Match details
Nepal vs Sri Lanka
Lauderhill, Florida, 7:30pm local time
Big picture: Nepal’s best chance of beating Sri Lanka
As such their only real worry might be factors well beyond their control as their tournament fate might well be at the hands of the weather gods, with rain a mainstay in Florida as of late – a washed-out match and the subsequent shared points will almost extinguish any lingering hopes of qualification.
They now come against an opponent they have never faced, and one that possesses a bowling attack with the sort of variety that is tough to prepare for at the best of times. That said, this is a Sri Lankan outfit that is out of sorts in terms of their batting, and on the biggest stage you will rarely be presented with a more opportune moment of grabbing a historic upset.
Form guide
Nepal LLLWW (Last five completed matches; most recent first)
Sri Lanka LLWLW
In the spotlight: Karan KC and Nuwan Thushara
Team news
There’s been a fair bit of rain in Lauderhill, which means potentially some moisture in the surface. It would be unsurprising then for Nepal to stick with their seam-heavy combination.
Nepal (probable XI): 1 Kushal Bhurtel, 2 Aasif Sheikh (wk), 3 Anil Sah, 4 Kushal Malla, 5 Rohit Paudel (capt), 6 Dipendra Singh Airee, 7 Gulsan Jha, 8 Sompal Kami, 9 Karan KC, 10 Abinash Bohara 11 Sagar Dhakal
The potentially seam friendly conditions in Florida could see Sri Lanka opt to bring in a third frontline seamer in either Dushmantha Chameera or Dilshan Madushanka – neither of whom has featured in the competition yet – in place of Maheesh Theekshana.
Sri Lanka (probable XI): 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Mendis (wk), 3 Kamindu Mendis, 4 Dhananjaya de Silva, 5 Charith Asalanka, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Dasun Shanaka, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga (capt), 9 Maheesh Theekshana/Dilshan Madushanka, 10 Matheesha Pathirana, 11 Nuwan Thushara
Pitch and conditions
Sri Lanka’s warm up games in Lauderhill saw runs and all indications currently are that the pitch for this game will assist the batters. Rain, however, is set to play spoilsport with Sri Lanka already having had a training session on Monday curtailed by the inclement weather. Tuesday’s forecast is not any better with thunderstorms expected throughout the evening, so this could be fairly stop-start affair.
Stats and trivia
- Nuwan Thushara’s strike rate of a wicket every 9.4 deliveries is the best of any bowler from a Full Member nation to have taken at least 10 wickets in T20Is since January 2023
- Eleven of the 15 completed matches in Lauderhill have been won by the side batting first
- The average score in Lauderhill is 160. The average first innings score is 168.
Quotes
“I think the gap is very good, especially to prepare ourselves, especially after we lost against Netherlands. We have utilised three, four net sessions here and we are very well prepared for tomorrow’s game.”
Nepal captain Rohit Paudel feels his team is recharged after their weeklong break.
“I think the morale is there, the spirit is there. It’s just one missed opportunity. Otherwise, if you want to judge anyone, how they feel, just see them how they bowl and how they field.”
Sri Lanka fast bowling coach Aqib Javed is not worried about the team’s morale despite two early defeats.