Chandimal, Kusal Perera, Avishka, Binura recalled for T20I series v India

• Four players get the chop following aftermath of T20 World Cup
• Charith Asalanka Sri Lanka’s new T20I captain

By Sa’adi Thawfeeq

Sri Lanka’s disastrous performance at the last ICC T20 World Cup in India has had its repercussions with four members of that team getting the chop for the upcoming three-match T20 International series against the champions India.

The axe has fallen on veteran all-rounder Angelo Mathews, batsmen Dhananjaya de Silva and Sadeera Samarawickrama, and fast bowler Dilshan Madushanka.

Filling their slots are batsmen Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Perera, and Avishka Fernando and fast bowler Binura Fernando, all four of whom have won places on the back of impressive performances in the recently concluded Lanka Premier League (LPL). The surprise packet is the inclusion of 21-year-old all-rounder from Kandy, Chamindu Wickramasinghe, who won the Emerging Player of LPL 2024 award.

Sri Lanka also has a new captain in this format, Charith Asalanka, who replaces Wanindu Hasaranga after he decided to step down following the team’s disappointing outing in the T20 World Cup.

Asalanka is no stranger to captaincy having led his school Richmond College, Galle and also in two T20Is on the tour of Bangladesh early this year when Hasaranga was serving a suspension.

Asalanka is also a former Sri Lanka Under19 captain and recently led Jaffna Kings to the LPL title having taken over the reins of the franchise from Thisara Perera.

Chandimal, at 34, more or less replaces 37-year-old Mathews who fails to find a place despite a good outing in the LPL with Kandy Falcons. Chandimal last played a T20I in early 2022, but he made a strong case for his inclusion with 287 runs in eight matches at a strike rate of 168.82 opening the batting for Kandy Falcons.

Avishka Fernando put behind his disappointment of missing out on the T20 World Cup by helping Jaffna Kings to their fourth LPL title in five years. Batting at number four instead of his usual slot as opener, Fernando ended the tournament as the third highest run-getter with 374 runs scored at a healthy strike rate of 162.60 which included five half-centuries.

Perera, a late pick for Dambulla Sixers in the LPL, found some consistency in his batting to rack up 296 runs in eight matches at a strike rate of 169.14 which included a maiden T20 century and two 50s as opener.

Binura Fernando, the 29-year-old left-arm quick, has a poor injury record that has prevented him from reaching the consistency required to be part of the national squad. He has been in the system for quite some time, having made his international debut back in 2015. But in the LPL turning out for Colombo Strikers, he put his body to the test and ended the tournament playing four games in five days. His nagging line and length and clever variations brought him 13 wickets from eight matches at a miserly economy rate of 6.81, which was enough to impress the selectors to pick him ahead of Madushanka.

Madushanka came to the limelight with his 21 wickets in the 2023 Cricket World Cup in India, but he didn’t play a single match at this year’s T20 World Cup in the USA and the West Indies and had a poor return for Dambulla Sixers in the LPL, taking two wickets from six matches. Although for some his omission may come as a surprise, his current form doesn’t guarantee him a place.

A product of the MRF Pace Foundation in India, Wickramasinghe, who went unsold at the LPL player auction but was finally signed by Dambulla Sixers, displayed great maturity for a cricketer of his age. Batting lower down the order, he played two eye-catching innings under extreme pressure and, as a right-arm seamer, picked up wickets at crucial moments of the game. His strike rate of 131.91 makes him an ideal player in the slog overs towards the tail end of the innings.

The rest of the squad remains the same as the one that took part in the T20 World Cup with Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Kamindu Mendis, Dasun Shanaka, Dunith Wellalage, and Wanindu Hasaranga making up a strong batting line up, with Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, and Wellalage being the primary spin bowling options, with support from ambidextrous Kamindu Mendis who has more or less taken the place of Dhananjaya de Silva as a batting all-rounder.

The seam bowling has variety with two slingers in Nuwan Thushara and Matheesha Pathirana, Binura Fernando’s left-arm seam, and Dushmantha Chameera’s right-arm pace. Shanaka and Wickramasinghe provide further options to the bowling line up.

Sri Lanka and India commence the three-match T20I series on Saturday at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium where all three matches will be played.