Sri Lankan wicketkeeper Dinesh Chandimal believes the West Indies continue to pose a serious threat to their chances of claiming the ongoing three-match one-day series despite the hosts scraping to a narrow victory in the first game on Sunday.
Chandimal did not feature in the thriller at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo which Sri Lanka won by one wicket as he was serving a one-match suspension for his altercation with Indian pacer Ishant Sharma during a Test series in August.
But the 25-year-old middle- order batsman is aware of the hazards of taking the opposition lightly, especially their ace spinner Sunil Narine, who claimed three wickets in one over in the first ODI to almost derail the hosts’ chase.
“Sunil Narine is a very good bowler,” Chandimal said on Tuesday ahead of the second one-dayer.
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“If you take bowlers in the world today, he’s in the top two or three.
“We don’t underestimate them at any point. In our practise sessions we work hard. We look closely at how to face their spinners,” he added.
While the Sri Lankans are bolstered by the return of Chandimal for today’s game, the West Indies have been laid low by the one-match suspension of their captain and all-rounder Jason Holder after his team’s slow over rate on Sunday.
The visitors are also sweating on the fitness of all-rounder Andre Russell, who is yet to recover from a side strain sustained during the first one-dayer.
