Express pacer Matheesha Pathirana was simply in his best as he took four wickets against Bangladesh in their tournament opener on August 31. Bowling first in Pallekele, Pathirana was introduced after the field restrictions and he showed results straightaway after dismissing Bangladesh skipper Shakib al Hasan. He went on to scalp the wickets of Mushfiqur Rahim, Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman.
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Pathirana made his National debut after his exploits in IPL 2023
To note, Pathirana was part of the Chennai Super Kings in the last concluded IPL edition. Under the leadership of MS, the Yellow Army went on to win its record fifth title in the cash-rich league. The right-arm pacer was deadly in the death overs while playing for the five-time champs. Soon after, he was recalled in Sri Lankan squad. Earlier, Pathirana credited Dhoni for his success in the white-ball format and said that he has played a crucial role in his success.
“As a youngster, if someone gives you confidence like that, it boosts your career. A player of that level showed faith in me and I believed I can do anything in that moment.” Pathirana said. Speaking about things he learnt from the former Indian World Cup winning captain, Pathirana said, “I learned a lot from Dhoni. The first thing is humbleness and that’s why he is very successful. He is 42 and still the fittest cricketer which is really inspiring.
As mentioned above, Pathirana broke the bone of Bangladeshi batting line-up as he took a career-best 4/32. Speaking about his overall numbers in the 50-over format, the 20-year-old has played five matches and scalped eight wickets so far. However, his economy is on a higher side at 6.03. “Last I played ODIs in Qualifiers. Took some experience and came here. Wicket was pretty dead in first half. That’s why I tried slower balls and other things. Very difficult to adjust to ODIs so soon after T20s. But I will manage it,” Pathirana said at the mid-innings break.
