Hathurusingha inspired me to take up captaincy again: Angelo Mathews

All-rounder Angelo Mathews recently admitted that Chandika Hathurusingha inspired him to take up the captaincy role. Notably, Angelo Mathews was named as the Sri Lankan skipper for the ODI squad till 2019 ICC World Cup.

Mathews admitted that he wants to give the new captain enough time to rebuild the side for the 2019 World Cup before he stepped down as the captain from all formats of the game in July last year. However, after a series of poor performances in different tours, the captaincy of Sri Lanka’s ODI and T20 outfit has comeback to Mathews.

“When I stepped down, I thought that I will never take it up again. SLC President, Head Coach and the selectors wanted me to reconsider my decision. I thought about it and there are few reasons for me to take it again. We need to have stability leading up to the 2019 World Cup which is less than 18 months away. This is an hour of need and if I don’t take it up now, I will feel bad in a few months time,” Mathews said after announced as the new captain.

Mathews burst on to the International scene after some terrific knocks for the Sri Lanka A side where Hathurusingha was the coach. Mathews is currently the senior most cricketer of the Sri Lankan team.

“I have known Hathu [Hathurasingha] for a long time. I know how he operates. He is not here to survive. It is very easy to work with him as he has his goals. He played a major part in me making this decision to take up the captaincy again. He is going to be an important part in the run-up to the World Cup campaign. The other countries are dying to take him as he is the best in the business. We have worked a lot together with the ‘A’ team and then with the senior team,” 30-year-old Mathews further added.

Mathews’ first challenge will be the tri-series in Bangladesh involving Zimbabwe. Dinesh Chandimal will then take over as the Test captain for the series against Bangladesh.

“He is going to be our long-term captain. Ideally, we want him beyond 2019,” Chairman of Selectors Graeme Labrooy said

“My reason for backing Angelo was that I needed the best person to lead the side. We wanted someone who was sure of his place on the side to lead the team,” Hathurusingha remarked.

Sri Lanka faced some tough times last year losing 23 of their 29 matches. This includes three 5-0 whitewashes against South Africa, Pakistan, and India.

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