Page 22 - Sri Lanka Cricket Team

Asia Cup: Pathirana's coach cliams he didn't copy action from Malinga

Matheesha Pathirana's sling-shot action immediately brings Lasith Malinga to mind but the young Sri Lankan did not deliberately copy his illustrious senior, his childhood coach Bilal Fassy said on Thursday, insisting that the much talked-about bowling style came naturally to the pacer. His Malinga-like action has also earned Pathirana sobriquets like Podi (Little) Malinga in Sri Lanka and Baby Malinga among Chennai Super Kings (CSK) fans. Pathirana had a breakout season for IPL champions CSK. He snared 19 wickets from 12 matches and was Mahendra Singh Dhoni's go-to bowler in crunch situations. While Dhoni is grooming the 20-year-old as CSK's designated death overs specialist, the Sri Lankan cricket establishment should handle him with utmost care, feels Fassy. "Seeing his action, a lot of people think that he has modelled it after seeing Malinga. Pathirana also trained under Malinga. But he came to me with this action from day one, and we just worked on it a bit, considering it can

Asia Cup 2023: Sri Lanka dismiss Bangladesh for 164 despite Shanto's 89

Najmul Shanto's resilient fifty notwithstanding, Sri Lankan bowlers produced a fine bowling effort to restrict Bangladesh to 164 in their Asia Cup 2023 opener here on Thursday. Shanto made 89 off 122 balls but hardly received consistent support from the other end as pacer Matheesha Pathirana (4/32) and spinner Maheesh Theekshana (2/19) combined to strike at regular intervals after Bangladesh opted to bat first. The Pallekele International Cricket Stadium pitch had a bit of carry and bounce in it, and Lanka skipper Dasun Shanaka brought Theekshana into the attack in the second over itself. Theekshana, the highest wicket-taker for Sri Lanka in ODIs this year, fetched immediate results as he trapped Tanzid Hasan plumb in front with a lovely delivery. The ball pitched around the leg-stump and spun across to hit Hasan's back pad and the Bangladesh opener had to walk back with a duck on his debut. Pathirana soon jettisoned skipper Shakib Al Hasan. The left-hander could not negotiate the

Asia Cup 2023: Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka Playing 11, toss result, streaming

At the toss, Shakib said that they have selected three pacers and as many seamers in Bangladesh Playing 11. Shanaka confirmed during the toss that Pathirana and Dunith Wellalage are playing

Asia Cup 2023: Dasun Shanaka confident his young players would prove enough

Sri Lanka have been hit hard by injuries to key players in the run up to the ongoing Asia Cup, and captain Dasun Shanaka on Wednesday said they can't have control over such crisis but are confident of others standing up for the absentees in the continental tournament. Six-time champions Sri Lanka will open their Asia Cup campaign against Bangladesh here on Thursday, but they will be without four main players in Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara and Dilshan Madhushanka. "We can't have control over injuries. You know the players who unfortunately missed out -- Hasaranga, Chameerathey are big players, experienced players. "But we have a young side and this will be a good experience for them and we are looking forward to the tournament," said Shanaka here during the pre-match press meet. Shanaka said they have enough quality players in the side to make an impression in the Asia Cup. "Last time (in the 2022 Asia Cup) also we went in as underdogs and lost our first g

Asia Cup SL vs BAN Preview: Missing key players, teams eye winning start

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will be eager to shake off modest ODI form and spate of injuries to key players as they seek to start their Asia Cup campaign on a winning note when they face each other here on Thursday. Sri Lanka, who won the Asia Cup in 2022 in its T20 avatar, could not even announce their squad for this edition till Tuesday, courtesy niggles and COVID-19 infection to a couple of players. The Lankans lost Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara and Dilshan Madhushanka to various injuries, while Kusal Perera, who last played an ODI in 2021, is yet to make full recovery from COVID-19 infection. But even before these setbacks, Sri Lanka's run in the ODIs this year has been sub-par. They started the year with a 0-3 drubbing at the hands of India, and then lost to New Zealand 0-2. The Islanders managed to beat Afghanistan at home before mounting a good run in the ICC Qualifiers in Harare, but the inability to lift their game against top opponents will worry ...

India to Pakistan: All you need to know about all 6 teams in Asia Cup 2023

Asia Cup 2023 will mark the return of the ODI format, preceding the 50-over World Cup. Check squads of all six teams, key players to watch out here

Asia Cup: Shaheen vs Indian openers to Babar vs Kuldeep, top player battles

Will Indian openers survive Shaheen Afridi's opening spell or whether Kuldeep Yadav spins the web around Babar Azam once again? Here are the top battles to watch out for in Asia Cup 2023

Asia Cup 2023: Top five wicket-takers in the history of the tournament

It would be hard to guess that no Indian bowler features in the list of top-five wicket-takers in the history of the Asia Cup. Harder would be to believe that there is no Pakistani pacer on the list

Asia Cup 2023 full schedule, match timing, venues, live streaming in India

Asia Cup 2023 will be played in a 50-over format. Pakistan will host 4 matches, one in Multan and the other three in Lahore and Sri Lanka will host 9 matches

