With the euphoria of winning the Asia Cup subsiding and the focus now on the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia, the Sri Lanka team departed with a warning that hysterical followers of the country’s main passion better watch their steps and not be over the moon that a bigger trophy is within striking distance.
The players pumped up by the occasion left in the early hours of this morning and in a parting message captain Dasun Shanaka said playing the way they did in the Asia Cup will count for little or nothing in the varied conditions found in Australia where Sri Lanka needs to play as many as eight matches, three in the qualifying round, in the run-up to the November 13 final.
“The Asia Cup is just one tournament, we cannot think about it,” said Shanaka. “We have not taken it for granted that we won the Asia Cup. We prepared very hard and every player put in his effort and now we got to make the adjustments.”
Friday marked probably the most hectic day off the field in the build up to the event with some of the players attending colourful launches and send-offs and some of them not knowing where their cars were parked to get away from one venue to another.
Shanaka had probably the most strenuous day on Friday posing for pictures with young followers inside and outside of the catwalks and stages while cricket officials chatted with well-wishers at impromptu conversations on the sidelines.
Shanaka will in all probability have the captaincy of his life to showcase.
“In Australia there are varied ground dimensions like the long and short of it. Bowling-wise we got to get in those slow bouncers, slow balls, straight Yorkers and wide Yorkers,” said Shanaka as he shuttled between last minute functions.
Sri Lanka Cricket’s main clothing partner MAS Holdings took pride in launching what it said was yet another players’ kit for the T20 World Cup that they bragged was made to withstand the elements and climate in Australia at this time of the year that is said to be warm and humid.
“Cricket is all about building partnerships and we at Sri Lanka Cricket are extremely privileged to have MAS Holdings as our commercial partner and we look forward to a stronger partnership in the years to come,” said veteran secretary Mohan de Silva who is considered the backbone of the sport’s administration.