“When you are down, you need support” - Dinesh Chandimal grateful to family, friends for backing him through tough times

Dinesh Chandimal has been in impressive form of late. Pic: Sri Lanka Cricket

Sri Lankan batter Dinesh Chandimal has acknowledged the support of his family, friends and coaches for standing by him during his tough phase. The 32-year-old top-scored for Sri Lanka on Day 1 of the Galle Test against Pakistan, contributing 76 off 115 balls. Earlier, the right-handed batter scored a career-best 206* against Australia at the same venue as the hosts levelled the two-match series 1-1.

Despite being rated highly ever he made his international debut in 2010, Chandimal has failed to establish himself as a permanent member of the team. Admitting that he has been through some disappointing times, the former captain said at the end of the opening day’s play in Galle:

"You need help during those tough times. I get a lot of support from my family, my wife, coaches, teammates and my friends. I am glad I got that. When you are down, you need support like that. If people are criticising, it's difficult. We don't want to fail, and we need support."

While he may not have been a permanent member of Sri Lanka's team over the years, Chandimal has the experience of 68 Tests, averaging over 42. Sharing his thoughts on what it takes to succeed in the longer format of the game, the batter said:

"You have got to be mentally strong if you are playing Test cricket. I have been out of the side at times. That makes me stronger. You have to score runs to remain in the side. So I thought about the technique and how to keep myself not distracted and grab the opportunity when it came."

Dinesh Chandimal is fighting the lone battle for Sri Lanka 👏

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Chandimal’s knock on Saturday featured ten fours and a six. However, Sri Lanka were all out for 222 in their first innings as Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi claimed 4-58.

“If we had got to 300, we could have been happy” - Dinesh Chandimal

Reflecting on Sri Lanka’s overall performance on Day 1 of the Galle Test against Pakistan, Chandimal admitted that it was a disappointing effort. He said:

"Not happy with what we did. If we had got to 300, we could have been happy. But we can catch up if we bowl right tomorrow, and we have an opening to bounce back."

At one stage in their innings, Sri Lanka were 133-8. A ninth-wicket stand of 44 between Chandimal and Maheesh Theekshana (38) gave the innings some respectability. The last-wicket pair of Theekshana and Kasun Rajitha (12*) also added a crucial 45.

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Pakistan went to stumps at 24 for 2, with Azhar Ali (3*) and captain Babar Azam (1*) at the crease.