Sri Lanka announce playing XI for the first SL vs NZ 2024 Test; Milan Rathnayake dropped
Sri Lanka have announced their playing XI for the first Test against New Zealand on Tuesday, September 17. The first of the two Tests in the series will be played at the Galle International Cricket Stadium from September 18.
The hosts have made two changes to their playing XI. Fast bowler Vishwa Fernando and pace-bowling all-rounder Milan Rathnayake have been dropped. In their place, Sri Lanka have opted to field spin bowling all-rounder Ramesh Mendis and left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya.
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) took to their official account on X to put out the following post:
Sri Lanka's squad for their first Test against New Zealand: Dimuth Karunaratne, Pathum Nissanka, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya De Silva (c), Kusal Mendis (wk), Ramesh Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Lahiru Kumara, and Asitha Fernando.
Sri Lanka to take on New Zealand in a two-match Test series at home
World Test champions of the 2019-2021 cycle, New Zealand will take on Sri Lanka in a two-match Test series. Both Test matches will be played at the Galle International Cricket Stadium.
The first Test will be played from September 18 to 23, with September 21 serving as a break due to the elections being held in Sri Lanka. The second Test will be played from September 26 to 30.
Sri Lanka are recently coming off a series loss against England. They lost the first two matches of the series before coming back emphatically and winning the last Test. The Islanders are currently fifth on the World Test Championship Table with 36 points and will be looking to rise to the top.
As for visitors New Zealand, they will be playing an away Test match for the first time after November 2023. This year, they last played in whites against Australia, who beat them 2-0 in their backyard. They are currently third on the points table with 36 points and a points percentage of 50%.