21-year old Sri Lankan ‘mystery’ spinner Maheesh Theekshana has been declared fit for the Australia match in the Super 12 stage of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021.
Reporting from Dubai
Theekshana, who took eight wickets in three games during the Round 1 of the competition, was sidelined for the Bangladesh game due to a side strain. However, he is expected to pose a massive threat for the Australians, who are chasing their first T20 world cup title.
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“Maheesh will be playing tomorrow if everything goes well. We’ve rested him from training yesterday. He’s improved tremendously. So we’ll warm him up tomorrow; and if everything goes well, he’ll be playing.” Sri Lanka Head Coach Mickey Arthur told on Wednesday.
Theekshana was seen doing some sprints on Tuesday with the trainers – Grant Luden and Dilshan Fonseka while the team was training at the ICC Academy in Dubai. However, he did not bowl. Theekshana is expected to replace Binura Fernando in the lineup. The tall left-armer came into the side for the Bangladesh match as Theekshana’s replacement.
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Theekshana’s inclusion will bolster Sri Lanka’s spin contingent as he was instrumental in picking up wickets in the powerplay. With spin being the Achilles Heel of Australia, Theekshana could be a defining factor for Sri Lanka in toppling Australia.
“He’s a quality bowler. He’s still young, though. He’s still making his way in the game. We obviously have studied Australia. We had a series not so long ago when I was with Pakistan here against Australia where we did use spin quite successfully. So hopefully that works. If you haven’t seen Maheesh, he certainly poses some questions. He has a couple of different balls that do make you quite hesitant if you can’t pick them. So, look, it will be an interesting contest tomorrow.” Arthur further said.
Both Australia and Sri Lanka have won their first games against South Africa and Bangladesh respectively in the Super 12 round. The match is scheduled to be played from 7.30 pm SL time.
