Jayasuriya concerned about Murali's future

Sri Lankan captain Sanath Jayasuriya is concerned about Muttiah Muralitharan 's future, claiming that unfair criticism and huge expectations could combine to "destroy" his prize spinner.

According to Jayasuriya, Muralitharan is under tremendous pressure after another bitter tour to Australia when he was hounded by the tabloid media and heckled with shouts of "no ball" by the partisan crowds.

"Murali is under a lot of pressure and is copping a lot of stick from the press," Jayasuriya is quoted as saying on BBC Online.

"I'm really not sure what people want from him. If they want to try and take him down and destroy one of Sri Lanka's greatest ever cricketers, they're going the right way about it."

Muralitharan's record-breaking career has been plagued by controversy over the legitimacy of his bowling action despite being cleared by the International Cricket Council.

Recently he has also suffered from a dislocated shoulder, spent six weeks on the sidelines after pre-emptive hernia surgery before Christmas and then tore a thigh muscle in the New Year.

The 30-year-old has recovered in time for Sri Lanka's opening game against New Zealand and will once again shoulder the responsibility of spearheading the bowling attack.

"He (Murali) wants to win the World Cup, so do we, and it is affecting him," said Jayasuriya.

"He's taken a few things personally and it's hard not to. He realizes he's in the public eye and he's big news all the time, but sometimes you can destroy him if you go too far."