Sports
Sri Lanka back pace for Bangladesh Tests
by Rex Clementine
Having conducted the England Test series so well in a ‘bio-secure bubble’ in Galle, Sri Lanka Cricket has decided to move the Bangladesh series to Pallekele. Did any technical reasons prompt SLC to move from the coastal town to the hill capital? Not really. The move is a tactical one. The Sri Lankans would be thinking that spin is Bangladesh’s strength so the best way to beat them is through pace. Hence, the shift to Kandy where seamers get much more purchase and value for money for their efforts.
The move may look somewhat defensive. Given the England experience where the Somerset duo of Dom Bess and Jack Leach made a mockery of Sri Lanka’s top and middle order, the hosts seem to be not wanting to play into Bangladesh’s hands whose spinners have been quite formidable in recent years.
Hence having shifted base to Kandy, Sri Lanka could go all out with a pace heavy attack when the Test series gets underway next week. Wanindu Hasaranga could be the only spinner in the side with Dhananjaya de Silva’s part time off-spin as back up.
Lahiru Kumara has returned to the squad having missed the West Indies tour after being tested positive for COVID-19. There was a lot of excitement that Sri Lanka would be able to see two of their quickest bowlers in action in the same match but Dushmantha Chameera, has pulled out from the series due to personal reasons.
Suranga Lakmal, who was named Player of the Series in the Caribbean after his impressive performance, will spearhead the attack. Vishwa Fernando will add variety with his left arm bowling and it remains to be seen how well he does in helpful conditions having fared well in South Africa early this year.
There are a few issues with the spin department after Lasith Embuldeniya was ruled out with injury. Duvindu Tillekeratne is also down with injury while Prabath Jayasuriya, who had shown la ot of promise was almost picked for the series but he became ineligible for selection after failing the skin fold test marginally. That opened up a slot for rookie Praveen Jayawickrama who is thin on experience having played just a handful of First Class matches
Bangaldesh will be handicapped as Shakib Al Hasan their biggest match winner is in India playing the IPL. They will also miss the services of Mustafizur Rahman, the spearhead of the attack.
Still, the tourists have some solid players. Off-spinner Mehidy Hasan recently became the fastest Bangladeshi to claim 100 Test wickets and at the age of 23 a lot is expected of him. He is more than a handy bat having already posted a hundred and three half-centuries in Test match cricket.
Tamim Iqbal, Mominul Haque and Mushfiqur Rahim are the mainstay of their batting. Mushfiqur has been ever present in the Bangladeshi side having made his Test debut 16 years ago at the age of 18.
Former captain Angelo Mathews is back in the side having returned home from the West Indies early. Which of the seven batters will miss out to accommodate Mathews remains to be seen.
Sri Lanka have won 16 of the 20 Tests against Bangladesh and lost just one game. However, most of those wins were in the early days and in recent years Bangladesh have done well competing and drawing games.
Will India and Pakistan face each other on February 15 in Colombo?
Even as that question hangs heavy like the thick and suffocating Mumbai smog over the T20 World Cup 2026, Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav said his team will travel to Colombo whether the match happens or not.
“Our Mindset is pretty clear,” Suryakumar said at the captains’ media briefing on Thursday in Mumbai. “We did not refuse to play them. The refusal came from them (Pakistan). ICC organised the fixture. BCCI and the Indian government decided to play in neutral venue in coordination with ICC. Our flight to Colombo is booked. So we are going. We’ll see what happens later.”
Defending champions India begin their World Cup campaign on the opening day – February 7 – against USA in Mumbai. India start as firm favourites based on their phenomenal domination in the format in this World Cup cycle. Suryakumar’s team provided further evidence of that on Monday evening in Navi Mumbai where they nudged aside South Africa in the warm-up match. Such form has allowed Suryakumar to be more relaxed and light-hearted during media briefings and same was the case on Thursday.
Asked what the mood in the Indian dressing room was around the Pakistan match, Suryakumar said: “The discussion in the team is ekdum (absolutely) clear. First we play the match on February 7, then we will head to Delhi (Namibia on February 12) and then we will travel to Colombo.”
Suryakumar’s is the first formal response from the India side on the topic, and comes a day after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said his government had taken a “cons8dered stance” on boycotting the India match and did not want “politics in sport”.
