Sri Lanka began their T20 World Cup campaign by stumbling in their first warm-up game against the Netherlands by 20 runs at Lauderhill in Florida.
Sri Lankan skipper Wanindu Hasaranga won the toss and opted to bowl first at Lauderhill. The game was delayed by a few minutes due to a slight drizzle before the game started.
The Dutch batters enjoyed a productive outing against the Sri Lankan bowling attack, which lacked the usual sting due to the absence of Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana.
Teja Nidamanuru led the Dutch batting charge with a well-made 48 runs. Opener Michael Levitt also impressed with a blistering 39 off just 24 balls. Skipper Scott Edwards joined the late assault with a quickfire 21 off just 13 deliveries. This strong batting display propelled the Netherlands to a formidable total of 181 at the end of their 20 overs.
Dilshan Madushanka back after injury topped the bowling charts for Sri Lanka with 2 wickets, Young Dunith Wellalage bowled a superb spell of 1 for 26 runs in his allotted 4 overs.
Sri Lanka’s chase began disastrously, collapsing to 51/5 by the 10th over after losing their top order cheaply. Dhananjaya de Silva (31) offered some resistance, but wickets continued to fall. Captain Wanindu Hasaranga (39) and Dasun Shanaka (35*) then combined for a 40-run partnership, with Hasaranga smashing five sixes in a single over. However, Sri Lanka’s fightback fell short as they were eventually bowled out for 161 runs, falling short of the Netherlands’ total.
Aryan Dutt and Kyle Klein were superb with the ball restricting Sri Lanka by picking up 2 wickets each to mark a positive start leading to the T20 World Cup.
Sri Lanka will meet Ireland in their second warm-up game leading to the T20 World Cup on the 31st of May at 8.00 pm (IST).
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