Sri Lanka assistant coach Naveed Nawaz said that IPL opportunities with CSK helped the young pace sensation Matheesha Pathirana become a more mature player under the leadership of MS Dhoni. India will take on Sri Lanka in their second Super Four Asia Cup match on Tuesday.

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In the pre-match press conference, Naveed Nawaz said –

“MS Dhoni and Chennai could have played a part in his development, but Pathirana is the product of SLC. He has played two U19 World Cups for us, he is someone we identified at a young age. He has been in the development programmes of SLC (Sri Lanka Cricket).”

Pathirana has represented CSK in 14 games, taking 21 wickets at an average of 20.14 with best figures of 3/15. In the 2023 season, he took 19 wickets at an average of 12 games with best figures of 3/15.

Nawaz added – “IPL opportunities have helped him mature his game. At 18-19, he got to play under a captain like MS Dhoni.

Nawaz further added –

“I am sure that Matheesha would have learnt a lot from him about handling pressure, being in the centre during big CSK games. It is a good experience. We identified him at an early age, CSK saw something in him and picked up, but there is a contribution of them as well.”