Need to adapt quickly to Hambantota conditions: Dhoni

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today said adapting quickly to the conditions would be key to his team’s success in the first cricket one-dayer against Sri Lanka tomorrow.

A rejuvenated India start their new season with the first ODI of the five-match series at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Stadium, a ground where the visitors will make their debut tomorrow.

“It’s a new venue. Conditions change in the afternoon, it’s quite windy out. The strong winds can be a factor. Not only the bowlers, but the batsmen and the fielders also need to get used to the conditions,” Dhoni said at the pre-match press conference.

“This is a big field. So, the fielders will have to see that batsmen do not make twos into threes which is quite normal in a one-day game.

“It’s good we are practising under lights today, so we will get to know what to expect in the second innings,” he added.

Dhoni acknowledged that the extended break was very helpful for his side.”Everybody is looking fresh. Everyone is putting in a lot of effort. There is more energy. This increased energy and freshness is definitely a big plus for us,” he said.

“We are mentally and physically fresh after this rest. During this break we got time to work on our fitness.”