Sri Lanka coach eyes 'chance to get back to winning ways'

Sri Lanka's interim head coach, Jerome Jayaratne, has said the team has "accepted they have fallen behind" in Test cricket, and are working hard to correct that in the upcoming home series against West Indies.

"I spoke to all of them individually before they went to the nets. We got a good feedback. They were well disciplined and they accepted they had fallen behind in performance and had two bad series," Jayaratne, who was appointed interim coach following the resignation of Marvan Atapattu, said. Sri Lanka have lost their last three Test series, against New Zealand away and then to Pakistan and India at home, winning two and losing six out of eight games.

Jayaratne said he expects an improved performance against West Indies, but will not be taking them lightly. "I would like to believe that we have a better chance of getting back to winning ways, but I definitely won't underestimate the West Indies.

"We've done a bit of research on them and know what our line of attack will be. They are an unknown quantity in the sense something of a mix with some known players like [Kemar] Roach, [Darren] Bravo and [Denesh] Ramdin coupled with a few new faces. They did well against England at home and had some decent performances."

"All are aware of what is expected of them. We had lengthy discussions, and despite the rain which held us back for about a week, we have made good progress. They've worked very hard and I feel they will put on a very good show. If we can have a couple of good days early in the series the confidence will start to come back."

Batting and fielding are two areas that cost Sri Lanka against Pakistan and India. In the absence of a batting coach, a role that was fulfilled by Atapattu, Jayaratne has taken on the task. As for the fielding, Jayaratne said, "There is a significant improvement but they won't be at their very best because they have some more time to reach their individual goals set by the trainer. But they will put up a better show than in the last two series. We are progressing well with all the department heads doing their part, it's just a matter of putting them all together."

Jayaratne said he is also keen on keeping the team atmosphere good, and has instructed the players to come to him if they are not comfortable. "We have conveyed the message that we should be happy and conducive and everybody should be accepted. If anybody is having an issue, they should keep me at least confidentially informed."

Sri Lanka play West Indies in two Tests, staring on October 14.