5 Sri Lankan players to watch out for in 2015 World Cup

Sri Lanka may not enter the World Cup as favourites but if there is a team that does not enjoy the favourites tag going into a world tournament, then it is them for they have won two world tournaments without much pre-tournament fuss. This year,too, the limelight has been stolen from Sri Lanka and they would be banking on their senior triumvirate and their captain-marvellous to have any chance of getting closer to the coveted trophy.Here is a list of five players who can turn the tide tohelp the island nation kiss the silverware.

#5 Dinesh Chandimal

A surprise addition to the list, Dinesh Chandimal might just be Sri Lanka’s surprise package during the World Cup provided, of course, he is given adequate chances. Chandimal’s poor run of form seems to have come to an end as he blazed his way to a 31-ball 35 and 50-ball 55 in his last two games against England. Despite those two performances, however, Chandimal was dropped for the first two ODIs in the ongoing series against New Zealand. 

If a collapse of the kind seen in the first match against New Zealand is to recur in the World Cup, Sri Lanka might need Chandimal’s solid, compact technique to arrest such a collapse. A look back at Chandimal’s young career clearly illustrates the fact that his struggles have come primarily on slow wickets. This has resulted in him in scoring heavier on bouncy pitches as opposed to subcontinental tracks, a rarity among subcontinental batsmen.

He averages 30.17 with the bat overall in his career, but that average escalates exponentially to 49.80 and 52.75 in Australia and South Africa, respectively. His average in Australia is the highest for a Sri Lankan after playing 10 innings.

Sri Lanka will reap the results of Chandimal’s proficiency in Australia should they afford him a place in their batting order, which provisionally seems far-fetched. Given a spot in the team, who knows, the cherubic youngster might just end up winning the World Cup for his motherland.