Banned cricketer included as Sri Lanka announce squad for Bangladesh T20I series

Sri Lanka Cricket on Wednesday (28th February) announced the strong 17-member squad for the upcoming T20I series against Bangladesh. The two teams will be locking horns with each other in the three-match T20I series ahead of the ODI and the Test series.

Wanindu Hasaranga has been named as the captain of the Sri Lanka side for the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh. However, he will be missing the first two games of the series because of the penalty he received from the ICC after breaching the code of conduct against Afghanistan. He was banned after he had argument with umpires over the no-ball saga.

Charith Asalanka has been named as the vice-captain of the side and he is expected to lead the team in the first two games in the absence of Wanindu Hasaranga. He would be hoping to lead from the front and help his team win the first two games to seal the series before the regular skipper comes back for the final game.

Kusal Mendis, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Perera, and Sadeera Samarawickrama are the frontline batters in the team. They will be extremely crucial for the team in the series. A lot would be reliant on them as they would want to take responsibility.

Sri Lanka has named quite a few all-rounders in the team as well. Dhananjaya de Silva will be a spin-bowling all-rounder whereas veteran Angelo Mathews and Dasun Shanaka are the two fast-bowling all-rounders in the team for the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh.

The squad is pretty similar to what they fielded in the recently concluded T20I series against Afghanistan. Akila Dhananjaya Maheesh Theekshana and Jeffrey Vandersay will be the three spinners in the team alongside Kamindu Mendis who will serve as an all-rounder.

Sri Lanka has also named a pretty strong pace bowling attack. Matheesha Pathirana, Dilshan Madushanka, Nuwan Thushara, and Binura Fernando will be the four fast bowlers on the team.

The series between the teams will kickstart on 4th March. The second game will be played on 6th March followed by the last game on 9th March. All games will be played in Sylhet. Following that two teams will be locking horns with each other in a three-match ODI series and two-Test series.

The three-match T20I series between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will be a huge opportunity for both teams to prepare for the T20 World Cup 2024. The event will be played in June in the United States of America and the Caribbean. Both the teams would be eager to win and start their buildup on high.

Sri Lanka squad for the T20I series against Bangladesh

Here’s the Sri Lanka squad for the T20I series against Bangladesh:

Wanindu Hasaranga (c), Charith Asalanka (vc), Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Angelo Mathews, Dasun Shanaka, Maheesh Theekshana, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Janith Perera, Dilshan Madushanka, Nuwan Thushara, Matheesha Pathirana, Akila Dananjaya, Binura Fernando, Kamindu Mendis, Avishka Fernando, Jeffrey Vandersay.

Schedule for the T20I Series:

1st T20I: 4 March

2nd T20I: 6 March

3rd T20I: 9 March,