SL coach Nic Pothas rues another series loss

Chandika Hathurasinghe will replace Pothas as next SLcoach.

Pothas was disappointed with the loss. (Reuters)

Sri Lanka succumbed to yet another series loss after being in a strong position against India in the final ODI at Vizag. From being 136 for 1 till the28th over of the innings Sri Lanka were bundled out for 215 inside 45 overs. Sri Lanka’s consistency of letting the match loose from strong positions has got Nic Pothas thinking who has yet again rued another series loss in this forgetful year.

"Until the 28th over, we were well ahead of the game. Then there were two soft dismissals (Tharanga and Dickwella) in one over and thats what can happen. Very disappointing," said Pothas after the eight-wicket defeat.

"Tough one. In hindsight we can look back and pick holes in the system. We had a strategy. What we tried to do was to get as many players as possible who are good players of spin into the squad.

"If you want to play India, you want to have players who can play spin in the middle order. That strategy is sound. But unfortunately we lost two wickets in one over and that put us behind a little bit," he added.


After a rather forgettable year for the Lankans in ODIs in 2017, Pothas said the players haven’t learnt fast enough. Pothas summed up on how the team adjusted to the two formats of the game.

"If I summed up our ODI cricket, I would say we didn’t learn fast enough. In Tests though, it is the opposite. The guys have learned quickly and adapted.

He finally concluded by saying that he was very impressed with the way Shreyas Iyer batted in the last two matches. “He is a young and very exciting batsman. For India exciting to have players like that in the system. I am impressed by the way he goes about things. He has got confidence about the way he plays. He has confidence in his ability and exciting player to watch," he concluded.

 
 

By Anshuman Roy - 18 Dec, 2017

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