Sri Lanka women’s white-ball team vs Ireland women is announced; Athapaththu will miss the T20Is

Ireland will host a three-match ODI series and a two-match T20I series featuring the current Asian champions, Sri Lanka. After defeating India in the Asia Cup final, the team captained by Chamari Athapaththu will now want to improve their preparations for the Women’s T20 World Cup, which is set to start in Bangladesh on October 3.

Sri Lanka has made one alteration to its winning team with an eye towards the future. After being eliminated from the Asia Cup, young Kaushini Nuthyangana has returned. She takes over for Athapaththu, who will serve as the Oval Invincibles’ captain for the entirety of the T20I series. The 34-year-old captain, who plays full-time, will notably participate in the ODI series.

Sri Lanka, with 20 points from 21 games, is presently ranked fifth in the ODI championship table. Should they triumph in all three games against Ireland, they will advance to the second position in the standings. While Ireland is presently ranked tenth in the ongoing cycle, they are still chasing their first-ever win.

Greater than the ODI series, Sri Lanka will be focussing on providing opportunities for players who were mainly bench warmers during the Asia Cup. The Lankan Lions will be looking to perform well and, if not more, at least qualify for the semi-finals of the 2018 women’s T20 World Cup, which will be held in Bangladesh, where the ball will turn. Sri Lanka was eliminated in the previous tournament edition after placing fourth in a group of five teams. Doing better than that will be the aim this time.

Also Read: Ireland Women will host Sri Lanka for a white-ball series in August

Two Twenty20 Internationals against Ireland on August 11 and 13 will precede the start of the ODI series on August 16.

Sri Lanka squad for the white-ball series against Ireland:

Chamari Athapaththu (c), Vishmi Gunaratne, Harshitha Samarawickrama, Hasini Perera, Kavisha Dilhari, Nilakshi de Silva, Anushka Sanjeewani, Sugandika Kumari, Udeshika Prabodhani, Achini Kulasuriya, Inoshi Priyadharshani, Kawya Kavindi, Sachini Nisansala, Shashini Gimhani, Ama Kanchana, Kaushini Nuthyangana