• Source:JND
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Sri Lanka were forced to make a massive change in their team as Kusal Mendis was appointed as the new captain of the side after injury sidelined the regular skipper Dasun Shanaka for the rest of the tournament.

Mendis is keen on maintaining his aggressive batting style despite taking over the crucial role midway through the ongoing ODI World Cup 2023.

Shanaka was ruled out due to a thigh muscle injury he sustained during a match against Pakistan and is expected to take three weeks to recover. Chamika Karunaratne was named as his replacement in the squad.

 

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Mendis, who is currently one of the top scorers in the tournament with a total of 198 runs from two games, will be leading his team for the first time in Monday's match against Australia. Both teams haven't opened their account yet in the group stage.

Regarding his batting strategy, Mendis stated, "Speaking about my batting, I aim to maintain this level of performance. I prefer playing in a manner that aligns with the team's requirements."

Mendis acknowledged that the team will be missing the service of all-rounder Shanaka, calling it a "significant disadvantage". He said, "As a team, we deeply regret his absence. Moreover, when we previously lost Wanidu Hasaranga, we made an addition to the team to compensate for his absence."

The wicketkeeper-batter also hoped to conquer the "personal weakness" after he was hospitalised post his batting in the match against Pakistan.

He has registered brilliant scores of 76 and 122 in the first two matches of the tournament against South Africa and Pakistan. Mendis was forced to take hospital treatment after cramping during his marathon innings against Babar Azam-led side.

"The intense heat during every match here has been a challenge. I genuinely regret experiencing cramps after my batting," Mendis said Sunday.

"I believe that had I been able to field, we might have achieved more. It's a personal weakness I didn't anticipate.

 

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"I think it was a result of overexertion. I'll take measures to ensure it doesn't happen in the future."

Unfortunately, Sri Lanka have registered unwanted records in their first two games, conceding a World Cup record 428 to the Proteas while Pakistan's pursuit to win by six wickets was the highest successful chase in tournament history.