New Delhi: The absence of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja due to retirement presents a big opportunity in front of Sri Lanka to beat India in their upcoming T20I series, says interim head coach Sanath Jayasuriya.
The experienced trio quit T20Is after India’s World Cup win last month. The newly-crowned champions will play in three T20I matches against Sri Lanka in Pallekele starting on July 27.
India will have a new captain in Suryakumar Yadav at the helm while Gautam Gambhir will begin his tenure as the full-time head coach after Rahul Dravid’s departure.
Sri Lanka will also witness change after resignations of captain Wanindu Hasaranga, head coach Chris Silverwood and high performance consultant Mahela Jayawardena.
Charith Asalanka has taken over as captain with Jayasuriya being appointed the head coach on an interim basis. Indian Premier League side Rajasthan Royal’s high performance director Zubin Bharucha has worked with their batters before the T20I series in a six-day camp.
“Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are best players in the world. Looking at their talent and the kind of cricket they have played we all know where they belong, along with Jadeja,” Jayasuriya was quoted as saying by Associated Press during a media interaction.
“Their absence will be loss to the Indian team and we have to take maximum advantage out of that.”
The Sri Lankan players were involved in the Lanka Premier League after which they underwent a camp with Bharucha.
“We just started the sessions just after the LPL. Most of the players are playing the LPL, so they were busy with cricket and what we wanted (for them) was to play cricket as much as possible,” Jayasuriya said.
“We got Zubin from Rajasthan Royals and we had about six days of work and also with the other cricketers who finished with the LPL. I hope the players have learnt what you (management) wanted to do in terms of practice and their technique.
“The preparation was good, and we have two more days in Kandy before the T20 starts. It is important to learn as international cricketers new techniques, new approaches and shot making to be effective,” the former opener added.
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