For Australia: Sri Lanka’s Cricket Squad for T20 World Cup-by Michael Roberts Source:Thuppahis The Island, 17 September 2022, where the title reads “Dushmantha Chameera and Lahiru Kumara in Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup squad, subject to fitness” Sri Lanka have shown faith with the group of players that won the Asia Cup, with the inclusions of fast bowlers Dushmantha Chameera and Lahiru Kumara – who missed that tournament due to injury – the only change, as they named their 15-man squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia. From the squad that toured the UAE, batters Dinesh Chandimal, Ashen Bandara and Nuwanidu Fernando, and left-arm spinner Praveen Jayawickrama have been listed as standby players alongside left-arm quick Binura Fernando. This means Matheesha Pathirana, Asitha Fernando and Nuwan Thushara miss out. The inclusions of Chameera and Kumara, however, are subject to them being passed fit. Kumara is recovering from a ...

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Sri Lanka charge towards Asia Cup triumph – by Trevine Rodrigo There’s something about the choice of former England coach Chris Silverwood that has the trimmings of a good luck charm to Sri Lanka cricket. Although not directly responsible for on field success, his appointment to a turbulent team spiralling downward and out of control has been baulked. They have in fact found a way to clamber upward from a situation of near despair giving fresh hope to their suffering fans at home and around the globe. With the T20 World Cup in Australia just around the corner in October, their resurgence could not have been timed better, having to get past embarrassing qualifying rounds before playing on the big stage. If anything, Silverwood has instilled a mindset of self belief and new found confidence in a Sri Lanka squad that appeared to have lost their vision. ...

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Three replacements for Sri Lanka Asia Cup squad-by Dhammika Ratnaweera Source:Dailynews Three replacements have been named in the 20-man cricket squad for the six nation Asia Cup T20 cricket tournament which will commence on August 27 in Dubai. The selection committee headed by Pramodya Wickramasinghe has picked a 20-member squad (17-player squad and three stand-by players) and Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe has given his approval to this squad. Two players who were originally named pacemen Binura Fernando and Kasun Rajitha got injured during the recently concluded SLC Invitational T20 League tournament while Sri Lankan white ball format main strike bowler Dushmantha Chameera who was rested for the T20 invitational tournament once again got injured last Friday during the training and selectors named three replacements for Binura Fernando, Kasun Rajitha and Dushmantha Chameera. The selectors earlier named two replacements pace bowlers Asitha Fernando who was the best player of the recently ...

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SRI LANKA CRICKET NEWS (JULY 2022) By Victor Melder   The touring Australians beat Sri Lanka by 10 wickets to win the first Test played at the Galle International Stadium. Scores: Sri Lanka, 1st Innings – 212 (Dickwella 58, Mathews 39, Karunaratne 28, Nissanka 23, Lyon 5/90, Swepson 3/55) Australia, 1st Innings – 321 (Green 77, Khawaja 71, Carey 45, Cummins 26, R.Mendis 4/112, A.Fernando 2/37, Vandersay 2/68) Sri Lanka, 2nd Innings – 113 (Karunaratne 23, Head 4/10, Lyon 4/31, Swepson 2/34) Australia, 2nd Innings – 10/0 (Warner 10no) Player of the Match: Cameroon Green (Australia)    Test Debut: Jeffrey Vandersay (Sri Lanka) Points: Australia 12, Sri Lanka Sri Lanka have been hit by three more COVID-19 cases on the eve of the second Test against Australia, with Dhananjaya de Silva, Asitha Fernando and Jeffrey Vandersay ruled out of the game in Galle. It is understood that the trio had all reported feeling unwell which led ...

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Dhananjaya, Jayasuriya lead Sri Lankan resurgence against Pakistan – by Trevine Rodrigo (Melbourne – eLanka Sports editor)  Image Source : timesofsports Dhananjaya De Silva played a long overdue starring role and Sri Lanka’s batting found harmony to destroy Pakistan’s hope of a series win as an all-round effort saw the home team square the two match series in Galle.  Sri Lanka’s batters put the Pakistanis out of reach with a memorable performance that made a 507 target way beyond a realistic chase able target.  Jack -in -the- box I called them. So it was, as a history focused home team rammed home a milestone Matthews 100th Test to pull off a fantastic series levelling Test victory.  If there was a spur needed to produce the unexpected, Matthews,  the Sri Lanka former skipper, and loyal soldier in a team in transition, gave them the impetus to acknowledge and honor a man that ...

