The Sri Lanka skipper, Dasun Shanaka stated on Monday that he plans to build on his team’s recent success against India in the T20I series and channelize it in the three-match ODI series that will be commencing in Guwahati on Tuesday. In the first T20I, Sri Lanka came close but lost by two runs, while in the second T20I, played in Pune, they defeated India by 16 runs. With a brilliant ton, Suryakumar Yadav gave the hosts a 2-1 victory in the series-deciding game in Rajkot.

During the pre-match press conference, Dasun Shanaka said, “None of the teams in the recent past except for South Africa have won in India. We even gave a good fight in Mumbai. But they came stronger, we need to play competitive cricket.”

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Stressing on the need to do well, he further said: “It’s an important tournament for all Sri Lankans because the World Cup is going to be held here in India, so looking forward to this series. It’s a very good preparation, the conditions would be similar. The boys are ready for that, they know the importance of this tournament.”

The Lankan skipper was their top run-scorer with a tally of 124 runs at a strike rate of 187.87 in the T20I series.

Talking about the same, Dasun Shanaka said, “Before coming here, I really wanted to do well, and practiced more, it’s very important to play well in India.” The Lankan skipper reckons that it will be a high-scoring affair. “We have seen the deck and it appears to be a high-scoring game.”

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Shanaka, still reeling from Suryakumar’s assault, was asked how he intends to stop the in-form Indian batter. He explained, “This is a familiar question for all the captains. Suryakumar is a 360-player with the form he’s in. It’s about bowling in the right areas and executing your plans well.”