Sri Lanka’s first pre-World Cup warm-up fixture is scheduled to take place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground tomorrow (11th). This will be an important clash for both teams to test out their combinations ahead of the 1st round of the competition.
The leadup
Sri Lankans are riding high on confidence after a monumental performance at the Asia Cup, winning 5 games in a row. A majority of their playing XI are also in good form, which will be a huge confidence booster. Sri Lanka do have to sort out a couple of positions in the batting lineup, so expect them to test out a few different options in the two warmups.
Zimbabwe on the other hand will also walk into the game with confidence, having recently beaten higher-ranked Bangladesh in a bilateral series.
In focus
It’s fair to say that 5 out of the top 7 batting positions for Sri Lanka are more or less confirmed. With Danushka Gunathilake and Charith Asalanka both having bad runs at the Asia Cup, the No. 3 and 4 positions will be the ones Sri Lanka will want to test out against Zimbabwe.
The other decision Sri Lanka will need to take is about the 3rd seam bowling option. With Dushmantha Chameera returning and Chamika Karunaratne in as the fast-bowling all-rounder, there’s room for only one more pace bowler for Sri Lanka. So, this warm-up fixture will be important for Sri Lanka to make their choice on who gets the nod from the other 3 pacers, Lahiru Kumara, Dilshan Madushanka and Pramod Madushan.
As all the 15 players can be used in this encounter Sri Lanka will likely use all 5 quicks in the side for at least 2 overs each. Chameera and Kumara are both returning after injury, making it critical that they get some game time.
Key Players
A little left field maybe but our picks for key players in this warm-up fixture are Charith Asalanka and Danushka Gunathilake. Both are searching for runs and it is absi=olutely critical that at least one of them finds some form in before the tournament proper starts.
Conditions
MCG has a very balanced record when it comes to T20Is, with teams that have chased having won 8 times while the teams that batted first have won 6 games. So, it will be a 50/50 call on what to do after winning the toss. The weather conditions on Tuesday will be a bit cloudy but it’s highly unlikely that we will see any interruptions.
. This will be an important clash for both teams to test out their combinations ahead of the 1st round of the competition.){kind=link}