da aposte e ganhe： Sri Lanka’s captain, Mahela Jayawardene, said that Sri Lanka’s drawnseries felt more like a win after the manner in which they surged tovictory in the third Test at Trent Bridge, and he called on his youngteam to treat the result as a springboard for f
Andrew Miller at Trent Bridge05-Jun-2006
Mahela Jayawardene didn’t rule out Muttiah Muralitharan’s participation in the 2010 series in England, but said ‘I think we should enjoy him as he is right now’ © Getty Images
Sri Lanka’s captain, Mahela Jayawardene, said that Sri Lanka’s drawnseries felt more like a win after the manner in which they surged tovictory in the third Test at Trent Bridge, and he called on his youngteam to treat the result as a springboard for further success.”The result is much sweeter because of the way we fought,” saidJayawardene. “Lord’s was where we kept the series alive. We made a lotof mistakes at Edgbaston, by not putting enough runs on the board, buthere we didn’t let them loose in the first innings, we batted well insecond innings, and gave Murali a good score to bowl at. It was abrilliant effort from the whole team.”In a way, it feels like a win,” he added. “We came here to competebut were pushed back from the first Test onwards. But we’ve come backin the series and the draw is great, so I’m pretty happy with theguys. But let’s not go overboard. We will enjoy the next couple ofdays but we’ll have the focus and be ready for the next series.”It’s just another brick in the wall,” he added in an unexpected PinkFloyd reference, although given all the selectorial meddling that hasovershadowed this series, he’d be entitled to sing the refrain: Leavethe kids alone. “We’re not going to get over-confident with what we’veachieved,” he added. “If we keep going in the right direction I’m surewe can improve ourselves as a team.Though Jayawardene had praise for all his players, he reserved specialmention for the man of the hour, Muralitharan, whose stunning figuresof 8 for 70 took his phenomenal tally to 635 Test wickets. “I’ve beenwatching him for the last eight years, and he’s a genius at work. Heknows exactly the areas to bowl in, but the best thing is hisconsistency. He asks questions from the batsmen all the time.””He’s a different guy,” Jayawardene continued. “He has enthusiasm andhunger for cricket, and the way he’s bowling he could walk up to thecrease and pick up wickets. Personally I feel very honoured to playwith him in the side. You can see his character, he is a very, verynice guy, and I’m very proud to be part of his group.”As to Murali’s long-term future, Sri Lanka are not due to tour againfor another four years, but Jayawardene did not rule out his return toEngland in 2010. “It’s all to do with what he wants to do,” heexplained. “He’s doing brilliantly and his motivation is great, but Ithink we should enjoy him as he is right now.”