Bangladesh will take on Sri Lanka in the first T20i of the two-match series scheduled to be held tomorrow (Tuesday) at R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. The match will kicks off at Bangladesh standard time 7.30 pm, repots BSS.
Though Bangladesh have little successes in this format as they won only one out of five matches against Sri Lanka but following the team’s impressive performance in the recently concluded Test and ODI series against Sri Lanka,the Tigers’ got back some confidence and expecting a competitive series is going to happen against the host.
Dashing opener Tamim Iqbal showed his impressive form in both Test and ODI series and the Tigers fans hoped their hero would carry his form in T20i as well.
Allrounder Shakib Al Hasan is also reliable pillar of Tigers’ T20 squad having good records and he has ability to turn the fate of the match in any time.
Bangladesh have depth batting strength having Soumya Sarkar, Sabbir Rahman and Mahmudullah in the squad while bowling sensation Mustafizur Rahman, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and Taskin Ahmed are the main weapons in Tigers’ bowling line up.
In their last home series against Sri Lanka backed in 2014, Bangladesh lost both the T20i matches.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka will miss the service of skipper Angelo Mathews in the remaining fixtures of Bangladesh’s tour after being ruled out of the Twenty20 matches, source cricket website.
Mathews — who returned home in January halfway through the tour of South Africa after twisting his ankle — also missed Sri Lanka’s Test and ODI matches against Bangladesh.
Sri Lanka’s cricket board said in a statement Monday that Upul Tharanga would captain the side during the two-match T20 series this week, without revealing why Mathews was sidelined.
The board had expressed hope that the skipper would feature in the shorter formats of the game after he was held back from the two-Test series.
Sri Lanka drew both the Test series and the ODI matches 1-1. One of the three ODI games was abandoned due to rain.
Kusal Perera was ruled fit enough to join the squad, but will be replaced by wicketkeeper-batsman Sandun Weerakkody should he be unable to play.
Bangladesh Squad: Tamim Iqbal, Soumya Sarkar, Imrul Kayes, Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Mahmudullah, Mosaddek Hossain, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza (captain), Mustafizur Rahman, Saifuddin, Tasakin Ahmed, Shuvashish Roy, Sunzamul Islam, Mehedi Hasan Miraz and Nurul Hasan.
Sri Lanka squad: Upul Tharanga (captain), Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekara, Dilshan Munaweera, Dhanushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Perera, Isuru Udana, Dasun Shanaka, Vikum Sanjaya, Milinda Siriwardana, Asela Gunaratne, Seekkuge Prasanna, Chamara Kapugedara, Thisara Perera, Lakshan Sandakan and Shehan Jayasuriya.