Asia Cup 2023: Top five run-getters in the history of the tournament

From India, none among Dhoni, Sehwag or Virat feature in the list of the top five run-getters in the history of the Asia Cup. Then who leads the chart? It's not Sachin by the way

World Cup: HCA informs BCCI of security challenges for back-to-back games

Hyderabad Cricket Association has alerted BCCI about the challenges that have risen due to late changes in the World Cup 2023 schedule

Sri Lanka all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga retires from Test cricket

Sri Lankan all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga on Tuesday announced his retirement from Test cricket as he seeks to prolong his career in limited-over format of the game. The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said it has accepted the decision of the 26-year-old Hasaranga. We will accept his decision and are confident that Hasaranga will be a vital part of our white-ball programme going forward, said SLC CEO Ashley De Silva. Hasaranga made his Test debut against South Africa at Centurion in 2020, and played three more Tests thereafter. From four Tests, he took four wickets with his leg-spin. His last Test was against Bangladesh in Pallekele in 2021. However, Hasaranga continues to be a prominent figure for Sri Lanka in white ball formats as the spin spearhead and a handy lower-order batsman. From 48 ODIs, Hasaranga grabbed 67 wickets and made 832 runs with four fifties. Hasaranga has 91 wickets from 58 T20Is and amassed 533 runs with a fifty. The Lankan is also a much sought-after player in var

Former Sri Lanka cricketer facing match-fixing charges slapped travel ban

Former Sri Lanka international cricketer Sachithra Senanayake, who has been charged with fixing matches, was on Monday banned from travelling overseas by a local court here. The 38-year-old Senanayake, who played a solitary Test, 49 ODIs and 24 T20 Internationals between 2012 and 2016, has been accused of trying to fix games of 2020 Lanka Premier League. He allegedly enticed two players to fix games over telephone. The Colombo Chief Magistrate's Court ordered the Controller General of Immigration and Emigration to impose a travel ban on Senanayake which will be effective for a three-month period. The court order was obtained by the Attorney General's Department. The court was told that the Attorney General's Department had been instructed by the Special Investigation Unit of the Sports Ministry to frame criminal charges against the former off-spinner.

Former Pakistan pacer coins new term 'Pakball', Pak scored 178 runs in 38.3

After Bazball and Dravball, former Pakistan pacer coined the new term 'Pakball' as the green army smashed 178 runs in just 38.3 overs in the second inning of 2nd test

SL vs PAK 1st Test: Imam-ul-Haq's fifty helps Pakistan win by 4 wickets

Pakistan made it a difficult chase at times but the visitors completed a four-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the first cricket test on Thursday. Pakistan kept losing wickets at regular intervals but opening batsman Imam-ul-Haq scored an unbeaten half-century, his eighth in test cricket, to see the tourists through before lunch on the fifth day. Sri Lanka won the toss and batted, scoring 312, and Pakistan replied with 461 in its first innings. The home side scored 279 runs in its second at-bat, leaving Pakistan 131 runs to win. Pakistan didn't get off to a good start and limped to 48 for three at stumps on day four. When play resumed on the final day, Pakistan needed 83 runs and there were memories of the 2009 test at Galle. That's when the visitors needed 97 runs with eight wickets in hand chasing a target of 168 but collapsed and were bowled out for 117. Babar Azam added 41 runs for the fourth wicket Thursday with Imam and the run chase looked a mere formality, but Prabath Jayasuri

ICC 'Player of the Month' award: Wanindu Hasaranga, Ash Gardner win

Sri Lanka spinner Wanindu Hasaranga and Australian women's team all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner were on Tuesday named ICC's 'Player of the Month' for their impressive performances in June. Hasaranga clinched the award following his record-breaking feats at the World Cup Qualifier games in Zimbabwe. Women's Ashes hero Ashleigh Gardner becomes the first player to win three Player-of-the-Month accolades. Both players were selected as the standout performers following a vote conducted among a specialist panel comprising ICC Hall of Famers, former international players, media representatives and global cricket fans registered at icc-cricket.com, who had been voting since the nominees were announced last week. With 26 wickets at an average of 10 per scalp during the calendar month, Hasaranga enjoyed several highlights during the prolific period. Heading into the Qualifier as one of the key threats in a strong Sri Lankan lineup, the spinner started in fine fashion. Claiming six wickets in t

CWC Qualifier Final: Lanka lift cup with a thumping win over the Dutch

Sri Lanka bowled out the Netherlands for a meagre 105 to win the final by 128 runs and equals their longest winning streak of 10 matches in ODIs

CWC Qualifier: Dasun Shanaka heaps praises on team after the final victory

Sri Lanka skipper Dasun Shanaka reflected on what the Cricket World Cup Qualifier final victory meant for his team after they claimed a comfortable victory against the Netherlands on Sunday

CWC Qualifier Final preview: Confident and upbeat Dutch face unbeaten Lanka

Sri Lanka, with their spin duo and masterful opening pair, have thwarted every challenge so far. In the final of the World Cup qualifier, they face the team that ran them the closest- the Netherlands

CWC Qualifier: Sri Lanka brush aside Zimbabwe, book place in ODI World Cup

Sri Lanka were professional in their approach as they brushed aside the Zimbabwean challenge in the CWC Qualifier, beating the hosts by nine wickets and confirming their birth in ODI World Cup 2023