'The real test comes when one loses' - Sangakkara

'It's very easy to chop and change when you're losing' - Kumar Sangakkara © Getty Images

Kumar Sangakkara insisted that Sri Lanka were concentrating on their long-term plans and hoped they could end the tour on a high. He spoke to the press on the eve of the game.

The strategy for each game don't change so much. We just make a few minor changes here and there but the aim is to always give it our best shot and win. It hasn't worked on this tour but we will go out there and give it everything tomorrow as well.

It's very easy to chop and change when you're losing but we need to focus on the long-term plan. The main problem on this tour has been the inability to get a cohesive game. The players we have are still capable of winning games for us and we shouldn't be making too many big changes.

The mood's been good and it's a testing time for us. It's easy to forget the bad times when things are going well but the real test comes when one loses. It helps us to become strong and equip ourselves for challenges ahead.

There's no problem with the technique of the batsmen. If one's got to this level, the technique has to be good. It's a problem of application and can be rectified.

I would like to have batted longer in the middle and rotated the strike more. I can surely change certain things with respect to my batting. Sometimes overconfidence has crept in and one needs to realise that the best time to cash in is when one's in form. It's an area I need to improve.

There have been lots of positives. We've learnt to focus on the basics and realised that the processes are extremely important. It has been a learning trip for someone like Farveez Maharoof. He had performed in patches during this series but came back well during that spell at Ahmedabad. It would have done a great deal to his confidence and it will help him in the future. We've lost games but that has meant we've been doing a lot of thinking and putting in a lot of hardwork. It may not have worked on this tour but it will definitely help us in the future.

I don't think so. As young bowlers, they would have wanted to prove themselves and push themselves harder. It has not been any particular problem. Sometimes we've had many small problems that have added up to a big problem.

Both show a lot of potential but one can't judge bowlers on one game or one tour. We have had a lot of fine bowlers in the subcontinent - Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Chaminda Vaas - but all of them proved themselves over a period of time. One needs to be around two years before passing a judgement.