Dilshan lauds Chandimal as future of Lankan cricket

Dinesh Chandimal scored a half-century in both innings taking three catches and a stumping in the second Test against South Africa.

Durban: Sri Lanka skipper Tillakaratne Dilshan has praised debutant wicket-keeper Dinesh Chandimal for scoring a half-century in both innings, taking three catches and a stumping in the second Test against South Africa.

"It was not just his batting and his keeping, but Chandimal was encouraging the bowlers and fielders and giving ideas throughout the test," Dilshan was quoted, as saying. "He handles himself really well in the middle and is one of the greatest youngsters for the future of Sri Lankan cricket," he added. Chandimal, 22, also shared a 100 run partnership with Kumar Sangakkara in the second innings of the match. "Chandimal`s two fifties (58 and 54) and his involvement in two 100-run partnerships was fantastic," Dilshan said. His comments came following Sri Lanka’s first Test win on the South African soil after defeating the hosts by 208 runs in the second match, and levelling the series 1-1. Rangana Herath was named Man-of-the-Match for grabbing nine wickets and contributing 30 crucial runs in the first innings. Dilshan, however, admitted that he was disappointed with his performance, and would have to work hard on his batting. "Although it was one of the greatest days in my career, I have a lot of work to do on my batting. I want to start building a foundation for my team. In this test I got a start (47 in the first innings) but went out to a really bad ball,” he said. The third and final Test, which would decide the series winner, starts at Newlands on January 3. "I`m looking forward to getting a start in Cape Town and if I can get a big one, the team is in for a chance to win the series," Dilshan said. ANI