overs. Unfortunately, we lost momentum when Kusal got out, and we kept losing wickets, which impacted the game significantly.
[Reporter]:
Maheesh, both you and Sadeera have mentioned the drastic difference between the wickets in Sri Lanka and those here. Considering we’re playing in India, what adjustments can we make to our game? What advice are you getting from the coaching staff to adapt to these wickets?
[Maheesh Theekshana]:
We’re not very accustomed to these wickets, where batsmen can easily score 350-360 runs. From a bowler’s perspective, if we don’t maintain discipline in our game, we’ll definitely lose. The same goes for our fielding; discipline is key. Given the magnitude of this tournament and the number of matches, I believe we need to work harder and maintain discipline to secure wins. We’ve been traveling within India as a team, but I think if we maintain discipline, we can turn the tide in our favor.
[Reporter]:
Our bowling department is noticeably weaker with two or three of our main bowlers injured. Many had high expectations from you, Maheesh, for this match. Are you still finding your rhythm post-injury?
[Maheesh Theekshana]:
Did I bowl well? What do you think?
[Reporter]:
To be honest, we haven’t yet seen the usual Maheesh -style of bowling. Is this a temporary situation? Can we expect improvement in future matches? Maheesh, you bear a significant responsibility, especially in the absence of Wanindu.
[Maheesh Theekshana]:
Wanindu is an exceptional player who specializes in taking wickets. My own approach is a bit different; I aim to take wickets throughout the early, middle, and late stages of the game. My primary objective is not to turn the game around with a five-wicket haul, but rather to restrict the scoring while taking a wicket or two.
In today’s game, even when we scored close to 350 runs, I didn’t set my sights on winning by taking 6 or 7 wickets. Attempting to do so would have been counterproductive; I lost my mark, and at that point, it’s unreasonable to expect younger players to step up and execute perfectly.
What people need to understand is that it’s difficult to perform certain kinds of heroics on these wickets. Even in our batting, we see how easy it is to score. In this context, no one is going to try and take 6 or 7 wickets in a single spell unless the team has already secured a few early wickets to set the stage.
We did well for the most part today, but we let them dominate during the middle overs. If we could replay those moments, we would, but we can’t take back mistakes. That’s essentially why we lost the match.
[Reporter]:
We’ve scored over 300 runs in both matches so far. Considering that, and the state of Kusal Mendis, what are the plans for the upcoming crucial matches? What are your thoughts about the bowling, batting, and fielding?
[Maheesh Theekshana]:
Even if the opposition had scored 420 runs, I think we could’ve chased it down. We had a good start, and they didn’t make their 340 easily. With these wickets, we need to aim for 380 or 390 runs rather than 350. Our bowling attack may lack experience, but that’s not to say it’s subpar. During the qualifiers, we managed to bowl out thirteen consecutive teams, a record that speaks volumes.
As for today, we didn’t lose because we played poorly or because the opposition played exceptionally well. If we had played up to our potential, we could’ve won today and changed the 7/0 record to 7/1. It would’ve had a significant impact. We’re acutely aware of the mistakes we made. When we perform at our best, we’re confident of a win. The opposition simply capitalized on our errors, and we expect better outcomes when we play to our full potential.