Can Sri Lanka Turn the Tide in the T20 World Cup with their X-Factors?

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The 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup is two weeks away, and the tournament schedule has been released and almost all teams have announced their squads. This will be the ninth edition of the T20 World Cup and will be a 20-team event that will take place in the United States and West Indies.

You can explore the complete 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Schedule and other team details by following this link.

Let us explore team composition, and matches with dates, venues, timings, and players to watch.

In the 2024 Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup Series, we will cover Team Sri Lanka with all the details below.

Sri Lanka won the 2014 T20 World Cup a decade ago by beating India in the finals, however, their performance in the last edition of the T20 World Cup was at the lowest level. They lost to Namibia in the qualifying round which was a dent in their confidence. They only managed to win 4 games out of eight and were not able to beat any of the top-ranked teams.

Can they turn the tide in this edition?  They have the team to do so.

Sri Lanka have announced their 15-member squad with four reserve players.

Sri Lanka 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup Squad

Wanindu Hasaranga will be the captain of the Sri Lanka team and M iddle-order batter Charith Asalanka will be his deputy. Here is a complete list of players who will represent Sri Lanka in the T20 World Cup.

Sri Lanka Squad is:

Wanindu Hasaranga (c), Charith Asalanka, Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, Kamindu Mendis, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Angelo Mathews, Dasun Shanaka, Dhananjaya De Silva, Matheesh Theekshana, Dunith Wellalage, Dushmantha Chameera, Nuwan Thushara, Matheesha Pathirana, Dilshan Madushanka. 

Reserve Members: Asitha Fernando, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Janith Liyanage.

Notable inclusion of Angela Mathews after three years, this will be Mathews’ sixth T20 World Cup appearance, including Sri Lanka’s victorious campaign in 2014. This T20 team has a ton of leadership skills with the return of Angela Mathews, Kusal Mendis (current ODI captain), and Dhananjaya de Silva (current Test captain) are all part of the squad.

 “All teams are allowed to make changes to their squad till 25 May without getting any approval from anybody, after that they need to get approval from ICC’s event technical committee to make any changes.”

Players to Watch in this World Cup from Sri Lanka:

• Matheesha Pathirana will be X-Factor with is Lasith Malinga style slinging bowling action.
• Kusul Mendis, opening batsman.
• Wanindu hasaranga, bowling all-rounder.
• Angelo Mathews, a veteran can be an X-factor because of his all-round abilities and experience.

Sri Lanka Team Matches:

Sri Lanka is in Group D along with South Africa, Bangladesh, Netherlands and Nepal.

Sri Lanka will kick off its 2024 ICC T20 World Cup with South Africa on June 3 in Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York, USA.

ICC T20 World Cup 2024 Schedule
Match Number	MATCHES	DATE	TIME (Local)	TIME(GMT)	VENUE
4	SRI LANKA vs SOUTH AFRICA	Mon Jun 3, 2024	10:30	14:30	New York
15	SRI LANKA vs BANGLADESH	Fri Jun 7, 2024	20:30	00:30(Jun 8)	Dallas
23	SRI LANKA vs NEPAL	Tue Jun 11, 2024	19:30	23:30	Florida
38	SRI LANKA vs NETHERLANDS	Sun Jun 16, 2024	20:30	00:30(Jun 17)	St Lucia

What do you think about Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup team composition?

Share your thoughts in the comments below.