Sri Lanka is placed in group A and is enjoying its start of the campaign for the T20 World Cup at UAE and Oman with a 100 percent of win so far. They have beaten Namibia, Ireland, and the Netherlands at the group stage to enter into Super 12.
The Sri Lankans’ have been underperforming for the last few years but considering such a healthy start for the 2021 World Cup campaign, things are looking on the brighter side for The Lions.
The journey so far
Sri Lanka made it three wins out of three at the ICC T20 World Cup as they bowled out the Netherlands for just 44 before easing to an eight-wicket victory – describes the type of form their bowlers are in.
Both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are going through their first-round group stage matches to secure a healthy spot for the Super 12. Sri Lanka is seen to be at the top of Group A while Bangladesh finishes second, next to Scotland.
The paths ahead would be somewhat tough for both Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The two teams will have to go past the challenges of fellow Group 1 side England, Australia, defending champions West Indies and South Africa if they wish to go deeper into the tournament.
Looking at data of the top performers
Considering a few key performers from the last three encounters it was seen that with the bat not much contributions can be seen from Sri Lanka, but we’ve considered three players for their exceptional performances with the bat for their side.
Bhanuka Rajapaksha for his unbeaten 42 from just 27 balls against Namibia helped them reach the target of 96 in just 13.3 overs. Also , Avishka Fernando remain unbeaten with the bat alongside Rajapaksha on the same game at 30 runs from 28 deliveries.
Also considering the two amazing 50 plus scores by Pathum Nissanka and Wanindu Hasaranga. Nissanka has scored an amazing 61 runs off just 47 deliveries against Namibia and struck at a rate of 129.78 while Hasaranga’s marvelous 71 run innings against Ireland helped Sri Lanka to post a score of 171.
With the bowl and considering data from the last three encounters, it was seen that three bowlers have been performing exceptionally well for Sri Lanka. They are Maheesh Theekshena, Lahiru Kumara, and Wanindu Hasaranga.
The tri has managed to dismiss 18 wickets in the last three encounters- therefore proving as a major asset for the Sri Lankan side. Theekshana has bowled in total nine overs giving away 45 runs and taking eight wickets in just three matches.
Lahiru Kumara has bowled for 10.3 overs so far and has managed to take seven wickets while giving away 38 runs.
Last but not the least, the all-rounder Hasaranga has bowled for 11 overs as of now while taking away six wickets for his team conceding 45 runs.
Bowling for 30.3 overs as of now the trio has bowled 105 Dot balls which are around 60 percent of the total balls bowled in three matches by all three of them.
Conclusion
Sri Lanka will rely heavily on its bowling unit to make up for its relatively weak batting department, while Bangladesh would look for consistency when the two teams clash in a Super 12 Group 1 match of the T20 World Cup here on Sunday.
A look at the Sri Lankan Squad: Dasun Shanaka (c), Kusal Janith Perera, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya De Silva, Pathum Nissanka, Charith Asalanka, Avishka Fernando, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Chamika Karunaratne, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara, Maheesh Theekshana, Akila Dananjaya, Binura Fernando.