The ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 is done and dusted. Two Asian giants will battle it out to check the performances of their fringe players for the future as Pakistan ‘A’ tour of Sri Lanka will commence on 26th April in Southern part of the beautiful pearl in the Indian Ocean.
Pakistan ‘A’ team is scheduled to play three one-day matches and as many four-day games in a month-long tour around the nation. The senior teams will lock horns in June and all the players’ part- taking in this tourney will have a great chance to claim their stake for the most important series’ in the near future. The ‘A’ team tours are extremely important to any country as that is the stage where budding new and talented players are groomed to represent their national teams or to help the out-of-form players to regain form.
The tour will commence at Uyanwaththa Stadium for the first unofficial ODI and the 2nd match will take place at the breezy ground in Hambanthota where the bowlers will enjoy more assistance from the surface. The tour will return to Colombo for the final and 3rd match to end the ODI leg. Both teams will then change clothing to whites’ and play the first four-day encounter in the capital itself. The hill capital of Kandy will host the 2nd unofficial Test match and the tour will conclude in the dry zone of Dambulla on 23rd May. The specialty of this particular tour is that all 6 matches will be played in 6 different cities across Sri Lanka.
Sri Lankan players to watch out for
Gritty middle order batsman Ashan Priyanjan has been appointed as the captain of the home team after he led his club team, SL Ports Authority CC to their maiden first-class title few weeks back. After being dropped out of the Sri Lanka team for the New Zealand tour and World Cup, the right-hander will be itching to get back to the senior team with a string of impressive performances in the coming games.
The young fast-bowler Dushmantha Chameera and mystery off-spinner Tharindu Kaushal who represented Sri Lanka in the quarter-final game against South Africa will be the two main bowlers for Sri Lanka ‘A’. Chameera is renowned for his raw pace of 145kmph+ and this will be a great opportunity for the 23-year old to stamp his authority as the fastest bowler in Sri Lanka. He is expecting to gain maximum number of wickets and push a call-up for the senior team.
Kaushal will be the strike bowler for the hosts in spin-friendly conditions and his tweezers’ and doosras’ will have a pivotal role to play.
Left-handed Danushka Gunathilake alongside Kushal Janith Perera will be looking to notch up eye-opening performances of the newly-named Selection Committee with the Lankan senior batting order will have to be remodeled again. Top run-scorer of the SLC Premier League Milinda Siriwardene and top wickets-taker, Malinda Pushpakumara has received deserving call-ups as well.
Sri Lanka A squad for four-dayers:
Dhananjaya de Silva, Udara Jayasundera, Madhawa Warnapura, Ashan Priyanjan, Kithuruwan Vithanage, Roshen Silva, Kusal Perera, Tharindu Kaushal, Malinda Pushpakumara, Lahiru Gamage, Dushmantha Chameera, Vishwa Fernando, Nisala Tharaka, Kasun Madushanka, Asela Gunaratne.
Sri Lanka A squad for one-dayers:
Danushka Gunathilaka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Perera, Shehan Jayasuriya, Ashan Priyanjan, Kithuruwan Vithanage, Milinda Siriwardene, Asela Gunaratne, Lahiru Madushanka, Tharindu Kaushal, Lakshan Sandakan, Lahiru Gamage, Dushmantha Chameera, Binura Fernando.
Pakistan players to watch out for
The experienced campaigner and leader of the pack, Fawad Alam will be the main batter for the visitors as he has played three Tests and 35 ODIs for Pakistan and averages over 40 in both formats. Another talented left-hander Umar Amin will be the vice-captain and he too will be hoping for substantial scores in Sri Lanka soil. Right-arm fast-bowler Bilawal Bhatti will lead the bowling attack for the visitors as he can rip apart any batting lineup in the world with his nippy line and length.
Pakistan A squad for 4-day matches: Shaan Masood, Khurram Manzoor, Umer Siddiq, Umar Amin (vice-captain), Ali Waqas, Usman Salahuddin, Ali Asad, Immad Wasim, Fawad Alam (captain), Zafar Gohar, Shahzeb Ahmed, Adnan Akmal (wicket-keeper), Mir Hamza, Bilawal Bhatti, Shehzad Azam, Imran Khan. Standbyes: Zia-ul-Haq, Saad Ali, Mohammad Nawaz, Naeemuddin.
Pakistan A squad for one-dayers: Khurram Manzoor, Umer Sadiq, Mukhtar Ahmed, Umar Amin (vice-captain), Fawad Alam (captain), Ali Waqas, Saad Nasim, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Israrullah, Immad Wasim, Zafar Gohar, Shahzeb Ahmed, Mir Hamza, Bilawal Bhatti, Ehsan Adil and Tabish Khan.
Tour itinerary:
1st one-day match on April 26th at Uyanwatte Stadium, Matara.
2nd one-day match on April 29th at Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium, Hambanota.
3rd one-day match on May 2nd at R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.
1st four-day match from May 6 to 9 at R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.
2nd four-day match from May 13 to 16 at Pallekele Stadium, Kandy.
3rd four-day match from May 20 to 23 at Rangiri Dambulla Stadium, Dambulla.
