Karunaratne calls for right attitude as SL face UAE in must-win game

I know our players and the staff and everyone is going to come back more strong and is going to play some good cricket

With their chances of qualifying for the Super 12 round of the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 hanging in the balance, Sri Lanka face the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the Kardinia Park, Geelong today.  

The shock 55-run defeat to Namibia on Sunday, pushed Sri Lanka to the bottom of their Qualifying Round group, and effectively makes their remaining two games against the Netherlands and United Arab Emirates must win matches.Those two teams faced off in their opening match on Sunday, with the UAE losing a low scoring thriller, and Sri Lankan all-rounder Chamika Karunaratne is confident his team will comeback strongly in this crucial match against the UAE.   

“We just had a bad day, and we have to accept that Namibia played good cricket yesterday from all three departments. We have to accept that, and what we have to do is we have to review what we did, our mistakes and everything, so we will take it more seriously and just play the next few matches because we are better than that. We are so much better than that,” Karunaratne said.  

“I know our players and the staff and everyone is going to come back more strong and is going to play some 
good cricket.”  

Karunaratne added that, “The best I think for us is we have everything. We have the power hitting, we have players who can control the game, and we are fit players, strong players and mindful, tactical -- we have all who can play in the different areas where we have the pace, we have the variation and the spin is really good.”  

Karunaratne called on his team mates to bring the right attitude when they face the Netherlands, confident they could overcome the UAE.  

• We just had a bad day, and we have to accept that Namibia played good cricket yesterday from all three departments. We have to accept that, and what we have to do is we have to review what we did, our mistakes and everything, so we will take it more seriously and just play the next few matches because we are better than that

“What we have to do is we have to bring the right attitude. That’s the most important thing. But we have to have that. Not for us, even for the whole other sides, as well. But I think if we bring the right attitude, that’s the main thing. If we bring the right attitude, we can beat any team anytime,” Karunaratne added.