Sri Lanka fret over fitness of captain
HOBART: Angelo Mathews is to undergo a scan on his Achilles tendon today after the Sri Lanka captain hurt himself in the 148-run victory over Scotland to join his team’s fast growing list of injured players at the ongoing World Cup.
Mathews blasted six sixes in his 21-ball 51 with the bat but spent much of the second half of the team’s last Pool A match at Bellerive Oval in the dressing room.
“I have got sore Achilles tendon,” the 27-year-old allrounder told the presentation ceremony after his team’s comprehensive win in their last pool match.
“So management felt it was wise to stay out of the field and take bit of caution.”
The 1996 champions are already battling with a spate of injuries that has already forced a fourth injury replacement.
Batsman Dimuth Karunaratne and Dinesh Chandimal, all-rounder Jeevan Mendis and fast bowler Dhammika Prasad have had their World Cup campaigns cut short by injuries but Mathews had no such fears.
“I don’t think so. It was pretty sore but then the physio thought just not risk, got to assess in the next couple of days.”
His deputy Lahiru Thirimanne shared his optimism as Sri Lanka bid for their second World Cup title.
“I think he is cramped up at the moment. Hopefully he will be ok. I think he’s going for a scan tomorrow,” Thirimanne told reporters after the match.
Amid the injury gloom, outgoing hero Kumar Sangakkara’s red-hot form was a source of inspiration for the Sri Lankan players.
Sangakkara, who will quit one-dayers after the World Cup, became the first batsman to hit four consecutive ODI hundreds and fans believe Sri Lanka would sorely miss their batting mainstay who is still good enough to carry on.
“Sangakkara is getting better and better each and every game,” Mathews said of the 37year-old stumper-batsman.
“I’ve almost gone on my knees and begged him not to retire but unfortunately he has called it a day and we got to respect his decision. He’s served the team, the country for such a long time, we’re really thankful for the service.”
The Sri Lankan innings was built around a partnership of 195 between Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan, whose 104 was his second ton of the tournament.
“It is a great experience to play with Kumar,” Dilshan said. “I hope we can continue to bat as long as possible together, and keep on producing the big partnerships.”
Thirimanne was equally effusive.
“We are all privileged to share the same dressing room with him,” Thirimanne said. “It is fantastic he is playing so wonderfully at the moment, and hopefully he continues his form in the quarterfinals.”