SL coach Silverwood wants Shanaka, Dhananjaya to provide explosive finish

Colombo [Sri Lanka]: Ahead of the Super Four stage match between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, Sri Lanka head coach Chris Silverwood said that they are working on their batting order.

Dhananjaya de Silva is currently batting at No. 6 with an average of 26.04 and a strike rate of 74.93. Captain Dasun Shanaka batting at No. 7 averages 25.43 and strikes at 86.59. Both fall far short of the best finishers in international cricket.

“Dasun is working very hard at the moment, as he always does. We’re working hard with him at the moment so he can get the runs that we know he can,” Silverwood said as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

“We think at No. 7 he can make real strong contributions for us, and help build on the good starts that we’ve been getting. We’ve been getting into positions we could launch from, and it’d be great to see Dasun really hurt the opposition and get us over that 300 mark.”

The SL coach said that he wants batters at 6 and 7 to bat explosively in the end.

“With the two of them sat at [Nos.] 6 and 7, we want them to provide firepower. It’s not just a case of going out there and slogging. It’s about doing it their way, and hitting their strong shots. And making sure that they have a clear plan of how they’re going to execute that. As we’ve seen in the past, Dhananjaya has been very good at getting us out of a hole, and getting us to a score that we can then defend,” he added.

“I think Bangladesh have got a very strong bowling unit. From what I’ve seen so far, in this competition, I’ve been very impressed with them – particularly the pace bowlers,” Silverwood said.

“They’re big, they’re strong, they’re accurate, and they get movement. We have to make sure we prepare well and make sure that every batter on our side has a plan on how to cope with every bowler on their side.

Silverwood, however, singled out Bangladesh’s seamers as a particular threat ahead of Saturday’s match in an Asia Cup that has so far been a showcase of superb fast bowling.

The tracks in Colombo are likely to be slower than those in Pallekele, but with rain in the forecast, quick bowlers could play important roles.

“We’ve been watching Bangladesh and preparing well. It’s a different surface here compared to Kandy. We’ll have to make sure that our combinations are right for this wicket,” Silverwood concluded.