This is the second time in six months Suryakumar has found himself facing questions on how India-Pakistan matches were getting impacted due to the fraught political relations between the two nations, after the Asia Cup controversy last year. The BCCI had instructed the Indian team then to not shake hands with the Pakistan team, at the behest of the Indian government. India then refused to receive the Asia Cup trophy after winning the tournament from ACC president and PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, who also declined to hand over the trophy.
Suryakumar said he could not do much about the current situation apart from turning up with his team in Colombo.
“Pakistan’s decision is not in my control,” he said. “I wish I could take that decision. But then it’s their (Pakistan) call. We’ve been told that we have to play on the 15th. We played the Asia Cup, we played three times. We played some good cricket against them. We won. We were happy. And, similarly, if we get an opportunity again in Colombo we will definitely play our game.
“I feel it is not an easy job. I’m sure they must be working out something. But if the boycott has come from the other government or the nation, how can… It is a difficult call for them as well. I know it’ll be a difficult situation. But, as I said, if we are told and the fixtures are ready we will definitely go ahead and play.”
(Cricinfo)
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Delhi Capital’s fourth shot at elusive trophy as Royal Challengers Bengaluru look to make winning a habit
The grand finale of WPL 2026 carries a distinct India-South Africa flavour, much like the World Cup final two months ago. But the epicenter is Vadodara and not Navi Mumbai, the traditional home of Indian women’s cricket. However, that won’t make the occasion any less special.
The marquee names line up symmetrically. Shafali Verma and Jemimah Rodrigues on one side; Smriti Mandhana and Richa Ghosh on the other. Marizanne Kapp and Laura Wolvaardt on one side, Nadine de Klerk on the other.
Threading between these big stars are two high-impact overseas allrounders from West Indies and Australia, each having contributed to their team’s journey to the final in their own way.
Chinelle Henry has been an unheralded star for Delhi Capitals (DC). Her three-for in the Eliminator may have gone unnoticed in the larger scheme of things, but it was as important as Shafali and Lizelle Lee’s opening stand or Rodrigues’ cameo. For Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Grace Harris has filled an even larger void. In Ellyse Perry’s absence, she has become the powerplay enforcer, dominating attacks and setting up games for the likes of Ghosh and de Klerk to finish.
The prospect of these two sides pitted against each other in the final seemed an unlikely prospect even during the auction. Mumbai Indians appeared the obvious front runners, having retained the core that delivered two titles in three seasons.
RCB, meanwhile, were without Perry, and when they opted to replace her with an uncapped Indian fast bowler in Sayali Satghare, fully aware that Pooja Vastrakar would be unavailable for much of the season, the knives were out. Satghare has since become a key strand in RCB’s seam attack.
Thursday’s final also brings a contrast to their journeys to the final. RCB took the route DC did for three seasons running – winning six out of their eight games to top the group. DC have scraped through a sequence of must-win games and will now play their third knockout in five days.
DC are chasing that elusive fourth attempt at glory to help bring silverware to a franchise that is yet to win a major; RCB is looking at making winning titles a habit, attempting a hat-trick of wins (IPL included).
In each of the three previous finals, the winner of the Eliminator has gone on to win the title. Will Thursday be any different?
RCB are likely to back Vastrakar to play as a specialist batter. While she has begun bowling in the nets, a call has been taken to ease her in, given she has returned to competitive cricket after 15 months. Arundhati Reddy’s lack of form is the only other area of concern that could potentially bring in legspinner Prema Rawat into the equation.
RCB (probable): Smriti Mandhana (capt), Grace Harris, Georgia Voll, Richa Ghosh (wk), Radha Yadav, Nadine de Klerk, Pooja Vastrakar, Shreyanka Patil, Sayali Satghare, Arundhati Reddy/Prema Rawat, Lauren Bell
DC are likely to be unchanged. In fact the 13 players they’ve used this season are the fewest resources a team has used across four WPL seasons.
DC (probable): Shafali Verma, Lizelle Lee (wk), Laura Wolvaardt, Jemimah Rodrigues (capt), Marizanne Kapp, Chinelle Henry, Niki Prasad, Sneh Rana, Minnu Mani, Nandani Sharma, N Shree Charani
[Cricinfo]
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