Mathews backs Thirimanne to deliver at No. 3

A move to No. 3 may help end Lahiru Thirimanne's lean trot, Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews has said ahead of the first Test against West Indies in Galle. Thirimanne has been groomed for that role over the past two years and is now free to come in at first drop, following the axing of Upul Tharanga from the Test squad, as well as the retirements of high-profile batsmen.

He has continued to be effective in the limited-overs formats despite his Test-match woes. Thirimanne averages 47.81 at No. 3 in ODIs, and Mathews said the team trusts his Test returns will begin to improve as well.

"Because of Kumar Sangakkara batting at No. 3 we couldn't really accommodate Lahiru in the top three," Mathews said. "Your best batter always has to bat at No. 3. Now that Sangakkara has gone, Lahiru is pretty much the candidate to bat at No. 3."

Thirimanne's poor Test form has been particularly apparent in Sri Lanka's recent home Tests. He averaged 21.09 across the six Tests against Pakistan and India, hitting only one fifty in that period.

"Lahiru's form was a bit of a concern in the recent past, but we continue to have faith in him," Mathews said. "We know he's a very good player. He's played the game for quite a long time, so we're pretty much sure he'll come good and deliver for us in this series."

Thirimanne's form had been only one of the several top-order problems Sri Lanka faced, against India in August. The hosts failed to cross 210 in half of their innings that tour, and found themselves battling a first-innings deficit in each of the three games. Mathews suggested a more positive approach with the bat could see his side to bigger totals.

"We need to adjust the mindset with our batting," Mathews said. "It's all about trying to score runs - and that's been the talking point for our batters over the last two months. It's just that any given day you get a good ball and you tend to get out, and that's the fate of the batsman. But I think you need to just try and score runs all the time and grab opportunities that the bowlers give you - try and score off the loose balls. Hopefully we can get everything right this series."

Sri Lanka's bowlers have largely done well in the home series this year, but they have also been occasionally guilty of letting the opposition tail score cheap runs. In the most recent Test at the SSC, Amit Mishra and R Ashwin both hit fifties from No. 9. In the previous series, Zulfiqar Babar had hit a fifty in Galle from No. 10.

"We've talked about getting lower-order wickets a lot in our meetings," Mathews said. "It's just that we have to bowl at them thinking they are batters. The batters play a lot different than the bowlers - the bowlers throw their bats around and get a few runs, and a few nicks. When that happens, in the next minute the whole scenario changes. Hopefully we can rectify that this series."

Mathews also all but confirmed that Tharindu Kaushal will play in Galle, ahead of Dilruwan Perera, despite Kaushal's doosra having been recently banned by the ICC. "We trust that PHT Kaushal will be someone who serves Sri Lanka for a long time, given the way he's bowled in the past. As a team, and as a captain, I can give him that trust and play him. I have no issues with playing him in this match."