"I'll try and contribute in whatever way possible": Angelo Matthews on his inclusion in Sri Lanka ODI WC squad

During the pre-match press conference, Matthews stated that if the captain requires him to bowl, he will certainly bowl to provide an advantage to the team's skipper.

"If the captain gives me the ball, obviously I'll bowl. But yes, I prepared myself to bowl some overs as well because I know if I bowl, I can give the skipper an advantage when choosing the team, so I can give him another option so yeah, I'll try and contribute in whatever way possible," Matthews said.

When asked if he thought that he could take part in the ongoing extravaganza tournament, he replied that it was not under his control and he just continued pushing himself individually in terms of fitness, bowling, and batting.

"No, I think it's just that because those things I can't control, It's not under my control. So, what I can control is to keep pushing myself individually in terms of fitness, bowling, batting, everything. I mean, when the opportunity comes, I have to be ready. I just did that over the last month or so, I was training extremely hard at HPC with the other boys as well. So, I was giving myself a chance to - if I get the opportunity, to be prepared. But as I said, I didn't expect, because after the 15 was selected, I was not expecting. But it is what it is, the opportunity came," he added.

When asked how he can help his squad since he has not played a lot of white-ball cricket in the last three years, Matthews replied that he played well in the Lanka Premier League (LPL) and it will give him confidence in the ODI World Cup 2023. He also added that he is looking forward to the extravaganza tournament.

"I mean, mostly the teams play a lot of 20-20s. I mean, because we had the 20-20 World Cup last few years, there was a lot of interest going into T20 cricket. And also, the Test Championship, as I said, has added a lot of flavour to Test cricket. So, a lot of Test cricket and T20 cricket have been played. But I personally was not part of the ODI team for quite a while. I mean, I played only three games over the last two or three years. But I had a good LPL. I bowled batted and fielded well. So that gave me the confidence. Also, as I always say, I just try to focus on my fitness, trying to be fit, bowl a few overs, and keep myself fit and trying to give myself a chance. If I do get the opportunity, then to grab it with both hands. So, I'm looking forward to this World Cup." he concluded.

Veteran Angelo Mathews was not included in the Sri Lanka squad initially and was included later to replace Matheesha Pathirana who failed to recover from a shoulder injury sustained during a warm-up match.

Sri Lanka is coming into this game after beating the Netherlands by five wickets and sealing their first win of the tournament.

Sri Lanka stands in eighth place on the ODI World Cup 2023 standings with two points and will be looking forward to winning their upcoming games. (ANI)