Sri Lanka playing XI for the first Test vs England announced; Milan Rathnayake to make Test debut

The Sri Lanka national cricket team confirmed their playing XI for the first Test of the three-match Test series against the England national cricket team.

The match between England and Lanka is scheduled to be played at the Emirates Old Trafford in Manchester, starting on Wednesday, August 21.

Right-arm medium-fast bowler Milan Rathnayake will make his Test debut for Lanka in the first match of the series, as confirmed by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Tuesday.

Sri Lanka dropped fast bowler Lahiru Kumara from the lineup from their last Test match against Bangladesh earlier this year.

Milan Rathnayake will share the pace bowling duties with Asitha Fernando and Vishwa Fernando in the first Test match. Prabath Jayasuriya is the only specialist spinner in the Lanka lineup.

Captain Dhananjaya de Silva and Kamindu Mendis can contribute with the ball if needed in the upcoming Test match.

Pathum Nissanka Not Included In Sri Lanka Playing XI For 1st Test

Experienced Dimuth Karunaratne will partner with young Madushka at the top of the order. Veteran batters Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, and Dinesh Chandimal will form the middle order for Lanka. Dhananjaya de Silva will bat at No. 6 position followed by spin-bowling all-rounder Kamindu Mendis.

Pathum Nissanka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ramesh Mendis, Nisala Tharaka, Lahiru Kumara, Kasun Rajitha, and Jeffrey Vandersay failed to make the playing XI for the series opener. Lanka comes into the first Test match after a seven-wicket loss to the England Lions in a warm-up game last week.

Sri Lanka playing XI for the first Test against England: Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva (c), Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Kamindu Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Milan Rathnayake, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando

He Is The Balance Of Their Side - Dhananjaya de Silva

Dhananjaya de Silva hoped Ben Stokes' absence would benefit Lanka. De Silva also pointed out that there will be pressure on Dan Lawrence, who is replacing the injured Zak Crawley as an opener.

“He is the balance of their side. He’s the key player for them, when it comes to bowling, batting, everything,” said De Silva during a pre-match press conference at Old Trafford on Tuesday.

"A new guy (Lawrence) comes in to play... there will be pressure on him, coming back into the side to open in these conditions," de Silva added.

Lanka lost 0-2 when they last visited England for a Test series in 2016. Notably, they had previously beaten England 1-0 in 2014. Sri Lanka is currently fourth in the World Test Championship standings with two wins from four matches. They need to win this series to boost their chances of reaching the final.

On the other hand, England is suffering from injury concerns, with opener Zak Crawley and Test captain Ben Stokes ruled out of the series. They are coming off a 3-0 series win over the West Indies on home soil. The England cricket team is in seventh place in the ongoing World Test Championship standings.

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