Asia Cup win a morale booster: Dhoni

Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni heaped praised on his team-mates for their all-round show in the 81-run crushing of Sri Lanka to clinch the Asia Cup title and said it would boost their morale ahead of the Test series against the same opponents next month.

“The batsmen and the bowlers performed to their best,” said Dhoni. “It was a team effort and ideal performance before the Test series. There was a bit of pressure on us before the start of the big game. We have to perform well and that’s what we did.

“The batsmen did well to score a competitive total and then bowlers restricted the Sri Lankans way before the winning mark. We wanted Dilshan to get out early as we know if he stays for three to four overs, he’ll score 30 to 40 runs and take the game away from your reach. But Zaheer and Nehra produced great opening spells and it’s a good sign for what lies ahead.”

Published in The Express Tribune, June 26^th, 2010.