Dinesh Chandimal returns to the side after serving his ban as Sri Lanka face South Africa in the one-off T20I on August 14, 2018, at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. The T20I will mark the end of South Africa's tour of Sri Lanka 2018.
Live updates:
Overs 12: South Africa 84/7
South Africa won the toss and decided to bat first.
The match will start at 7:00 PM local, 1:30 PM GMT.
SL XI: Angelo Mathews, KJP, Kusal Mendis ,Dinesh Chandimal, Dasun Shanaka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Akila Dananjaya, TP, Lakshan Sandakan, Kasun Rajitha, Isuru Udana #SLvSA
— Sri Lanka Cricket (@OfficialSLC) August 14, 2018
The visitors won the ODI series 3-2 but lost the test series prior to it 2-0.
The hosts have the momentum on their side having won the last two ODIs. The Proteas is at the sixth position on the world T20I rankings while Sri Lanka is at the ninth position on the same table. With no major t20 tournament ahead, both the sides might opt to test their bench strength for the World T20 2020.
Sri Lanka might bring Dinesh Chandimal directly into the XI. According to ESPNcricinfo, coach Chandika Hathurusingha has said that Chandimal can reignite the aggressiveness in their batting. The side's previous T20I tournament wasn't that good as they were outplayed by India and Bangladesh in the Nidahas trophy earlier this year. Sri Lanka will have to sort an opening pair.
Only T20I: LIVE ON 👉 https://t.co/46PxnRhqfQ #SLvSA
— Sri Lanka Cricket (@OfficialSLC) August 14, 2018
JP Duminy takes charge
According to Cricbuzz, South Africa is expected to rest their senior players as they previously did in the T20I series against India earlier this year. It is likely that Hashim Amla and Kagiso Rabada will be the ones who will stay on the bench having played almost all the matches on this day.
JP Duminy will be leading the side in the absence of regular captain Faf du Plessis, who returned home during the ODI series due to an injury.
Only T20I - 🇿🇦 won the toss and elected to bat first. #SLvSA
— Sri Lanka Cricket (@OfficialSLC) August 14, 2018
SL XI: Angelo Mathews, KJP, Kusal Mendis ,Dinesh Chandimal, Dasun Shanaka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Akila Dananjaya, TP, Lakshan Sandakan, Kasun Rajitha, Isuru Udana
LIVE ON 👉 https://t.co/46PxnRhqfQ pic.twitter.com/6Pzv7ThlMM
Proteas face another spin test
ESPNcricinfo reported that even though the pitch in Colombo might have some turn, a flat deck which will be presented to the teams.
The pitch used in the previous match in Colombo had a lot of turns and helped the cause of the hosts. It is safe to assume that the Proteas will face the spin test for one last time on this tour in Colombo. The weather forecast suggests slight rainfall but it might not last for a long time.
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Also read: Sri Lanka vs South Africa 4th ODI live streaming on Sony Six at 2 PM IST on Wednesday