Follow UsDespite losing the first two matches as full-time skipper of the Sri Lankan T20I team, Charith Asalanka will now lead the team One Day Internationals (ODIs) as well. On July 30 (Tuesday), Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) announced a 16-man squad led by the left-handed batter for the three-match series against India, starting August 02 in Colombo.
Earlier, Asalanka, who won the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024 with Jaffna Kings on July 21, was appointed the T20I skipper of the national men’s cricket team, replacing Wanindu Hasaranga, who had stepped down as captain after a disastrous T20 World Cup 2024.
Now, the 27-year-old middle-order batter and part-time bowler has replaced Kusal Mendis as the ODI skipper of the side. Dasun Shanaka, the white-ball captain of the Sri Lankan team until the 2023 ODI World Cup, was removed from his post after a poor showing in the 50-over mega event.
Under Mendis' full-time captaincy, Sri Lanka played nine ODIs this year against Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, maintaining a 75% win percentage.
Sri Lanka now have two different captains. Asalanka is appointed to lead the white-ball team in both formats while Dhananjaya de Silva is their captain in red-ball cricket.
Asalanka, who hails from Elpitiya in Galle, has no prior experience captaining a side in the 50-over format at the highest level. However, he was deputy to Mendis on the team's Bangladesh tour in May-June 2024.
“The Honorable Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs, Harin Fernando, approved the squad. The three-match ODI series will be played on the 2nd, 4th and 7th August 2024 at the RPICS, Colombo,” read an SLC press release regarding the team announcement.
Sri Lanka squad for the ODI series vs India
Charith Asalanka ( c ), Pathum Nissanka, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Kamindu Mendis, Janith Liyanage, Nishan Madushka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Chamika Karunaratne, Maheesh Theekshana, Akila Dananjaya, Dilshan Madushanka, Matheesha Pathirana, Asitha Fernando
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