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The Lankans trail 0-1 and must win at the Brabourne stadium to square the series. “It’s a great opportunity,” the Lankan skipper said. “It is a case of regrouping and keep doing the basics right. We have the make-up to beat any side in the world, this is another opportunity for us to do that. We created quite a few chances with the new ball in both Tests. But creating opportunities is one thing, taking those chances is another. We have to make sure that our disciplines are good, our catching is right on the mark from ball one.
“The motivation is always there. A Test win is great at home, it is even better when it is away from home,” Sangakkara added, referring to Sri Lanka bouncing back from 0-1 deficits in England and New Zealand. “That’s the motivation we have in this series. We accept the fact that we didn’t play well enough to be 1-0 up until now. We start from scratch again, begin well and try and put as much pressure on them as we can.”
Sri Lanka will shelve their three-spinner approach of the Kanpur Test and revert to two specialist quicks with Angelo Mathews stepping in as the third seamer. With Dammika Prasad ruled out, the choice to replace Ajantha Mendis is between Nuwan Kulasekara and Dilhara Fernando.
“In the last two or three series, Kulasekara has been an outstanding asset to us in Test cricket as well as one-day cricket,” Sangakkara pointed out. “Quality-wise, Kulasekara has the edge. Dilhara is coming back after a while but he is bowling very well, with control and a lot of pace. It’s a tough choice we have to make.”
Seeking to cash in on Gautam Gambhir’s absence, Sangakkara added, “He is the batsman in form, he has scored a lot of runs this year, two hundreds against us in two Tests. The absence of a quality player like that leaves a gap but it also means the new guy coming in will be really hungry to make a mark.”