- New SL Cricket Selector Dilruwan Perera (red t-shirt) seen partying with cricketers a few days ago
In what is seen as a desperate move for success, the newly appointed Sri Lanka Cricket Selectors headed by its Chairman Upul Tharanga has picked as many as 28 players for a white ball home series against Zimbabwe starting next month.
Sri Lanka Cricket announced it picked two separate squads for three ODIs and an equal number of T20s against the touring Zimbabwe team with Kusal Mendis retained as captain for the 50-over format and a new captain in Wanindu Hasaranga for the T20 team.
Left hand batter Charith Asalanka who has captained Sri Lanka at the Under-19 Youth World Cup has been made the deputy to the skippers of both squads.
One of the changes announced is that the veteran batsman Angelo Mathews has been removed from the ODI team that he represented at the 2023 World Cup in India and taken into the T20 squad.
But recalled into both ODI and T20 squads are the spin duo of Jeffrey Vandersay and Akila Dananjaya.
Sri Lanka ODI squad:
Kusal Mendis (Captain), Charith Asalanka (Vice Captain), Pathum Nissanka, Avishka Fernando, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Sahan Arachchige, Nuwanidu Fernando, Dasun Shanaka, Kamindu Mendis, Chamika Karunaratne, Janith Liyanage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Dilshan Madushanka, Dushmantha Chameera, Dunith Wellalage, Pramod Madushan, Asitha Fernando, Akila Dananjaya, Jeffrey Vandersay, Chamika Gunasekera.
Sri Lanka T20I: Squad.
Wanindu Hasaranga (Captain), Charith Asalanka (Vice Captain), Pathum Nissanaka, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dasun Shanaka, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva, Maheesh Theekshana, Kusal Janith Perera, Bhanuka Rajapakse, Kamindu Mendis, Dunith Wellalage, Akila Dananjaya, Jeffrey Vandersay, Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka, Binura Fernando, Nuwan Thushara, Pramod Madushan, Matheesha Pathirana