Sri Lanka K/O’d by New Zealand, Australia

• We’ve come to play good cricket in Australia: Bhanuka 

SYDNEY: Sri Lanka’s middle-order batsman and one of the hardest strikers in white ball cricket Bhanuka Rajapaksa said that regardless of yesterday’s results they had come to Australia to play some good cricket.

Sri Lanka were in fact knocked out of the T20 World Cup when New Zealand and holders Australia won their final group games against Ireland and Afghanistan respectively yesterday. 

Afghanistan in fact, almost came quite close to pulling off a sensational win over Australia, which would have kept Sri Lanka in the hunt for a semi-final berth when they lost by a mere four runs.

As it is, New Zealand and Australia finish the group matches equal on seven points each, and for England (5 points) to deny the defending champions of a semi-final place, they must beat Sri Lanka in today’s contest. If that happens, England and New Zealand both with plus run rates will qualify for the semi-finals from Group 1.

“We have come here to justify our presence in Australia. We just want to play good cricket. At the end of the day, the result doesn’t really matter as long as we play some good cricket,” said Rajapaksa at the pre-match press conference ahead of Sri Lanka’s final Group 1 fixture against England at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

“We have already shown what we are capable of a couple of months back, and it’s a strong side. Unfortunately, not all the results have come our way, but tomorrow’s (Saturday) game is quite important to end on a high note.”

The match will be former England coach Chris Silverwood’s first confrontation with England after being dumped from his position following the 4-0 loss to Australia in the Ashes series early this year.

“He finished his stint in England a couple of months back, and he joined Sri Lanka, so now he is our coach. It’s just another game for him. No pressure riding on the coach,” said Rajapaksa.

“He’s one coach that we’ve been looking forward to, for his input. The input has been quite straightforward.  He wants us to get better every day, and it’s quite simple. There’s so much clarity, and he’s been great. We’ll get better hopefully in the future.”

Asked whether Silverwood had shared any secrets on the England players, Rajapaksa replied: “We have a general strategy, plans for each individual when we play against them. It’s just that we know the game, and for us as a team, we play a lot of franchise cricket so we know all the players more. Chris has spoken to us. It’s just a normal strategy and a general plan for everyone. That’s about it.”

England opener Alex Hales who played against Sri Lanka in the 2014 T20 World Cup and scored his only century in the format said: “Good memories, yeah. That was a tough side. They’re always a very tricky side, and they’ve got some handy operators. We’re going to have to play our best cricket to win, but like I said, we’re pretty confident, and the mood is good in the camp. I feel like we can deal with anything that’s ahead of us. We’ve got the skills and firepower to do it.”