Atapattu - 'I wish I'd done this in the first Test'
It may be a dead rubber, but in scoring his 12th Test century, Sri Lanka's captain-in-waiting, Marvan Atapattu, was determined not to let Australia walk away with a 3-0 clean sweep
Wisden Cricinfo staff
25-Mar-2004
It may be a dead rubber, but in scoring his 12th Test century, Sri Lanka's captain-in-waiting, Marvan Atapattu, was determined not to let Australia walk away with a 3-0 clean sweep
On scoring a Test century against Australia
"It is always special to get a hundred against the best side in the world. I was not having a very good series and I am happy that it came right in this Test. But I would have loved to have done this in the first match."
"It is always special to get a hundred against the best side in the world. I was not having a very good series and I am happy that it came right in this Test. But I would have loved to have done this in the first match."
On what he did right in this innings
"My downfall in the previous games was making one mistake and so I tried to hold my nerve, keep concentrating and play as straight as possible."
"My downfall in the previous games was making one mistake and so I tried to hold my nerve, keep concentrating and play as straight as possible."
On combating Shane Warne
"So far it's been ok, but it will take more turn in the days to come. There are no terrors in the wicket and there are still plenty of runs to be had, but it is starting to turn from good areas, not just from the rough, so we must make sure that we get a good total in the first innings."
"So far it's been ok, but it will take more turn in the days to come. There are no terrors in the wicket and there are still plenty of runs to be had, but it is starting to turn from good areas, not just from the rough, so we must make sure that we get a good total in the first innings."
On his partnership with Sanath Jayasuriya
"Jayasuriya showed us the way to go in Kandy against this strong side, making sure that you score off every possible loose ball they sent down. And he was successful in that [today] and that helped to build up a partnership and continue scoring."
"Jayasuriya showed us the way to go in Kandy against this strong side, making sure that you score off every possible loose ball they sent down. And he was successful in that [today] and that helped to build up a partnership and continue scoring."