'I don't want to be selfish about staying on' - Murali

[Guest Hiten.]

Why is it difficult to beat India in India? It has never been an easy ride for any team in India. In the 1997 Test series in India, we drew all three. At the time we were at our peak but India managed to hold us. It has always been tough to play in India because the conditions are different and their players know how to play in their own conditions. Therefore for any team to go and succeed in India is very hard. At home, we are a powerful side, like India. Where did Sri Lanka go wrong in the Test series? We had a good chance to win the first Test, but the wicket was so flat that scoring was made easy. We couldn't take 10 wickets in the last one-and-a-half days of play and that affected us. In the second Test, [Virender] Sehwag was the biggest factor. We lost a crucial toss. It was crucial because the wicket was up and down. We lost the Test mainly because they scored 400 runs on the first day. The wicket was still good but we played some poor shots and there were a few unfortunate dismissals like [Kumar] Sangakkara and [Thilan] Samaraweera playing the ball onto the stumps. Our confidence was also dented because Dammika Prasad was injured. We thought we would play three spinners after we saw the wicket. We thought it was going to take spin, but unfortunately it didn't, and the captain got the blame, which is wrong. Decisions are made by the coach, captain and senior players. The other thing that affected us was that the referral system was not used in the series. The Sehwag factor was there. We missed chances off him so many times. There were unfortunate decisions that went against us when actually he was out. So many things worked against us, but India did play well. They played better cricket than us. The 2-0 result does not show how good an effort we put in, but we were not good enough. Unfortunately I was not in good form, neither was [Rangana] Herath. He was not in the form he showed at home. None of the other bowlers got many wickets in the series. Harbhajan [singh] had about 13 wickets from three Tests. For the leading wicket-taker of the series to take 13 wickets means the wickets favoured the batsmen more than the bowlers. Sri Lanka's ODI performances since the 2007 World Cup haven't been very encouraging. Why? This is a transitional period. After 2003 World Cup, we had senior and capable players who stayed till the 2007 World Cup. Now the transitional period has come. I am not young, neither is Sanath [Jayasuriya]. [Chaminda] Vaasy is gone. I didn't have a great 2009 because I had so many injuries. I played 16 ODI matches and took 22 wickets at an economy of 4.77 and according to international standards it is a good effort. But in Test cricket I played eight and got 26 wickets. My career average is 22 and it has gone up because I played on so many flat tracks. "We are not going to be a brilliant fielding side by 2011. If someone is saying we will be, they are not being honest to themselves. Today you cannot find a brilliant fielder who is a brilliant batsman or bowler. It will take generations to find one" Secondly, Sanath is not the same batsman he was, and is not scoring as he should be. Vaas climbed down a bit. From 2003 to 2007 these three players had major contributions to the team. With Mahela [Jayawardene] and Sanga, there were five key players in the side. Now somebody has to fill in our shoes and it takes time. You have to wait patiently. The main thing is we are not patient enough.

Full Article Like Sanga, he would like to think SL were actually competitive in the series and were undone by fielding lapses and absence of URDS.

I think I've had a pretty good career. I have both bowling records in Test and ODIs. I have taken 66 five-fors and 45 four-fors, which means out of 132 Tests I have failed only in a handful - maybe 3% to 5%. In one-day cricket I have taken 512 wickets in 334 matches, average 22 and an economy rate of 3.9. I never thought of records. Cricket was built in my system. God had given me that gift.

:hysterical::hysterical::hysterical::hysterical:

[DomainK]

Well, if he wants to end it, it will be a good decision.

[Sachinism]

Wow!! Did he pull all those stats on the spot?

[Anakin]

Wow!! Did he pull all those stats on the spot?

Obviously he doesn't care about stats :--D

[Karan114]

Obviously he doesn't care about stats :--D

:haha::haha:

[Desi Cartman]

I hope they change the laws to stop chucking after her retires ... It pains me to watch Ajmal bowl :((

[Ram]

Looks like a written/e-mailed interview... There's no way anyone can pull those stats out on the spot..

[achilles]

This interview and his subsequent talks, on the back of his Indian tour, have a lot to do with Sangakarra's persuasive "perform in every match or go away" attitude. These guys will lose their best spinner, one of the world's best opening batsmen (Sanath) and one of the world's best opening bowler (Vaas) if Sangakarra is not checked !