Pothas says ‘very happy’ with ‘hugely supportive’ SLC

Friday, 25 August 2017 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

ESPNCricinfo: Three days after dropping strong hints that undue outside influence has frustrated his stint as interim coach, Nic Pothas has said he is “very happy” with the SLC board.

Though Pothas was critical of fickle selections following the nine-wicket loss in Dambulla, he did take names and had not, in fact, mentioned the board at all. He has now clarified his position ahead of the second ODI.

“It should be stated that I am very happy with everything that’s going on within our four walls in that changing room, and just to clarify things, I am very happy with the situation with the board,” Pothas said. “The board has been hugely supportive of everything that I do and what the players do. They continue to support us. Certainly I have no issues there.”

Though he was somewhat despondent after the first ODI, Pothas also struck an optimistic note about Sri Lanka’s prospects on this occasion. On his watch, the team has lost four out of six ODIs and three out of four Tests, but almost every side goes through a similar slump, Pothas suggested.

“We are in a position at the moment that England, India and Australia all have found themselves in. We have learnt from them and spoken to them. We are very confident about how we are going about our work. As of tomorrow we just keep and come on keep on fighting.”

“In 2014 India were in the same situation. When you’ve got new players and new support staff, it takes time for everyone to get used to each other. I don’t know what the time frames are but all I know is that if we keep doing what we are doing at the moment, you’ll see results pretty soon.”

Where Sri Lanka’s fitness standards have often been panned, Pothas however, was very complimentary of the team’s physical condition. Earlier in the year, Lasith Malinga and Sri Lanka’s sports minister were involved in a back-and-forth over fitness and players’ “pot bellies”.

“I am ecstatic with the fitness levels of our team,” Pothas said. “I have a very close friend whom I speak to a lot our fitness levels and the numbers we put out there are a lot better than a lot of countries in the world.”