Dasun Shanaka: “I think the surface played really well but the execution was not there when it comes to the bowling. We’re concerned whether our bowlers bowled in the right areas as compared to the Namibian bowlers. We also wanted the first three batters to continue in the first play, so losing three wickets in the first powerplay put us out of the game. [Next game] the plan should be simple, not to do anything special. It’s about the process. When chasing 160 you need good partnerships at the top and numbers three and four to kick in. The bowlers especially they need to hit their areas.”
Gerhard Erasmus: “It’s been an incredible journey, last year was exciting for us and we’ve now topped that with a great win. Though there’s still a lot of work to do for the rest of the tournament. But yeah it’s been a historic day for us. [On head coach Pierre de Bruyne] He turned this whole ship around for us in 2019, he’s instilled a culture in this team. One that’s truly a winning culture and one that sticks together. With the limited resources that we have, I guess you really have to run a tight ship and I don’t think there’s anyone else who could run such tight ship like he has done over the last three years. And days like this are payback for his effort.”
Player of the Match Jan Frylinck: “I’m a little bit speechless at the moment. What we’ve just achieved is above what we thought we could do and I’m very just excited at this point in time. JJ just came in and took the pressure off me by hitting a couple of boundaries, and then myself and JJ just got us to a competitive total and the bowlers were just great after that. [The surface] it was a little bit two-faced, a little hard to get away. Other than that it stayed rather true. [With the bowling] just stuck to our plans, hit good lengths, and let them make the mistakes.”
Sri Lanka vs Namibia Highlights today. 1st Match, First Round Group A (D/N), GMHBA Stadium, South Geelong, Victoria, Sunday 16-10-2022, ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022.
Toss: Dasun Shanaka, elected to field first.
Dasun Shanaka: “It’s the first game and we would like to have a look at the wicket [before batting]. The boys are very confident and know their roles. We have the same combinations as the Asia Cup. Unfortunately, Dilshan Madushanka got injured in the last practice session. Dushmantha Chameera and Pramod Madushan are in the side.”
Gerhard Erasmus: “I would have liked to bowl first as well. It’s not that much of a difference. This year both the teams have got an opportunity. We are looking to do well. In three games, you need to be on top of it right from the start. The conditions suit our bowling attack, something slower and something in the air.”
Sri Lanka team: P Nissanka, K Mendis (wk), D de Silva, D Gunathilaka, B Rajapaksa, D Shanaka (capt), W Hasaranga, C Karunaratne, D Chameera, P Madushan, M Theekshana.
Namibia team: S Baard, D Wiese, G Erasmus (capt), Loftie-Eaton, JJ Smit, J Frylinck, Z Green (wk), D la Cock, M van Lingen, B Scholtz, B Shikongo.
Head to Head In T20I’s: 1
Sri Lanka Won: 1
Namibia Won: 0
Sri Lanka T20I Rankings: 8th
Namibia T20I Rankings: 14th
Form guide
(last five completed Tests, most recent first)
Sri Lanka WWWWW
Namibia WWLWL
Match Timings: 4:00 AM GMT | 3:00 PM Local
Umpires – Joel Wilson, Rod Tucker
TV Umpire – Paul Reiffel
Match Referee – Andy Pycroft
Reserve Umpire – Marais Erasmus
Match number – T20I no. 1823
