Sangakkara praises Nuwan and Rangana

Chris Dhambarage

Jubilant Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara showered praises on his two match winning bowlers Nuwan Kulasekera and Rangana Herath after the pair had fashioned a historic series clinching seven wicket victory on the third day of the second Test match against Pakistan concluded at the P. Saravanamuttu Oval in Colombo yesterday.

The pace spin combination played havoc with the Pakistan batting as they shared nine wickets between them in the second innings for 136 runs from 54.4 overs. This success also gave Sri Lanka their first ever series victory against Pakistan at home.

Sangakkara said that this has been a very special series for him associated with two absorbing Test matches with both ending well inside four days. “It’s a very special series, two very absorbing Tests, the key for us was that whenever we needed someone to step up, someone put their hand up.”

The Sri Lankan captain commended the efforts of Kulasekera and Herath and also highlighted the bowling performance of Tharanga Paranavithana who probably made a huge breakthrough by removing the Pakistan captain Younis Khan at a vital stage of the game.

“Kulasekara and Herath were fantastic, there wasn’t much in the pitch, but it shows what you can do if you have heart, and are willing to bend your back.” “It was an important breakthrough that Paranavitana got for us as well. And we must say a big ‘Thank you’ to Dilshan, who has kept wickets in both Tests.”

Sangakkara believed that Rangana Herath had matured a lot in the recent past and seem to have gained a great amount of experience by playing more Test matches at home.

However he lamented the fact that Herath has been battling for a place in the team along with two World class spinners.

The Sri Lankan captain was also quite humble in victory and stated that success should be celebrated carefully as there will-tough times and bad times for his team in the near future. But at the moment Sangakkara was delighted specially with so many options available in both batting and bowling for the third and final Test match.

Meanwhile, a disappointed Pakistan captain Younis Khan noted that the lack of Test matches in the recent past have brought the downfall of his team in the series. He said that it is not the technique of the batsmen or conditions of the wicket as the reasons for their defeat but purely due to the lack of concentration at the crease.

However, he stressed the importance of winning the third and final Test match to salvage their pride and hope they could conclude the series ‘2-1’ which will also be a great morale booster ahead of the five-match One Day International series.