Chandimal laments dew miscalculation

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Cricket365
December 12, 2013

Sri Lanka T20 skipper Dinesh Chandimal was disappointed to lose the first match against Pakistan in Dubai, saying they were around 15 runs short and had misread the conditions before the toss.

Sri Lanka made 145 for five in their 20 overs, but it was not enough as Pakistan won by three wickets and with five balls to spare, as Shahid Afridi's 39 not out off 20 balls sealed the deal.

Chandimal said: "In the last year this pitch has been really slow, but this time the ball was coming nicely on to the bat. I think we were about 10-15 runs short as a batting side.

"After that, our bowlers didn't bowl in the right areas and we gave away some 10-20 runs. Our fielding was also below par. That's why I think we lost the game."

He also said that they hadn't anticipated the dew, having checked the night before and finding none, and that didn't help their spinners: "After about 10 overs, the dew factor came into play.

"Then our spinners couldn't grip the ball. At that time, we couldn't bowl really well, and also the ball came onto the bat really well after 10 overs. The dew factor also contributed to us losing the game.

"We came to the ground on the previous night to check the dew, but last night there was no dew. We had a game plan, which was to bat first because they have some good bowlers, and we wanted to put the runs on the board and put pressure on them.

"In the end Shahid Afridi played a good cameo role. His innings was the turning point."

As for the Pakistanis, skipper Mohammad Hafeez said they planned to keep the target below 150 and was happy to see his strategy worked, saying: "We were expecting the same total.

"We were thinking if we can restrict them under 150 or 140, we would have a good chance because we've got a good batting unit, and also allrounders like Shahid Afridi, Bilawal Bhatti and Sohail Tanvir can give us more strength in our lower order.

"Once we restricted them to the 140s, we knew we could do it. We were very confident we could chase it. The way Shahid Afridi finished the game was pleasing to see."