"I thought Matheesha was outstanding...": Glenn Phillips after Colombo's loss to Dambulla in LPL

Colombo [Sri Lanka], July 8 : Following Dambulla Sixers' win against Colombo Strikers in their Lanka Premier League (LPL) match on Sunday, Strikers' and New Zealand star Glenn Phillips lauded opener Angelo Perera and pacer Matheesha Pathirana for their performances.
Though scores from Phillips (52), Perera (41) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (36) took Strikers to 185/6 in their 20 overs, half-centuries from Kusal Perera (80) and Reeza Hendricks (54) helped Dambulla chase down the total with eight wickets and 13 balls in hand.
Speaking after the game, Phillips and Pathirana shared notes about what went right in their performance that could work well in the upcoming match against Jaffna Kings on Wednesday.
Phillips shared, "Today's wicket was rather good. Angelo Pererra did a fantastic job of giving us a flying start. But I also want to say that even though we ultimately lost, Matheesha was excellent and the way he bowled in the final over helped us out."
Keeping the run rate ticking in their challenging match against Dambulla Sixers, Glenn shared, "I think the way the other boys batted around me helped. For me, it is about facing every bowl as it comes down. It greatly eased the task of keeping the runs going."
Talking about Matheesha's game-changing moment, Glenn added, "I thought Matheesha was outstanding. It is of course a game of small matches and his bowling performance under duress was absolutely superb. Three knocks are all that matters in a bounce and Matheesha's over relied heavily on it."
With six victories in the last nine head-to-head meetings of LPL, Dambulla Sixers had the advantage, though the Colombo Strikers squad quite gained to have the slight advantage in this match.
Sharing about the strategy Matheesha Pathirana wants to employ in future matches, the Srilankan talent shares, "My plan is bowling dot balls as my team also supported the same in the over. I will try and employ it even better in the coming days."
Sharing about Strikers Captain Thisara Perara's support, Matheesha shared, "We just plan to execute our plans and also our captain has given good advice for us young bowlers. The plan is to stick with the same."
Talking about keeping calm in high-pressure overs, "To be honest I am not giving it too much thought, I am just trying to carry out the strategy. Should it succeed, I will have command over the game if not my bowling will suffer."
Some of the league's best teams have presented the Colombo Strikers with fierce competition in the LPL 2024. Because of their seasoned rosters and tactical gameplay, teams like the Kandy Falcons, Galle Guardians and Kandy Kings have presented formidable obstacles. Strikers is at the third place out of five with two wins and two losses so far, giving them four points.