Dambulla Aura will begin their LPL 2023 campaign against the Galle Titans on 31st of July at R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo.
History
| Year | Matches | Wins | Losses | No Result | League Stage Standing | Final Standing |
| 2020 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 2nd | Semi-finalists |
| 2021 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 4th | Playoffs |
| 2022 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 5th | 5th |
| Total | 27 | 11 | 14 | 2 | ||
The Dambulla franchise joined the inaugural edition of Lanka Premier League as Dambulla Vikings in 2020 and Dambulla Giants in 2021, before being changed as Dambulla Aura from 2022.
They managed to reach the Semi-finals in the first season, but since then, they have been gradually regressing in the last two years.
Sri Lanka limited-over Skipper Dasun Shanaka, who led the Dambulla team in the previous three seasons, moved to Galle for this season, while keeper-batter Kusal Mendis, who led Galle in the previous edition, has been switched to Dambull and will most probably lead the side in this season.
Key Players
Before the player auction, Dambulla Aura pre-signed Kusal Mendis and Avishka Fernando as the locals, as well as Matthew Wade and Lungi Ngidi as overseas players. However, none of the overseas players that pre-signed will be part of the Aura side in the upcoming season, as they signed with another Australian wicketkeeper, Ben McDermott, and Pakistani quick Hassan Ali.
In the auction, Dambulla Aura had the pick of some of the in-form national-capped batters, buying the likes of Dhananjaya De Silva, Kusal Perera and Sadeera Samarawickrama. Pramod Madushan, Binura Fernando, Dushan Hemantha and Praveen Jayawickrama were also picked in the auction. Apart from them, they have signed with Shahnawaz Dahani, Noor Ahmed, Alex Ross and Hayden Kerr as their foreign picks.
When focusing on batting, they have the two highest run-getters in the LPL history. Avishka Fernando has smashed over 900 runs as No. 1, while Kusal Mendis is closing on 850-run mark as No.2. Ben McDermott has played 149 T20 games and smashed 3708 runs, while also being amongst the top 10 leading run-scorers in the Big Bash League. Their batting lineup is going to be their strength with the combination of Ben McDermott, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya De Silva and Sadeera Samarawickrama.
Left-arm pacer Binura Fernando is the most succeed bowler in the squad, having bagged 18 wickets in the LPL. The 18-year-old wrist spinner Noor has the experience in the T20 format where he has played several franchise leagues across the world. Their bowling attack looks decent with the likes of Binura Fernando, Pramod Madushan, Hassan Ali and Noor Ahmed.
Squad
Kusal Mendis (c), Ben McDermott, Hassan Ali, Avishka Fernando, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Perera, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Binura Fernando, Sachitha Jayathilake, Janith Liyanage, Hayden Kerr, Noor Ahmed, Dushan Hemantha, Pramod Madushan, Shahnawaz Dahani, Lakshan Edirisinghe, Jehan Daniel, Wanuja Sahan, Alex Ross, Ravindu Fernando, Kavindu Pathirathne, Praveen Jayawickrama, Manelka de Silva, Traveen Mathew
Fixtures
| Against | Date | Venue | Time |
| Galle Titans | 31st July | R. Premadasa (Colombo) | 3.00 PM |
| Jaffna Kings | 1st August | R. Premadasa (Colombo) | 3.00 PM |
| B – Love Kandy | 4th August | Pallekele | 3.00 PM |
| Colombo Strikers | 5th August | Pallekele | 3.00 PM |
| Jaffna Kings | 7th August | Pallekele | 7.30 PM |
| Galle Titans | 11th August | R. Premadasa (Colombo) | 7.30 PM |
| Colombo Strikers | 12th August | R. Premadasa (Colombo) | 7.30 PM |
| B – Love Kandy | 14th August | R. Premadasa (Colombo) | 7.30 PM |
Stay tuned with ThePapare.com for all the latest updates on the upcoming Lanka Premier League 2023 season.
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