Warne-Muralitharan Trophy 2019: Preview

Sri Lanka’s Batting

The good form of Kusal Mendis and Angelo Matthews gives Sri Lanka hope

As odd as this may sound, Sri Lankan batting is actually looking better than it did some time ago. The reason is the return to form of Angelo Mathews. After suffering a lean patch some time ago, he seems to have rediscovered his mojo and has been scoring runs consistently.

This has coincided with the rise in fortunes of Kusal Mendis. The highly-talented young batsman was temporarily dropped from the team to give him time for recovering his lost form. Since his comeback, he has been outstanding.

But these two would need some support and the most likely quarter from where it could come is Dinesh Chandimal. The captain is undoubtedly a quality batsman who showed his talent even on the last tour to the country and now, is expected to score some tough runs.

Another player who was in splendid form last year is Dimuth Karunaratne. He too played a good knock on the last tour to this country and is now one of his team's most important batsmen.

Those who need to prove themselves a little more are Dhananjaya de Silva, Roshen Silva and Niroshan Dickwella. De Silva’s hundred in a match-saving effort against India excited many fans but he needs more consistency to become a top batsman. Roshan Silva, on the other hand, is still looking for that breakthrough innings that would establish him firmly in Test cricket.

Dickwella, the most experienced of the three, is a terrifically exciting stroke-player who hasn’t copied his teammate Kushal Perera’s lead in just being a player of cameos. He has, instead, on many occasions played very substantial innings but seems unwilling to play in any other style than his usual aggressive flair. That could both be an asset or liability.