Dhananjaya did not get enough support in second ODI

Sri Lanka threatened to be competitive in this series and I feel we had our chances. Unfortunately, though, India counter-punched strongly after being on the ropes in the second ODI and the end result is an unassailable 3-0 lead.

It’s a depressing outcome for Sri Lankan fans and one can certainly understand their frustrations. However, now is the time that the players really need a lift and I hope we will see the fans get right behind the boys in the final two games.

In the first ODI Sri Lanka had a reasonable start but then we lost wickets in the middle overs and were never able to regain any momentum. India batted exceptionally well and always looked like the winners.

In the second ODI we also struggled with the bat, but I thought we battled really hard in the field with Akila Dhananjaya being brilliant with the ball. It was a shame that the others were unable to back him up to finish off the job.

For me, losing that second game was a big loss for Sri Lanka. There was a chance there for the taking to make it 1-1. Sri Lanka would have had a huge confidence boost and that could have made things a little different in the third game.

I was surprised and disappointed that Sri Lanka chose to bat in the third ODI. It was a must-win game and India were clearly comfortable chasing. Being a day-night game the ball was likely to come onto the bat in the evening.

It was also a fresh pitch and there was always going to be a chance of some early movement for the seamers. The Indian pace attack used those conditions well and put the Sri Lanka top order under pressure. Once again, we were short of a challenging target.

I was delighted to see Thirimanne scoring runs on his return to the team. It’s been a difficult couple of years for him and he’s been working hard on his game. Hopefully he can now get an extended run and build-up some confidence and then cement a place in the middle order.

The highlight for Sri Lanka has definitely been the re-emergence of Akila. After breaking into the team in 2012 he had a bit of a set-back with his bowling action and needed to make some adjustments. He worked hard to do that with the coaches and has been doing well in first-class cricket.

He brings a lot of variety to the team and has the advantage of being able to threaten both left- and right-handers given the ease with which he can switch between finger spin and wrist spin. He also has a competitive spirit and it was great to see him attack the Indian spinners.

With the series already lost, Sri Lanka need to take the small positives there are and just keep playing for pride. It’s not easy being on a losing run and I know just how tough it will be for the guys. But somehow they must keep believing in themselves and keep trying to play aggressive, positive cricket.