In his early days as captain, Chandimal led Sri Lanka to series win against Pakistan in UAE before coming to India
The Indian team was surprised with the way Sri Lankan batsmen failed to put up a fight on the fourth morning. Rohit Sharma, one of the four centurions in the Indian innings, said after the hosts handed Sri Lanka their heaviest Test defeat by an innings and 239 runs: "They played some shots that were not necessary and they should have taken the game till the end."
Sri Lanka head coach Nic Pothas said that the players were hurting after the loss and that "players should be embarrassed in their own performances. Practicing in the nets means nothing if you not go out and put runs on the board".
Sri Lanka captain Dinesh Chandimal, who posted a half-century in each of the innings, was only helpless when his batsmen didn't put up a show, especially in the first innings. Sri Lanka made 205 in the first innings after winning the toss, with Chandimal making 57 before his 61 in the second innings on Monday.
Speaking to a select journalists after the defeat here on Monday, Chandimal said: "We spoke a lot of things after we lost to India 3-0 (in SL). We wanted to compete against them. We spoke of the need to take the Test to the final day. Then only will they panic and it will present us an opportunity. We failed to do that in this game. I am really disappointed as captain.
"We talk a lot of these things at team meetings and stuff. But when we go out to the middle, we fail to produce results. We have experience and there are some good young players, but we fail to get into good form. That's up to individual players. There's no excuse if you can't make 400 runs in the first innings. Then only you can compete against India. I hope the batters will do something in the next game"
In his early days as captain, Chandimal led Sri Lanka to series win against Pakistan in UAE before coming to India. He urged his batsmen to take responsibility. "The best way to bat in the Test is in the first three days. The batsmen needed to take responsibility. We know that they are playing only four bowlers. If we could have taken their bowlers into the third spell, they will be in trouble as they are playing only four bowlers. They are also human and fatigue will take to them. That was our plan. The batters failed to execute those plans. Had we done those, we could have fought better," said the 28-year-old who was leading in his seventh Test after taking over the helm in July this year.
He admitted that the four Indian bowlers bowled very few loose balls. "When we go out to the middle, we need to be positive. Then only the bowlers will make a mistake. We speak a lot about it. If we get negative, they get on top. Test cricket is much to do with temperament. You can't play Test cricket like you play ODI and T-20 cricket."
Chandimal said he came to India with hopes of a first Sri Lankan Test win here. He still hopes of a better show in the final Test in New Delhi starting on December 2. "I am very sad. As captain, I came to India with big hopes. I was hopeful we will be competitive, given the team we have. But we shall see how Delhi unfolds. We need to come out of the hole that we have dug ourselves into. Just three or four players trying to get us out of the hole won't help us," he said.
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 "Dinesh Chandimal")
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