Lankan Pride
1) Experienced Middle-Order – There will be Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Dasun Shanaka to power us to a good score, but they are inexperienced and if they fail there needs to be a couple of players who can play the rescue role. The right men for this will be Kusal Perera & Asela Gunaratne. Asela played well in Australia but since then hasn’t been looked at.
2) Quality pace bowling – Apart from Kumara & Malinga there is no pacer to trouble batsmen in those conditions. One guy the selectors can try is Mohammed Shiraz who has experience playing in those conditions (England grade cricket). They can also try Asitha Fernando who has been in the emerging team for a while now.
3) Proper opening pair – This is the most visible concern. We need to give 2 players an extended run without frequently changing unless they are rested.
Most suitable pair – Danushka Gunathilaka & Avishka Fernando
Other possibilities – Kusal Mendis, Dilshan Munaweera, Oshada Fernando & Pathum Nissanka