The Sri Lanka cricket board has announced a 16-man squad for the national team’s one-off Test against Afghanistan starting from February 2nd onwards. The Lanka Lions will welcome the Afghans at the Sinhalese Sports Club cricket ground in Colombo.
Sri Lanka have named a full-strength squad for the single Test match under the captaincy of Dhananjaya De Silva with wicketkeeper batsman Kusal Mendis appointed as the vice-captain. They have included senior players like all-rounder Angelo Matthews, Dinesh Chandimal, and Dimuth Karunaratne.
There was no place for pacers Matheesa Pathirana and Nuwan Thushara who have snubbed national duty in order to feature in franchise leagues around the world. While Pathirana is taking part in the International League T20 for the Desert Vipers in UAE, Thushara is playing for the MI Cape Town franchise in the South Africa T20 league.
Sri Lanka have welcomed as many as 4 new faces in the squad against Afghanistan, namely right-arm pacers Chamika Gunasekara and Milan Rathnayake along with opening batter Lahiru Udara and batting all-rounder Kamindu Mendis. Pathum Nissanka has been left out of the squad entirely whereas Dilshan Madhushanka and Kusal Perera are busy playing in the ILT20.
This will be Sri Lanka’s first series since the ICC removed their ban. Their previous home series came against Zimbabwe where they played a 3-match ODI and T20I series, clinching 2-0 and 2-1 victories over their African counterparts.
It will also be their first Test match since July 2023 when Pakistan came for a 2-match Test series tour and went back home after whitewashing the hosts by 2-0. Since then, Sri Lanka have only played the limited overs format as the Test series against Pakistan was followed by the Asia Cup, the ICC Cricket World Cup, and then the Zimbabwe series.
The squad put out by the board is the first-ever squad named by the new selection committee headed by former opener Upul Tharanga. The one-off Test against Afghanistan marks the start of a new era in Sri Lankan cricket which has been marred by interference from the government which led to the cricket board getting banned by the ICC.
Their performance in the CWC 2023 saw them finish 9th in the league table and they are yet to put up a memorable performance in World cups since claiming the 2014 T20 World Cup in Bangladesh. But with a new selection committee and some fresh faces on the board, Sri Lankan cricket will hope to reach the heights they once had.
Sri Lanka One-Off Test Squad Against Afghanistan
Squad: Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), Kusal Mendis, Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ramesh Mendis, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, Kamindu Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Lahiru Udara, Chamika Gunasekara, Milan Rathnayake
Following the One-off clash, Sri Lanka will take on Afghanistan in a 3-match ODI and T20I series. The white ball leg will start from February 9 onwards with the ODI series which will conclude on the 14th. Then from the 17th, Sri Lanka will play their final T20I series before the ICC T20 World Cup in June at USA & West Indies.
They have been placed in Group D alongside South Africa, Bangladesh, Netherlands, and Nepal and their campaign will start against South Africa on June 3rd in New York.