Mahela has India win on mind

Sri Lankan superstar Muttiah Muralidaran (R) is about to get up while teammate Thilan Samaraweera (C) is taking his time after arrival at the Zia International Airport yesterday.Photo: STAR

Sri Lanka cricket team arrived in the capital yesterday and captain Mahela Jayawardene made it clear that they are determined to maintain their supremacy against the Tigers.
The Lankan skipper said that the famous 2-1 series victory against India is still fresh in their mind and that's why their absence form Test cricket for a couple of months would not play any part in their performance during the two-match Test series.
"The last series we have played was against India in Sri Lanka and yes it was about two and a half months ago. But then the memories of beating India 2-1 are still fresh. So it is always good to think about those things and make sure that we get ourselves ready for the series," said Jayawardene while talking with the reporters at the Zia International Airport.
"We have been playing a lot of domestic cricket, the three-day competition. Most of the guys had 4-5 games under their belt before they came here. So the preparation has been really good," said the Lankan skipper, who looked tired after the flight arrived one and a half hour late due to heavy fog.
Sri Lanka scripted the victory as the much-vaunted Indian batsmen were devastated by a mystery spinner throughout the series and it was none other than the sensational Ajantha Mendis.
So, the obvious question was whether the visitors will miss Mendis in the series but Jayawardene played down the opinion.
"I think the physio's report says he should be fit for the second Test. The team we have got here is a very good team as well. So we won't rush at this juncture. If he is fit to play, we will have a fitness test back home and I know the board will make an arrangement for him.
"But we don't play as individual players, we are a team that play cricket as a team. Ajantha (Mendis) is not here, yes it's a different combination, but whoever is going to replace him will do the job," the captain added.
Replying to a question Mahela said that it has always been a challenge for them to play against the Tigers despite the fact they have a very good record against them, winning the previous ten Tests quite comprehensively.
"It's very difficult to say (what kind of challenge we are expecting), we just need to settle down first. Obviously they have a good side.
"They have quite a few new faces now in the team which we need to analyse and every time we played them it has always been a challenge for us," he observed.
"So we won't be complacent and won't underestimate the challenge that we have got ahead of us. We have got a very good team and we just want to make sure that we play good cricket," he added.
In the last one-day engagement, Bangladesh produced some nervous moments for the Lankans but they were nowhere in the Test series. Bangladesh even failed to push the Sri Lankans in the longer-version but Jayawardene said that they were hardly bothered with the past record.
"I am not a captain to give predictions. I like just to take one game at a time and concentrate on that. The one-day series will come later and I will think about it then. Right now it's the Test series," he said.
"Like I said I am not going to take anything easy. We are not going to be complacent, we are going to be very serious about the cricket that we are going to play here and try and enjoy them as well," he added.
In recent times there has been a lot of talk about security but the classy right-hander was not ready to talk about the issue when asked how they think about their board's willingness to play in Pakistan as India have called off their tour to Pakistan.
"I have no comment on that. You know I am here to play cricket against Bangladesh. We will think about it when that will come," he responded.
There was a curiosity among the reporters about the injury of Kumar Sangakara who was found limping but it was confirmed that the Sri Lankan vice-captain had just a small cut on his toe which is nothing serious.