Sri Lanka on course for Cup

Mahela Jayawardene believes his side are contenders for the World crown © Getty Images

Mahela Jayawardene believes Sri Lanka are capable of going “very far” in the World Cup in the West Indies.

Tom Moody’s side recently drew 2-2 in a one-day series with New Zealand, in the process consigning the Black Caps to their heaviest ever defeat in limited-overs cricket in the fourth match.

The Sri Lankans drew the preceding two-match Test series with Stephen Fleming’s men 1-1 and skipper Jayawardene is confident that if Sri Lanka can iron out a few weaknesses, they could be a formidable force when the World Cup gets underway in March.

"I strongly believe that if we can correct our weak areas on the field we can go very far in the World Cup,” he said.

“As for our tour to New Zealand, I must say that we were challenged very strongly by the Kiwi outfit which resulted in our defeat in the first Test.

“Having said that, we did discuss the importance of playing as a team and worked very hard and the win the in the second Test was a result of that.”

Jayawardene endured a difficult time with the bat in the one-day series, managing a total of just 39 runs from four innings, but was happy to praise the efforts of his team-mates in securing the draw.

“In the one-day games I must admit that there wasn't much I did as a batsman. However, the brilliance of the rest of the batsmen did help us to level the series and come out of it with our reputation intact.

“Our comeback in New Zealand clearly indicates the fighting qualities of the team and will definitely augur very well for India and the World Cup."