We have done well against him: Coach Graham Ford says Sri Lanka has a plan to stop Chris Gayle

Bengaluru: Not too intimidated by the prospect of a Chris Gayle onslaught, Sri Lankan coach Graham Ford today said his bowlers have the plans in place to neutralise the threat posed by the marauding West Indian batsman in tomorrow’s World Twenty 20 clash. “Twenty20 is a funny game and all sorts of things can happen. At the same time we need to come up with one or two plans to neutralise the big guns in their side. So we are quietly chatting about a few things and of course the execution of those things is important,” he told reporters on the eve of Sri Lanka-West Indies WT20 match at Chinnaswamy stadium here. Asked what Sri lanka would do to keep Gayle quiet, Ford said the team has been successful in out-witting him in the past. [caption id=“attachment_2680026” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Chris Gayle. AFP[/caption] “We have put a few things in place in the past. In fact, we did quite well in 2012 against him. We have to see if that still works against him,” he said. Ford said West Indies is a very tough side, but his team is looking at putting basics in place to win the match. “Obviously they are a very tough side. I think if we do our basics well then we have a chance,” he said. Asked whether it is a battle of equals as both the teams are missing key players, Ford said all Twenty20 matches are battle of equals and there is no time to drop guard. “I think all these T20 fixtures are battle of equals. You have got 11 men and you get out there to play against opposition. There is no time to drop your guard, you have got to be as sharp as we can and you have to keep doing what you can do,” he said. Ford said the team haven’t its finalised batting order since it hasn’t got the time to look at the wicket yet. Ford said Dilshan has been superb and his previous knock was a master-class. Asked about the impact of Lasith Malinga’s departure, Ford said the team is missing him. “It is a huge impact. Malinga has struck early for us and done well in the death overs. Finishing the innings is very important for momentum and now we have to find somebody to do that,” he said. PTI