Sri Lankan Test captain Dhananjaya de Silva expressed disappointment that his team was not granted more than one warm-up match ahead of their three-match Test series against England. The first Test is scheduled to begin at Old Trafford in Manchester on Wednesday, August 21.
Sri Lanka played a solitary warm-up game against the England Lions at New Road in Worcester from August 14 to August 17, which they lost by seven wickets. Speaking ahead of the Test series, Dhananjaya emphasized the importance of additional practice matches, especially given the challenging conditions in England.
“The conditions are quite different from Asian countries. We wanted to play a few matches, but that’s what we got. We didn’t go with the full-strength [team] in the warm-up game. We tried out a few players as well. The result didn’t go our way, but we had the preparation, I think. It’ll work in this match,” Dhananjaya told ESPNcricinfo.
When asked why Sri Lanka’s request for an additional practice match was not accommodated, the 32-year-old captain admitted he had no idea why it wasn’t considered. He speculated, “Maybe because we are playing a three-match series after a long time; maybe that’s the reason.”
Despite the setback in the warm-up match, Dhananjaya maintained that the team remains in a positive mental state heading into the Test series. “Yes, we lost the practice match, but that match was there for our training. Within that, we got the preparation we wanted,” he said.
Sri Lanka is set to hand a Test debut to right-arm pacer Milan Rathnayake in Manchester. The 28-year-old has taken 81 wickets in 40 first-class matches and is expected to bolster the team’s bowling attack.
“From the Looks of It, It’ll Be a Rain-Affected Match” – Dhananjaya de Silva
Dhananjaya also commented on the weather conditions in Manchester, suggesting that rain could play a significant role in the first Test. He explained the team’s decision to include three seamers, while also expressing confidence in left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya.
“From the looks of it, it’ll be a rain-affected match. I thought because of that, it’s best to go with three quicks, because we will go in and out of the game,” Dhananjaya stated.
After the opening Test in Manchester, the second Test between England and Sri Lanka will take place at Lord’s from August 29 to September 2.
