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‘Have strong bench strength but need wicket-taking bowlers’: Dimuth Karunaratne

Now, Sri Lanka will face New Zealand in the two-match Test series beginning 14 August at Galle.

‘Have strong bench strength but need wicket-taking bowlers’: Dimuth Karunaratne

Sri Lankan skipper Dimuth Karunaratne addresses a press conference ahead of their World Cup 2019 match against India at Headingley Stadium in Leeds, England on July 5, 2019. (Photo: Surjeet Yadav/IANS)

Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne is satisfied with the bench strength displayed during the 3-0 ODI series triumph over Bangladesh. But, meanwhile, the captain said that the camp needs bowlers who can take wickets in crucial situations.

In the third ODI on Wednesday in Colombo, Sri Lanka posted a total of 294 for 8 in their stipulated quota of 50 overs, courtesy an 87-run innings from Angelo Mathews off 90 balls. Chasing the target, Bangladesh could not actually bother the hosts and got bundled up for 172 runs, handing Sri Lanka a clean sweep. Angelo Mathews won the Man of the Match as well as Man of the Tournament award.

“The young players grabbed their chances really well,” the ICC website quoted Karunaratne as saying after the third match. “If there’s a lot of competition and there’s a strong bench, if a player is injured I can easily bring another player.

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“I think this is the way we have to build a good line-up. This is the time we have to bring some youngsters for the next couple of years. We’ve had an issue recently, where we didn’t have that strong bench. But players are now ready, and they’ll grab the chances that come their way,” he added.

The 31-year-old, however, insisted that they need bowlers who have the ability to pick up wickets at crucial junctures of the game, especially following Malinga’s retirement from ODI cricket.

“We need to find bowlers who can get us wickets. We have to find those players who deliver in tough situations,” he said.

Now, Sri Lanka will face New Zealand in the two-match Test series beginning 14 August at Galle.

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