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Pumped up Sri Lanka chase consistency against Pakistan – by Trevine Rodrigo – Melbourne (eLanka Sport editor) Dimuth Karunaratne leads a pumped up Sri Lanka against Pakistan, confident that they can continue the upward trend after a series levelling effort against Australia.  There’s a new energy emanating among the Sri Lankans, overriding the political and economic crisis enveloping the country and it augurs well to create a necessary distraction among the suffering masses. Cricket among the population always takes away the troubles of the world, albeit during its limited duration, and Sri Lanka’s cricketing heroes have provided that.  The Australian tour in many ways provided a welcome avenue to quell the doom and gloom the country is going through apart from injecting much needed revenue towards an almost bare financial situation.  Australia and their fantastic band of ambassadors will be long remembered for their bravery in  embarking on a tour ...

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Kangaroo’s move in for Lion’s annihilation – By Trevine Rodrigo in Melbourne Lanka’s curators must be scrambling to reverse their preparation of spitting spinning tracks to docile less venom turners in an endeavour to give the technically flawed local batsmen fewer worries against Australia’s superior bowling.  Usually accustomed to terrorising visiting teams in Galle, the Lankans were embarrassed by Australia’s spinning duo, Nathan Lyon and Mitch Shwepson who bamboozled the local batsmen and swing the scales the other way. To be bowled out in a similar way to a T20 disaster by Australia in the first Test,  the Lankans will be smarting about the hopeless capitulation by their batsmen who failed to address a first innings debacle after the Aussies gave them  a lesson on defiant fighting batting qualities in their first dig. Same venue, similar conditions, see Pat Cummins men with their tails up and much more the dictators of ...

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Hara Kiri by Sri Lankan Cricketers assures Hallelujah for the Aussies at Galle – By Michael Roberts Source:thuppahis.com On a wicket with uneven bounce that also supported massive spin the Sri Lankan batsmen proceeded to perform “hara kiri” in a manner that was as comical as disastrous. The second innings scoreline of 113 runs underlines the disaster; but does not quite capture the astounding manner in  which some of the batsmen  contibuted to their dismissal — though one must also record the competent fielding (catched by Labushagne and Swepson) and intelligent bowling). HARA KIRI = ritual suicide by disembowelment practiced by the Japanese samurai or formerly decreed by a court in lieu of the death penalty  …. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hara-kiri#:~:text=Definition%20of%2Sam0 hara%2Dkiri,2%20%3A%20suicide%20sense%201b A Samurai about to commit “seppuku” or “hara-kiri”         Swepson acclaims his wicket Dimuth Karunaratne: c Carey b Lyon 23 5.3 Bottom edge, given! Went for the sweep from outside off and gets ...

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Andrew’s Review: Before the Galle Tests CommenceAndrew’s Review: Before the Galle Tests Commence-by Michael Roberts Source:Thuppahis Andrew Fidel Fernando  in ESPNcricinfo, Tuesday/Wednesday On paper it’s been six years since the Australia men’s side were last in Sri Lanka for a Test tour, but somehow that 2016 tour seems a lifetime ago. Graham Ford was Sri Lanka’s coach then; Angelo Mathews still the captain. For Australia, it was pre-Sandpapergate. Adam Voges was a part of the middle order. If you’re a Sri Lanka fan, there was magic in the air. That was not a Sri Lanka side that should have won. Even their greatest teams have struggled against Australia and when they were bowled out for 117 in Pallekele on the first day of the tour, there was disappointment, but no major surprise. Sri Lanka seemed dead in a series that had only just begun. Five factors that could decide the Sri Lanka-Australia Test series Then, madness. Kusal Mendis played the innings of ...

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No walk-in-the-park for Sri Lanka in Galle-BY CALLISTUS DAVY The Sri Lanka team celebrate winning the five-match ODI series against Australia 3-2 at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Friday night ahead of the Test series starting in Galle on Wednesday Source:Sundayobserver Elated by their triumph in the ODI series, Sri Lanka will be looking for a repeat of the home Test series against Australia in 2016 when the two teams leave aside the fanfare of white ball cricket and get down to more series stuff with the first of two Tests starting in Galle on Wednesday. Sri Lanka had a 3-0 clean sweep of Australia the last time the two teams played in a Test series in the island but the difference this time will be that the home team will be without their supreme match winning spin bowlers Rangana Herath and Dilruwan Perera. The duo accounted for 41 ...

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