Charith Asalanka. Photo- Getty
Charith Asalanka. Photo- Getty

Charith Asalanka has replaced Wanindu Hasaranga as the Sri Lanka T20I captain as Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on July 23, 2024, announced the squad for the upcoming T20I series against India.

Sri Lanka Cricket hasn’t specified if there will be any change in captaincy in other formats. Kusal Mendis leads the ODI team while Dhananjaya de Silva is Sri Lanka’s Test captain.

In the absence of Hasaranga, who was facing suspension, Charith Asalanka captained Sri Lanka in two T20Is on the tour of Bangladesh earlier this year.

Sri Lanka is set to play 3 T20Is against India on July 27, 28, and 30 at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy. 3 ODIs between the two sides will follow this on August 2, 4, and 7, played at the RPS in Colombo.

Recently, Wanindu Hasaranga stepped down as Sri Lanka captain in T20Is after the team’s poor performance in the recent T20 World Cup where they failed to qualify for the Super 8s stage from their group.

The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) board officially announced Asalanka’s appointment as their new T20I skipper on Tuesday, when they revealed their 16-man squad for the forthcoming three-match T20I series against the Indian Cricket Team.

Charith Asalanka recently led Jaffa Kings to the LPL 2024 title

While Charith Asalanka is named captain of the Sri Lanka T20I squad, Wanindu Hasaranga remains in the squad as the premier spinner. Other notable names in the squad are Maheesh Theekshana, Dinesh Chandimal, Dasun Shanaka, Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Perera.

Along with the experienced lot, youngsters like Dunith Wellalage and Chamindu Wickremesinghe have also been named in Sri Lanka’s 16-man squad for India T20Is.

Talking about Asalanka, he is a dynamic all-rounder and former Sri Lanka U19 player. He recently captained the Jaffna Kings in the LPL 2024 and took them to a championship victory. This was the Kings’ fourth LPL title after winning the trophy in 2020, 2021, and 2022.

He has so far played 59 ODIs and 47 T20Is, amassing over 1900 and 1000 runs, respectively.

Sri Lanka full squad for three-match T20I series vs India: Charith Asalanka (captain), Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Perera, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Kamindu Mendis, Dasun Shanaka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Chamindu Wickramasinghe, Matheesha Pathirana, Nuwan Thushara, Dushmantha Chameera and Binura Fernando

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