The national selectors have blooded young leg spinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, while recalling a few of the old hands, when naming Sri Lanka’s 32-member preliminary pool, to prepare for the ICC Men’s T-20 World Cup in the US and West Indies, from June.
Jaffna-based Viyaskanth, who was recently selected to replace Sri Lanka T-20 skipper Wanidu Hasaranga, for the Sunrise Hyderabad in the ongoing lucrative IPL, thus breaks it to the national pool, for the first time.
Cricket analysts reckon that if Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, is nurtured properly by coaches attached to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), the sky would be the limit for his achievements, as such is his gifted talents with the ball.
Besides opting for Viyaskanth, the national selectors headed by former captain Upul Tharanga, have also granted recalls for Banuka Rajapaksa, Lahiru Madushanka, Janith Liyanage, ex-T-20 captain Dasun Shanaka and wicket-keeper Niroshan Dickwella, to name a few.
A combination of injury and loss of form had resulted in each of the aforementioned players, being banished to the cricketing wilderness, in the sport’s shortest format in recent times.
According to the national selection panel, the 32-member preliminary pool will be truncated to 20, from which the final 15-member team for the World Cup will be chosen, following the staging of a domestic T-20 tournament.
The selectors have also decided to recall most of the Sri Lankan players, such as Matheesha Pathirana, Maheesh Theekshana, Nuwan Thushara, Dushmantha Chameera and Viyaskanth, presently engaged in the lucrative IPL to be featured in the local T-20 tournament, besides to take part in the training schedules.
The 32-member preliminary national pool
Wanidu Hasaranga (Capt.), Charith Asalanka (V-Capt.), Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, Sadeera Samarawickrema, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dasun Shanaka, Chamika Karunaratne, Janith Liyanage, Avishka Fernando, Dinesh Chandimal, Lasith Croospulle, Sahan Arachchige, Niroshan Dickwella, Kusal Janith Perera, Banuka Rajapaksa, Dhananjaya de Silva, Akila Dhananjaya, Dunith Wellalage, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka, Asitha Fernando, Promod Madushan, Maheesh Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana, Lahiru Kumara, Lahiru Madushanka, Binura Fernando, Nuwan Thushara, Jeffrey Vandersay, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth