Sri Lanka head coach Mickey Arthur has stated that the on-field spat between him and skipper Dasun Shanaka was nothing but an exchange of opinions. Although it looked like a major quarrel between the two, Mickey has quashed all such rumors related to the incident.

Team India beat Sri Lanka by 3 wickets in the second ODI to claim a 2-0 lead in the series. Sri Lanka had another decent outing with the bat posting 275 in their 50 overs. However, their bowlers had a torrid time containing the lower-order duo of Deepak Chahar and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. As a result, they lost the match and incidentally the series.

The 53-year-old head coach Mickey Arthur was animated throughout the Indian run chase. He had a mixed bag of emotions, something that everyone is well accustomed to by now. After the loss however, things turned sour for him. Mickey Arthur was seen having an intense argument with Sri Lankan captain Dasun Shanaka.

“No need to make mischief out of it!” – Mickey Arthur to Russel Arnold

Several people including Russel Arnold criticized the coach, saying the chat shouldn’t have taken place on-field. Following the heated argument, Russel shared his opinion on social media. The former Sri Lankan player said:

“That conversation between Coach and captain should not have happened on the field but in the dressing room”

Reacting to Russel, Mickey Arthur has stated that it was a good debate and nothing more. Things are generally blown out of proportion in the media and Mickey expressed the same, asking Russel to not make a big deal out of it. Sri Lanka is currently an inexperienced side which is still growing and needs time to get the winning mentality.

Russ we win together and lose together but we learn all the time!Dasun and myself are growing a team and we both were very frustrated we did not get over the line!It was actually a very good debate,no need to make mischief out of it!

— Mickey Arthur (@Mickeyarthurcr1) July 20, 2021

After the heart-breaking loss, Sri Lanka led by Dasun Shanaka will have to gather their thoughts quickly. The outcome of the last ODI is irrelevant to the series. However, there are precious World Cup Super League points up for grabs. Since the Lankans are currently out of the qualifying zone, they need to snatch all the points they can.

---