Sri Lanka's Twenty20 captain Lasith Malinga said Sunday night that his team's victory in the final of the Twenty20 World Cup was due to hard work and not luck. He also said that the win was a fitting farewell for the team's two veteran gentlemen stalwarts Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara.
Malinga said the win was the result of accurate planning, and came down to winning the big moments.
The team said they wanted to win it for their two "ayyas" or elder brothers in Sinhalese.
Sangakkara said they won it for every Sri Lankan, not for himself or Mahela.
Sangakkara paid tribute to everyone who supported Sri Lanka cricket, and the cricket team, through thick and thin. There have been tough moments, particularly the four tournament final defeats over the past seven years.
In 2007, they were steamrolled by Australia but the momentum was with Sri Lanka in 2009 when they lost to Pakistan in the World T20 final. In the 2011 World Cup final, they seemed to have India on the mat, but were pushed out of that contest by M.S. Dhoni and Gautam Gambhir.
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At home, in the last World T20 final, Sri Lanka failed to chase a moderate target against West Indies.
Both Sangakkara and Jayawardene said they were proud and humbled by the win, and gave credit to their supporters, team-mates, families, fans and support staff.
Malinga said he enjoyed captaincy in the last three games.
Sangakkara said the game of cricket gives opportunities, and it was up to the players to try and execute. It was also about being in the right place at the right time and having the right game, he added.
