Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka rivalry is like India vs Pakistan, says Sri Lanka batter Bhanuka Rajapaksa
India Today
Asia Cup 2022: Bhanuka Rajapaksa compared the Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka rivalry to India vs Pakistan and added that Bangladesh and Sri Lanka players are good friends off the field. Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh by 2 wickets in a group match.
Sri Lanka batter Bhanuka Rajapaksa compared his team's rivalry against Bangladesh with the arch-rivals India and Pakistan.
The India and Pakistan meetings are considered as blockbuster matches with all the buzz and hype generated in the build-up to and after the clash. The same intensity took a negative route during the recent game between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, with players and management starting a war of words ahead of the game and ending with a 'naagin dance' in the Asia Cup match.
Rajapaksa, however, played down the brewing rivalry and instead compared the sides with India and Pakistan.
"It's like India-Pakistan playing. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are rivals. But we are really good friends out of the field," Rajapaksa said in the post-match press conference.
Rajapaksa further said that the two-wicket win over Bangladesh will boost the confidence of the Sri Lankan players.
"We are happy because after winning a game, it's quite thrilling and what we need is winning games. We came here to justify ourselves to the UAE. This tournament was supposed to be held in Sri Lanka, but unfortunately, with the situation back home, we couldn't keep it in Sri Lanka.
"But with all the experience that the players have gained playing together in the last maybe 12 or 15 months, it has brought us much closer as a team," said Rajapaksa, while addressing the political and economic crisis in the island nation.
