3 changes Sri Lanka should make for the final ENG vs SL 2024 Test ft. Sadeera Samarawickrama
Sri Lanka capitulated meekly to surrender an early advantage to hosts England and lose the second Test of the ongoing bilateral series at Lord's on Sunday, September 1.
England put up a mighty 427 on the board in the first innings thanks largely to tons from Joe Root (143) and Gus Atkinson (118). The Lankans were bowled out for 196 in reply, with Kamindu Mendis again playing a lone hand (76).
Root scored his second century (103) of the Test in the next innings but England's slam-bang approach to things did not quite pay off, and they got all out for 251. Sri Lanka, set a target of 483, could not quite carry on, and floundered at 292.
England have already won the series 2-0 and will be keen on making a clean sweep by winning the third and final Test at the Oval in London, slated to start on Friday, September 8. The visitors, however, will be playing for pride.
In this listicle, we take a look at three changes that Sri Lanka should make for the final Test.
#1 Sadeera Samarawickrama for Nishan Madushka
Batter Sadeera Samarawickrama ought to be one of the first changes that the management should make in the match in place of the struggling Nishan Madushka. The latter was given four opportunities in this series but he could not make them count.
Madushka was also asked to don the big gloves in the Lord's Test, and although he did well to pick up three catches in the first innings and one in the second, his scores with the bat in hand read 4, 0, 7 and 13.
Samarawickrama, a wicketkeeper-batter, can take on the mantle behind the stumps if Dinesh Chandimal is not keen on doing so, but it is his expertise with the bat that the Lankans will be most keen on making use of.
The elegant right-hander has an average of 33 in ODIs but has played far too few Tests (9) to justify the immense potential that he inherently has. He will be keen on making a strong statement at the Oval if given the opportunity to do so.
#2 Ramesh Mendis for Milan Rathnayake
Another change that Lanka can consider making is bringing in spin-bowling all-rounder Ramesh Mendis in place of pacer Milan Rathnayake, who has not quite been able to hold his own against the English batters.
Rathnayake made his Test debut in Manchester in the first match of the series but could not quite bowl to the areas needed of him by the management. In the four innings that he has bowled in so far, his figures read 1-66, 1-31, 2-89 and 2-36.
Admitted that he scored 72 in his maiden Test innings, but that is not the primary reason why he has been picked in the side. Bringing Mendis into the side will help Lanka on a spin-friendly pitch at the Oval as well.
#3 Jeffrey Vandersay for Prabath Jayasuriya
Prabath Jayasuriya has played as Sri Lanka's lone spinner in both the Tests that they have played this summer against England. The management will be keen on bringing Jeffrey Vandersay in place of him for the final Test of the series.
Vandersay has been in the news for putting the Indian team in a tizzy when they toured Sri Lanka last month and the selectors must make use of the good form that he is in. The leggie will come in handy on the slow surface at the Oval.
Jayasuriya has been decent enough to prevent England from scoring runs at will, but he has not been able to pick up as many wickets as the management would have liked him to.
Vandersay's variety will provide skipper Dhananjaya de Silva with enough options at his disposal, especially if the off-spinner Ramesh Mendis is also considered for selection. This leg-spin-off-spin combination can be deadly.