When choosing on their 15-man squad for the June event, Sri Lanka plans to prioritize experience.
When choosing on their 15-man roster for the June event, Sri Lanka plans to prioritize experience. Sri Lanka’s chief selector, Upul Tharanga, has indicated that experience will take precedence over youth when determining who will represent the country at this year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. The 2014 T20 World Cup champions surprised everyone when they recalled seasoned wicket-keeper-batsman Niroshan Dickwella for their ongoing T20I series against Bangladesh, and Tharanga said it would be the norm before this year’s 20-over showcase in the United States and the Caribbean in June.
According to Tharanga, left-arm spinner Dunith Wellalage, as well as fellow youngsters Vijayakanth Viyaskanth and Shevon Daniel, may have to wait for future opportunities at the highest level.
“In T20s, we need a wicket-taking option, which is why we chose Jeffrey (Vandersay) over someone like Dunith Wellalage. “We felt Jeffrey was more of an attacking bowler in T20s,” Tharanga remarked, according to the ICC official website.
“There was a heated debate among the selecting committee members about Viyaskanth and Jeffrey. But in the end, we went with Jeffrey since the (T20) World Cup is approaching and there was concern that Viyaskanth would be called up to play in a (T20) World Cup. So that’s why we chose Jeffrey and his experience,” the former opener said.
“We needed someone to play in the top order (due to injuries to Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Perera). We considered Shevon Daniel, Lasith Croospulle, and Dikka (Dickwella), but the first two are still very young. “It was difficult to select them based solely on their most recent performances,” the 39-year-old claimed.Tharanga singled out Daniel as a player who he believes will shine for Sri Lanka in the future, but he also stated that the adolescent will have the opportunity to demonstrate his abilities and add to the two white-ball matches he has played for his country.
“They are extremely talented cricketers; Shevon, for example, may play for Sri Lanka for 10 to 15 years. Should we put a player like him in a difficult situation? Or do we keep him back and let him to play in the NSL (Sri Lanka’s domestic competition), gain experience, and then bring him into the team?
We consulted with the captain and the coach, and they both agreed that Niroshan Dickwella was the best option at the moment because his experience will be beneficial heading into the (T20) World Cup,” Tharanga said.
