Sri Lanka: Team preview

The most the Sri Lankans have ever been able to take from a big event is pride, perhaps a scalp or two, but little more. Though they have never left a World T20 winless, on the face of it, their form this year has been poor; their T20I win percentage is the worst of any teams in the competition, and they even managed to lose a game to lowly Thailand in the Asia Cup.

A warm-up loss to qualifiers Ireland would indicate that that form is continuing, but there is reason to be positive. In an ODI series against India just before the tournament they came agonisingly close to pulling off a shock, losing the second ODI by just seven runs before winning the third by three wickets with a ball remaining.

And in Chamari Athapaththu, who missed the Asia Cup through illness, they have won of the most fearsome ball-strikers in the women’s game. Her unbeaten 178 against Australia in last year’s World Cup was one of the greatest innings in cricket history, and she has also strutted her stuff for Yorkshire Diamonds in the Women’s Cricket Super League. If she comes off, they might just cause an upset.

Strengths

Apart from the mighty Athapaththu, Sri Lanka’s strength is their experience. The squad contains six of their seven most capped players, with four of their players having played in every World T20 to date. They’ve seen it all, and while it’s also perhaps true they’ve done little, there’s nothing about the big occasion that should overwhelm them.

Weaknesses

Sri Lanka’s batting statistics don’t make for pretty reading. Not a single one of their players averages more than 20, and only one, Eshani Lokusooriya, strikes at more than a run a ball. This year they’ve scored just 75 off 20 overs against Pakistan, and been dismissed for 105 by Thailand. They did, however, record their highest ever score in September, 155, in a loss against India.

History at the World T20

Sri Lanka have appeared at everY World T20 but have never made it out of the group stages. They have won at least a game at every tournament and in 2016 enjoyed their best ever result, winning two games and finishing third in Group A.

Recent form in T20Is

L L L N/R L L L L L W (Most recent first)

Sri Lanka have had a poor year in T20Is, losing nine games and winning just three, against Malaysia, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. They even lost to Thailand at the Asia Cup.

Fixtures

Saturday 10 November: v England, St. Lucia
Tuesday 13 November: v South Africa, St. Lucia
Wednesday 14 November: v Bangladesh, St. Lucia
Saturday 17 November: v Windies, St. Lucia

Squad

Chamari Athapaththu (c), Nilakshi de Silva, Kavisha Dilhari, Ama Kanchana, Sugandika Kumari, Eshani Lokusooriya, Dilani Manodara (wk), Yashoda Mendis, Hasini Perera, Udeshika Prabodani, Inoshi Priyadarshani, Oshadhi Ranasinghe, Shashikala Siriwardena, Rebeka Vandort, Sripali Weearakkody.