SL, SINGAPORE CLASH IN HIGH PROFILE GAME
Sri Lanka will take on Singapore in a high profile Asian Netball Championship secondround encounter at the OCBC Arena in Singapore today. Sri Lanka qualified to compete in the Cup Segment of the tournament after they recorded two massive victories against Chinese Taipei and India respectively.
The other two teams which have qualified to play in the Cup Segment are Malaysia and Hong Kong.
Meanwhile, Coach Thilaka Jinadasa was confident that Sri Lanka could pull off another win and move closer towards the final.
“I think the players are in a good frame of mind after their success in the two group matches and they should maintain the same momentum,” said Jinadasa. “We know that Singapore are strong contenders for the title and they also do have the home advantage.” “We had a good preparation for this important game by experimenting with all reserve players during the first-round games although we did not receive stiff opposition from the opponents.”
“We never expected to top the century mark in the first-round matches but the girls really played well and they are keen to produce a repeat performance,” added Jinadasa.
Captain Chathurangani Jayasuriya echoed her coach in saying that sound preparation had played a part in the two previous results, but added Singapore will be the first real test for the Sri Lankans. “Singapore and Malaysia are the only teams that we feel could really test us. The team is going into that game with a lot of confidence. With the home support, Singapore will be tough to beat, but we need to block out that noise and focus only on our game, and if we do that I am sure we can win.”
Sri Lanka’s second match of the Cup Segment will be against Malaysia on Wednesday (5).