On Wednesday, ahead of his first ODI series as Sri Lanka coach Mickey Arthur spoke about players being handed down well-defined roles within the team, ESPN reports. On Friday, on the eve of the first one-dayer against West Indies, he went into a little more detail about what those roles were.
Unsurprisingly, the two wristspinners in the squad - legspinner Wanindu Hasaranga and left-arm wristspinner Lakshan Sandakan - will be expected to make breakthroughs through the middle overs. Sri Lanka were one of the few teams without a reliable wristspinner during last year's ODI World Cup. With a T20 World Cup later this year, the team is looking to fill that void.
"The key to the wristspiners, and to playing both of them together, is genuine wicket-taking options for us through the middle," Arthur said. "That is the key, and that's what wins you white-ball cricket games now. We want to play that brand of cricket. We are looking to attack and looking to take wickets. I think that's the future for this team.
I think in terms of our preparation, that's been the message. The message has been around attacking. We don't want to play defensive cricket anymore. That will be reflected in our selection.
If the two wristspinners can do the job for us tomorrow, that will be fantastic, because they will take wickets. "Wanindu is a fantastic cricketer. The way he bowls - the control of his length has been amazing. I've really marveled at watching him go about his business.
