ODI series against Afghanistan acid test for Sri Lanka

Captains Kusal Mendis (Sri Lanka) and Hashmathullah Shahidi with the ODI series trophy

By Sa’adi Thawfeeq

Head to head Sri Lanka lead Afghanistan 7-4 in One-Day International contests, but the margin does not suggest how much Afghanistan has improved as a white ball nation.

They deprived Sri Lanka of a place in the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan when they won the World Cup match by seven wickets at Pune. That defeat saw Sri Lanka finish in ninth place out of ten with only two wins out of nine matches. Afghanistan in their turn swivelled a few heads with stunning wins over England, Pakistan and Sri Lanka that saw them finish sixth in the World Cup standings with four wins and qualify for the Champions Trophy.

Afghanistan may be on a learning curve in red ball cricket, but they are certainly no novices when it comes to white ball cricket as they have proved time and again.

The upcoming ODI series starting at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium today promises to be a keenly contested affair with both teams out to pit their strengths against each other.

Afghanistan are no strangers to Sri Lankan conditions having played here in 2022 (3 ODIs at Pallekele), 2023 (3 ODIs at Hambantota) and 2023 when they played 3 ODIs against Pakistan at Hambantota and at the R Premadasa Cricket Stadium in Colombo.

Sri Lanka have a new captain in Kusal Mendis and they are coming to this series on the back of a 2-0 win against Zimbabwe. For Afghanistan this is their first ODI series since the World Cup ended in November last year.

A key area that Afghanistan bowlers will target is the Sri Lanka top order that has been rather vulnerable in the first power play losing at least 2-3 wickets thus putting immense pressure on the middle order. Sri Lanka are on the road to recovery after their disastrous World Cup campaign and a series win against Afghanistan would certainly boost the confidence of a young squad picked with the 2027 Cricket World Cup in mind.

“In ODIs we have a new cycle and the World Cup is in 2027. We need to back a young squad as much as possible,” said Mendis at the pre-match press conference. “You cannot say that they lack experience. You have so many players who have been around for a while. I am confident they will come good.”

“Compared to other teams we have lagged behind in ODI cricket. We need to build a team for the World Cup. It’s a huge challenge. My plans are to build a side based on fast bowlers because the next World Cup is in South Africa. We need to prepare with those conditions in mind.”

About the playing surface for today, Mendis described it as a belter. “We had a chat with the curator and we are happy with the wicket. We are keen to have good batting surfaces. When we go overseas we get good wickets. So our batters need to be attuned to playing on those surfaces. Even the bowlers need to adjust to bowling on flat wickets.”

Afghanistan on their part don’t have their match-winning bowler Rashid Khan who is recovering from back surgery, but they have in Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb-ur-Rahman two competent spinners with over a 100 wickets apiece. They are supported by seamers Fazalhaq Farooqi, Azmatullah Omarzai and Gulbadin Naib. Leg-spinner Qais Ahmed who has played one ODI for Afghanistan and figured in the one-off Test against Sri Lanka will replace Rashid.

“Afghanistan are no longer a team that lacks experience. They play a lot of league cricket. In my eight years of international cricket, I have played only two leagues. (Rahmanullah) Gurbaz in a few years has played in so many leagues. Afghanistan have competed against good players and played in all conditions. There’s not much room for error with them,” said Mendis.

Afghanistan skipper Hashmathullah Shahidi said a lot of things his side has done over the past two years will motivate them.

“We have played really well in ODI cricket and we beat Sri Lanka. The way we performed in the World Cup was the icing on the cake. We have our plans against them and we will stick to them and try to come out on top.”

“The way we performed in Colombo (Test match) we felt that we are a better side than we showcased. Our experienced guys are back. We are playing good cricket in ODIs and we are one of the best teams in this format. We want to continue that in this series,” said Hashmathullah.

Afghanistan has not beaten Sri Lanka in a bilateral ODI series; they have drawn 1-1 in 2022 and lost 2-1 in 2023.