Taylor sees big future for Dananjaya

New Zealand captain Ross Taylor believes young spinner Akila Dananjaya has a bright future ahead of him after his impressive debut against the Kiwis in a Super Eight game of the ICC World T-20 on Thursday here at the Pallekele International Stadium.
It was an eventful debut for Dananjaya. New Zealand were cruising at 55 for no loss in the eighth over when he was brought in and he struck in his first over by removing Martin Guptill. In his third over he was hit on the face as Rob Nicol drove one straight at him. He went onto dismiss Nicol in his final over to claim figures of two for 32.

"He is a good prospect," Taylor told journalists after the game. "He spins the ball both ways. Action is hard to read. It was nice to see that he came back after taking a knock. I think he’s got a big future in this game."
Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene, meanwhile, was thrilled with the character he showed in a big game. "You have to go by gut feeling based on the opponent and the pitch. I just wanted to give him a game early on so that his jitters are over. He bowled really well and came back even with a knock. Good that he got a game under the belt. He’s a competitor. When he got hit I went to him thinking he was gone for the game. He said, ‘Shit, I missed that catch.’ And he was bleeding from his nose. That’s his attitude."