Get the inside scoop on Sri Lanka's Cricket Squad for the upcoming GameDay Squad competition with an in-depth analysis and preview. Find out who to watch out for!
Sri Lanka was the ninth team to qualify for the CWC after winning the final of the CWC qualifying tournament held in Zimbabwe. I’m not giving them much of a chance to make the knockout stages but like a lot of the less favoured teams, they are quite capable of causing the odd upset.
Squad
Charith Asalanka – All-rounder
Dhananjaya de Silva – All-rounder
Dushan Hemantha – All-rounder
Dimuth Karunaratne – Batter
Lahiru Kumara - Bowler
Dilshan Madushanka – Bowler
Kusal Mendis – Wicket-Keeper
Pathum Nissanka – Batter
Matheesha Pathirana – Bowler
Kusal Perera – Wicket-Keeper
Kasun Rajitha – Bowler
Sadeera Samarawickrama – Wicket-Keeper
Dasun Shanaka – All-rounder
Maheesh Theekshana – Bowler
Dunith Wellalage – All Rounder
Batters
Sri Lanka goes into the tournament with only two players that have a batter position designation in GDS. When applying the GDS scoring to their stats over the last ten games played, I’ve come up with the following fantasy point averages for the bowlers.
Dimuth Karunaratne – 47 points
Pathum Nissanka – 47 points
When digging into the numbers between these players, there is nothing separating them. Over Karunaratne’s last 10 ODIs he’s scored one 100, two 50s, three 30+ scores and four scores of less than 18. Nissanka’s last 10 ODIs he’s scored two 100s, two 30+ scores and five scores of less than 29 and one duck. If I had to choose between the two, I’d have to go with Nissanka as he’s shown in recent times that he offers a higher ceiling.
Bowlers
Sri Lanka goes into the tournament with six players that have a bowler position designation in GDS. When applying the GDS scoring to their stats over the last ten games played, I’ve come up with the following fantasy point averages for the bowlers.
Lahiru Kumara – 66 points
Dilshan Madushanka – 66 points
Matheesha Pathirana – 53 points
Kasun Rajitha – 48 points
Maheesh Theekshana – 96 points
Sri Lanka has a well-balanced bowling attack that will likely be spearheaded by Kasun Rajitha, Dilshan Magushanka and Matheesha Pathirana. Over Rajitha’s last ten ODIs he has bowled 65 overs, taken 8 wickets and averages 3.5 dot balls an over. Over Magushanka’s last seven ODIs he has bowled 54 overs, taken 15 wickets and averages 3.4 dot balls an over. Over Pathirana’s last ten ODIs he has bowled 66.5 overs, taken 15 wickets and averages 3 dot balls an over. These three bowlers are the pick of the Sri Lanka bowlers for me. Maheesh Theekshana and Lahiru Kumara are in my next tier down as I don’t think they will start as much as the other three. They can be very useful cards to have as they may have their chance for a few starts but that depends on what the pitch conditions Sri Lanka are faced with. Theekshana seems to be the best GDS fantasy option going by recent history. When he’s in the starting XI he might just be the pick to the bowlers.
All-rounders
Sri Lanka doesn’t have as many all-rounders as other teams and heads into the tournament with five players that have the all-rounder position designation in GDS. All of them are spin bowling all-rounders except for Dunith Wellalage. When applying the GDS scoring to their stats over the last ten games played, I’ve come up with the following fantasy point averages for the all-rounders.
Charith Asalanka – 51 points
Dhananjaya de Silva – 43 points
Dushan Hemantha – 42 points
Dasun Shanaka – 39 points
Dunith Wellalage – 61 points
When choosing which all-rounder to play in your squad it really depends on where Sri Lanka is playing, who their opposition is and the pitch conditions. The only all-rounder that really catches my eye is Dunith Wellalage. The only reason for this is because he seems to bowl more overs than all the others in recent matches. Over Wellalage’s last ten ODSs he has scored three 30+ scores, three scores between 3-8, three ducks, bowled 62 overs, taken 11 wickets and averages 3 dot balls an over. Charith Asalanka is also a very interesting option, but he has only bowled 9.1 overs over his last ten ODIs. When picking an all-rounder for you side, I believe it crucial that they regularly bowl, as it makes their ceiling so much higher. I have ranked the remaining Sri Lanka all-rounders in this order. Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka and Dushan Hemanth.
Wicket Keeper
Sri Lanka goes into the tournament with only three players that have a wicket-keeper position designation in GDS. When applying the GDS scoring to their stats over the last ten games played, I’ve come up with the following fantasy point averages for the wicket keepers.
Kusal Mendis – 67 points
Kusal Perera – 46 points
Sadeera Samarawickrama – 35 points
On the field Mendis is the keeper and this makes him the clear number one. All three players usually bat at the top of the order and have a good chance to score runs. If you have a Perera or Samarawickrama card, they may come in handy if Mendis were to miss a game. Until then, they aren’t an option if you hold all these players' cards.
Predicted Starting XI
1. Pathum Nissanka
2. Kusal Perera
3. Kusal Mendis
4. Sadeera Samarawickrama
5. Charith Asalanka
6. Dhananjaya de Silva
7. Dasun Shanaka
8. Dunith Wellalage
9. Kasun Rajitha
10. Matheesha Pathirana
11. Dilshan Madushanka