CLT20: Conditions were not favourable for spin bowling, says Mubarak

Raipur: After losing two consecutive matches in the Oppo Champions League Twenty20 tournament, Southern Express skipper Jehan Mubarak felt his team has a good spin attack but conditions didn't prove friendly to them.

“Obviously we missed Lasith Malinga in the bowling department. Well, I think we have a very good spin bowling attack, but spin is really not coming to the game in this condition,” Mubarak told reporters after the Sri Lankan side lost by nine wickets to Mumbai Indians at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur on Sunday night.

“In the first game, we didn't bowl enough especially in the power play. On Sunday it was a pretty good effort from all the bowlers. The ball was really getting wet in the end and the spinners struggled with it,” he said.

To a query on the pressure playing against his country-mate Malinga, he said, “Yeah a little bit yes. They (Mumbai Indians) had spinners, we had planned to capitalise on spinners as Lasith is very good at the death overs. But you know we had a very good plan against him too.

“Maharoof played really good. He knew which offence to take against Lasith so his experience showed in the match we played today.”

This is his third season in the CLT20 and all were not very successful, said Mubarak who still hopes to do well in their next qualifier against Lahore Lions on Tuesday.