Mahela happy to be a Daredevil

NEW DELHI: Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka’s captain who will turn out for Delhi Daredevils this season, has said he will complement the big-hitting batsmen Virender Sehwag, David Warner and the newly-acquired Kevin Pietersen and would try to play the role of a finisher.

“I will leave those guys to do the big hitting and do what I know best: control the innings and finish off games, if I can,” Jayawardene told ESPNcricinfo’s Tariq Engineer. “Wherever they want me to bat is fine. I will try and find a role in the team.”

Jayawardene said he was pleased to be part of a franchise with a consistent record. “Obviously, you hope that someone will pick you up and you get to play in the IPL. Delhi has had four good seasons. It will be good to be part of that.”

He said he was looking forward to the challenge of getting used to how Delhi Daredevils does things and understand how it wants to play. He said the key to a successful season was getting everyone in the squad on the same page and chasing the same goals. “You have to have a very positive mind to go through these five or six weeks of cricket. It is very arduous. How you manage losing as a team is very important. How you come back and win two games to get the momentum back ... it is a roller coaster. You have to enjoy it. There is no other way of doing it,” he said.

Jayawardene said the shortest version of the game requires both technical and mental adjustments. “You need to find what your strengths are and any areas in which you can improve. Everything happens so quickly. You have to adjust accordingly and make decisions with a clear mind. Everything you do is not going to be the right thing, but if you have a clear mind and make the adjustments you will do well,” he said.