Sri Lanka’s crushing 10-wicket loss to India in the recently concluded ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2023 final should help the team learn lessons for the ODI World Cup, coach Chris Silverwood said Sunday.
The home team were bowled out for just 50 in 15.2 overs with Indian fast bowler Mohammed Siraj ripping through the Sri Lankan batting with his 6-21 in Colombo.
Sri Lanka were playing their 11th Asia Cup final but the 116-minute humiliation left the fans disappointed and coach Silverwood said he hoped it would be a blessing in disguise.
“Sometimes a bit of a kick up the rear end is not the worst thing going into a World Cup,” Silverwood told reporters.
“Maybe this is just a wake-up call, that for us to compete against teams like India, Australia, and New Zealand – those types of guys – we have to be on top of our game.
He said, “Maybe there’s something we can use out of this that can motivate us heading into that World Cup.”
Sri Lanka, who have made the ODI World Cup starting October 5 in India after playing the qualifiers, went in as underdogs in the Asia Cup 2023.
