|
|
|
| March 14, 2003 | Friday | Muharram 10, 1424 |
Whatmore waits in no man’s land
EAST LONDON, March 13: Sri Lanka coach Dav Whatmore is trying to cope with 24 hours of uncertainty as his team wait to see whether they can still make the World Cup semifinals.
Sri Lanka will qualify if India beat New Zealand on Friday and the 1996 champions go on to defeat bottom-placed Zimbabwe on the following day.
“We all realise what the potential situation might be and to all intents and purposes it might be a dead game,” Whatmore told reporters after practice on Thursday.
“I’d like to cross that bridge when we get to it. If it turns out that New Zealand wins tomorrow it’s a very difficult game to play for both teams.
“We just don’t know at the moment which makes it harder. It’ll lift the guys plenty if the result goes our way tomorrow.
“If the result goes our way the boys will be jumping out of their skin. It will be our last throw of the dice — a must-win game to play in the semifinals.”
Kenya’s upset victory over a dispirited Zimbabwe side left Sri Lanka depending on India dfeating New Zealand, a situation which Whatmore said had not helped morale in the squad.
“The worst possible scenario for us was Kenya winning yesterday which seems to have compounded a feeling of disappointment after the two defeats,” he said. “What we should be doing is focusing on the next match regardless of what happens in tomorrow’s game.”—Reuters
|
|
|
|
