Lahiru Thirimanne is Sri Lanka's only bright spot in an otherwise dull run

Sri Lanka’s poor run continued even in the 3rd ODI, as India clinched a 6-wicket win to seal the 5-match series. The only shining point in the otherwise gloomy Lankan script was the 105-ball 80 by Lahiru Thirimanne. The 28-year old was able to take the Lankans to a decent total before playing out a victim to Jasprit Bumrah. The Indian pacer scalped career-best figures of 5/27 and was also awarded the Man of the Match.

Sri Lanka’s man in form

Thirimanne has maintained a decent average of 35.07 so far in 108 ODIs, along with 4 hundreds and 17 fifties. The left-handed batsman will have to shoulder the responsibility of taking his team forward. The southpaw is a vital cog in the Sri Lankan top-order and the hosts will look to bank on the man in form to earn them their first win of the home series.

“It feels really good to get back to the big stage. Feels good that I was able to contribute something but at the same time, disappointed that I couldn’t finish it off. There are few areas that I need to work on my game. Spent lot of time working hard on adjusting a few things. Let’s see how it goes,” Thirimanne said at the post-match briefing.

The in-form batsman mentioned about his mentor Kumar Sangakkara as well. “I met Sanga in England and a couple of other times too. Great to talk to him on batting and get some valuable tips. He has played at the highest levels and those little inputs he gives you can change your batting. It was so nice to have a chat to him,” Thirimanne said.

Legend backs Thirimanne

Former Sri Lankan legend Arjuna Ranatunga has been in favor of having the talented left-hander in the side. He has time and again voiced his support. “After Mahela (Jayawardene) and Kumar (Sangakkara), the best players I have seen are Lahiru Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal. The selectors have already destroyed one and they are in the process of destroying the other. I would like to urge them to stop killing natural talent. Why we are struggling is because we have mismanaged our talents,” Ranatunga told Cricbuzz.