Australia’s Tour Of Sri Lanka To Go Ahead As Scheduled; White-Ball Matches To Be Played Under Lights

Despite weeks of will they, won’t they, and amidst much uncertainty, it is now confirmed that Australia will tour Sri Lanka as scheduled and the Australian team will be landing in Sri Lanka on Wednesday (June 1) and the tour will go ahead as planned.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) also confirmed that the white ball games – three T20Is and five ODIs – starting on June 7, will be played under lights. Besides those games, the teams will also play two Tests and the tour concludes on July 12.

This comes as a sigh of relief for the Sri Lanka board and the team as the country grapples with political, social, and economic unrest for the past month and more. The assertion comes at a time when the country is suffering from a shortage of food, fuel, and power.

“There is no disruption in the schedule and the white ball games will be night or day-night affairs,” SLC secretary Mohan de Silva told Cricbuzz on Tuesday.

They’re Looking Forward To The Tour: Cricket Australia On Their Players’ Willingness To Tour Sri Lanka

Reports had suggested that Australian players were reluctant to travel to the island nation on moral grounds if not for security concerns, because of the situation on the island. But Cricket Australia said the Australian teams are looking forward to the tour which starts with a T20I series.

“We’ve been keeping in regular contact with the governments of both countries and SLC and all is good and there are no changes to the plans. The T20 squad is leaving Australia tomorrow afternoon. They’re looking forward to the tour, with the three T20 games an important part of the build-up to the ICC World Cup in Australia in October-November. The squad has great respect for the Sri Lanka team and are anticipating a hard-fought and exciting series,” a spokesman for the CA said to Cricbuzz.

This will be the first time that the new Australian coaching staff of head coach Andrew McDonald, assistant coaches Daniel Vettori and Andre Borovec will be officially helming the Australian team.

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