Lasith Malinga named Sri Lanka skipper for the ODIs and lone T20I against New Zealand

Sri Lanka have come yet with yet another new captain for the upcoming limited-over series against New Zealand in January and it is Lasith Malinga. The former world champions are going through one of their leanest phases with consecutive losses at home over the last several months, even against opponents like Zimbabwe.

In their latest limited-overs series that they played against England and lost, the Asian side was led by Dinesh Chandimal (ODIs) and Thisara Perera (lone T20I). Malinga’s reinstatement shows that Sri Lanka are having a serious issue with finding the right team combination yet, just months ahead of the World Cup 2019 in England and Wales.

However, the 35-year-old pacer, who took 500 wickets in international cricket, is not leading Sri Lanka for the first time. He is, in fact, one of Lanka’s most successful captains in the T20Is, leading them to seven wins in 10 matches in 2014-16. He also led in one ODI at home against India last year which Sri Lanka lost. The Lankan fans will hope that their team succeeds in finding some combination going right for them in the limited-over series against New Zealand starting January 3.

Dickwella picked as Malinga’s deputy

The selectors have picked wicketkeeper-batsman Niroshan Dickwella as Malinga’s deputy. The team will play two Tests before the limited-overs series and the first match is scheduled to begin in Wellington on Saturday. They drew the three-day practice game against New Zealand XI in Napier earlier this week under Dinesh Chandimal, their captain for the longer format.

The Asians will be up against a confident Kiwi side which recently beat Pakistan 2-1 in a Test series in the UAE. Sri Lanka haven’t won a Test series on the New Zealand soil since their 1-0 victory in a two-match series in 1994-95.

Sri Lanka squad:

Lasith Malinga (C), Niroshan Dickwella (vice-captain), Angelo Mathews, Kusal Perera, Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Thisara Perera, Seekkuge Prasanna, Nuwan Pradeep, Lakshan Sandakan, Dasun Shanaka, Dhanuska Gunathilakha, Dushmantha Chameera, Kasun Rajitha, Lahiru Kumara, Asela Gunaratne

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