At 39, Rangana Herath has found supreme joy in belated achievements. Be it wickets or now the Test captaincy, being thrust upon him due to Dinesh Chandimal’s unavailability, Herath has relished the challenges that came his way. In Tuesday’s pre-match press-conference ahead of the first Test, the Sri Lankan skipper stressed that the series will be a challenging one and serenely held all his cards close to his chest.
Herath pointed out that the successful run-chase in the recent Test against Zimbabwe, will hold the team in good stead. “We were chasing like 380 plus. It was not an easy task. So that confidence will help the boys as we get into this Indian series,” he said.
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When asked about mystery spinners in his ranks, with dry-humour, he quipped: “There are no secret spinners. If you see the squad, you can see the spinners.” And on the surface, he added: “This looks a good pitch. Now I cannot say whether it’s going to be turn or not. But I can say, on the fourth and fifth days, there will be some assistance for the spinners.”
The effective but ageing Herath had to square upto two inevitable questions pertaining to his eventual retirement and his probable successor. “I am still enjoying playing Test cricket. I haven't decided anything so far. I am taking it series by series and match by match,” he said and about the successor, he explained: “If you take Malinda Pushpakumara’s first class career, he has taken more than 500 wickets. That statistic says that he is very good at his bowling. Whether I am retired or not, I am sure he is the second option as a left arm spinner.”
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