The stalemate between the cricket boards of India and Sri Lanka continued on Wednesday with Sri Lankan authorities sticking to May 5 as the deadline for their cricketers playing in the IPL (Indian Premier League) to return home.
Addressing his first press conference in Colombo as captain, Dilshan said he believed playing for Sri Lanka was more important than playing in the IPL.
“We have committed to return by May 5,” Dilshan said after flying down from India for the press conference.
“Personally, I am not unhappy to return early,” said Dilshan, who is on a brief visit amid his IPL commitments with Royal Challengers Bangalore.
“Playing for my country is more important than playing the IPL. I think everybody selected for the England tour will be happy to come early. We have a new interim coach (Stuart Law) and a new batting coach (Marvan Atapattu). I am also new as captain. We need to prepare together to build up for the big England tour.”
Apart from reaffirming his commitment to the national side, Dilshan has also toned down the flashier aspects of his image as he gets ready for captaincy.
“Times have changed. I pierced my ear when my daughter cried when her ears were being pierced,” he said. “Now I don’t see a need to wear the earring. It’s the same with my hair. (Streaking it) was fashionable then for me, it is not so now.”
Dilshan, however, said he was not planning to tone down his attacking brand of cricket. “I’m a bit aggressive. Perhaps I will sometimes change my style a bit. But I might play with it even as a captain.”
“Captaincy is a challenging role for me. It’s a dream come true. I never expected it. I want to give it my best shot. I have played for nearly 12 years. It’s been a very long journey to the top.”
Speaking to Hindustan Times, sports minister, Mahindananda Aluthgamage said both the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Lankan players knew that they (the participating players) had to return home by May 10, the day the Lankan team flies to London.
“It (the English series) has been part of the cricket calendar for a long time. Everyone knew about it. Only those chosen in the squad are now expected to return,” Aluthgamage said.
The minister gave a number of reasons for the entire team to get together for a few days before the players departed for England.
“We have a new captain. We have a new coach. We might soon have a new vice-captain. They have to be together for a few days. Moreover, the entire team has to fly to England with some days in hand to acclimatise with weather. They (the players) have only been playing T20 and one-day cricket. They have to get used to the red ball,” the minister said, adding that there were new players who need to gel as part of the national team.
He added that a number of emails and phone calls have been exchanged between the two boards. “Even now, we are chatting with the Indian cricket board. Maybe a few days’ adjustment could be done. But I again say, that everyone (BCCI and players) knew about the England tour,” he said.
Sri Lanka have left fast bowler Lasith Malinga and all-rounder Angelo Mathews out of their 16-man Test squad.
Malinga played a starring role in Sri Lanka’s progress to the World Cup final earlier this month, but his omission underlines the Sri Lanka selectors’ reluctance to use him in the five-day game.
With Mathews still recovering from a quad injury suffered during the World Cup there was some scope for Malinga to be drafted in to bolster a weakened seam bowling attack.
But the 27-year-old Malinga, who has played just two Tests since England’s tour of Sri Lanka in December 2007, is set to remain in his homeland until the limited-overs leg of the tour.
That is set to leave Dilhara Fernando leading the seam attack, with all-rounder Thisara Perera and inexperienced trio Chanaka Welegedara, Suranga Lakmal and Nuwan Pradeep his support.
New skipper Dilshan leads the team for the first time in the three-Test series, which begins in Cardiff on May 26, after he was named as Kumar Sangakkara’s replacement last week.
Sri Lanka will then play one Twenty20 and five one-day internationals against England before finishing the tour with matches against Scotland and Ireland in Edinburgh.
Squad: Tillakaratne Dilshan (captain), Tharanga Paranavitana, Lahiru Thirimanne, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Dinesh Chandimal, Prasanna Jayawardene, Thisara Perera, Suraj Randiv, Ajantha Mendis, Rangana Herath, Dilhara Fernando, Chanaka Welegedara, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep.
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