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Thursday, 29 September 2022 01:50 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Dushmantha Chameera during a training session at Pallekele
Lahiru Kumara (centre) in conversation with Wanindu Hasaranga and Kusal Mendis at Pallekele
By Sa’adi Thawfeeq
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Pathum Nissanka
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Sri Lanka will be at full strength for next month’s ICC T20 World Cup in Australia with their two quickest bowlers Dushmantha Chameera and Lahiru Kumara being passed fit for the mega event.
In the absence of Chameera and Kumara, Sri Lanka found two newcomers Promod Madushan and Dilshan Madushanka who did the job for them in helping to win the Asia Cup after a lapse of eight years. Both these youngsters retained their places for the T20 World Cup despite the return of the experienced duo, which is a sign that the selectors have the fullest confidence in them.
Chameera and Kumara were selected for the T20 World Cup subject to their being fit. Chameera was recovering from a left calf muscle strain and Kumara from a long-standing hamstring injury.
The two were part of the five-day training camp at Pallekele which concludes today. According to team manager Mahinda Halangoda they bowled with extreme pace.
“They are perfect and bowling at their full speed. Yesterday (Tuesday) they bowled for quite a long time,” said Halangoda.
Both bowlers can clock more than 145 kph plus and on the fast and bouncy wickets which they are bound to encounter in Australia could become quite a handful.
“The rest of the squad is okay except for Pathum Nissanka. He had sore eyes just before we came to Pallekele and he couldn’t join us because we were told to rest him,” said Halangoda.
“We have been checking on him daily and he is okay. He has improved while in Colombo and he has already started training. He will be travelling with the team to Australia on 2 October.”
Halangoda said that the selected squad underwent two days of very intense practices. “Now we are playing like a match situation and checking on the various options we have. We came here to prepare ourselves on fast and bouncy pitches. We had wickets for the batsman to play their shots and for the bowlers to learn how to bowl on a track which is flat.”
Sri Lanka have picked a squad of 15 players under the leadership of Dasun Shanaka with five standbys of which two Praveen Jayawickrama and Ashen Bandara will leave with the team to Australia.
Sri Lanka has two official warm-up fixtures against Zimbabwe and Ireland before the three first round qualifying matches against Namibia, UAE and the Netherlands which gives them an opportunity to get accustomed to the Australian surfaces before the tournament proper Super12.
