Lanka ace Muralitharan, who might miss today's semi-final against NZ due to injury, urges teammates to win and ensure he gets to play the final in Mumbai
Lanka ace Muralitharan, who might miss today's semi-final againstu00a0NZ due to injury, urges teammates to win and ensure he gets to play the final in Mumbai
Muttiah Muralitharan insists he wants to bow out from international cricket at Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.
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| Muttiah Muralitharan. PIC/Getty Images |
The spin legend faces a race against time to get fit for today's semi-final against New Zealand as he struggles with a bruised knee coupled with a hamstring injury.
He injured his knee in Mumbai during a Group A match against New Zealand on March 18, and aggravated a quadricep muscle during the quarter-final game against England on Saturday.
Muralitharan is pinning his hopes on his teammates to take him to Wankhede.
"Hopefully, I should play. The support staff is trying their best to get me fit for the semi-final. If I don't play, I am praying that my teammates win the match, and I can go to Mumbai for my final game," an emotional Muralitharan told MiD DAY soon after a practice session here at Premadasa Stadium yesterday.
"If they do reach Mumbai, I am confident to be one hundred per cent fit for the final," he added.
Asked if he would prefer to play his farewell game at home, he said: "Obviously, but I am just as happy if my last game would be in Mumbai.
"I love playing there... India is one of my favourite countries in the world. It should be a dream farewell if we win the World Cup."
Skipper Kumar Sangakkara has insisted that Sri Lanka are not thinking of saving Muralitharan for the final. "We are not thinking on those lines. This is a crunch game (against New Zealand), and if he can play, it would be fantastic for us. But if that doesn't work out, we have got enough cover to make sure we are a solid winning side. We will just have to monitor how it goes," he said.
Picture this: Sachin Tendulkar and Muralitharan bracing the Wankhede Stadium for a final showdown.
That should bring down the house!
