Sri Lanka skipper Dimuth Karunaratne has showered praise on new national coach Mickey Arthur on Sunday and stated that the aim of the team is to reach the top four in ICC rankings in both the ODI as well as Test format.

Notably, Arthur took over as the Sri Lankan coach for a two-year contract in December. The Sri Lankan skipper said that the recent result of the team speaks on behalf of the new coach.

“Mickey is a no-nonsense cool bloke with loads of experience to back him and his brand. At the international level planning and role clarity is a norm. What is very important is the belief he has instilled among us in his own and subtle way. It sure helped and the results always speak for itself,” Karunaratne told Sri Lanka Cricket.

“Rankings is the keyword. I’d say Sri Lanka needs to be in the top four of not just ODI cricket, but Test cricket as well. That would indirectly mean semifinalists to say the least and you are perhaps two games away from the plum. There onwards, it’s anybody’s guess and if you do well on your day you could end up being World champs,” he added.

The Sri Lankan cricket team are ranked fifth in the Test match format. In the ODIs, they are placed at the number eight position but did manage to beat West Indies 3-0 in their last series before the coronavirus pandemic forced all cricketing action to be suspended.

“The boys and the respective squads are enjoying their cricket and that makes my job that much easier,” he said.

“If you like what you are doing and the environment to do so is conducive, the balance at this level of sport becomes that much more beneficial. I think its pretty similar to life or managing a company.”

Speaking about his personal goals Karunaratne said, “I have nine centuries from 66 Test matches, while many will argue that I should or could have converted some of the 24 half-centuries I scored into centuries, thus increasing my overall tally of centuries.

“However, I am learning from each game. Test cricket is super supreme and it’s certainly not a walk in the park! The stretched goal is 25 centuries and a 50+ average.”

(Quotes and inputs from IANS)