The Sri Lanka cricket team led by Dhananjaya de Silva is geared up for their first-ever Test cricket match against Afghanistan, starting today at the SSC grounds, at 10 a.m.

The newly appointed skipper, Dhananjaya de Silva, the 18th Sri Lanka Test skipper, is confident about his team but does not underestimate the less experienced Afghanistan team.

“They have a few experienced players who really performed well in the white-ball format and we can’t take them lightly in Test cricket. We have a good side, packed with seniors as well as young players, and all of them are in good form at this stage,” he said.

Sri Lanka wickets change day by day but with our experience, we can adjust to any type of wicket.

“I like to see good fielding by the side and we have to bat aggressively. To win the game, we have to get twenty wickets, and bowlers and fielders have a big part. Players who perform well have a good chance to enter the team. We have not finalised our playing eleven yet, and after yesterday’s training, we have to observe the wicket before picking the best eleven, Dhananjaya said.

“We have ten test matches this year, and I am lucky to lead the team on the English tour. At Lord’s, we have never won a Test match, and I hope to get a win. We never underestimate any opponent and hope to field our best team to win the game. The Afghanistan side lacks Test experience, and that gives us a chance to win this Test,” he said.

Afghanistan skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi said, “They will put up a good fight against Sri Lanka. We have good young players, and we have good club cricket at the domestic level and can adjust to Test cricket. We are good fighters with tough mentality in T20 and ODI cricket that can be extended to Test cricket. Our main spinner, Rashid Khan, is out due to injury, which is a big loss, and we hope he will come back soon after recovery. The SSC wicket is a good batting track.”

“We had good preparation in training sessions on Wednesday and yesterday evening before this game. When we played Pakistan ODIs earlier last year in Sri Lanka, we had good practice sessions at the side wicket as well as centre wickets.  We have good experience at SSC, having played a lot of cricket there. Rashid Khan is our best bowler, but still, we have three more spinners. We have played only seven Tests and want to gain more experience. With more facilities, we could come up in Test cricket. As a captain, I have confidence in my team,” he said.

“Everybody saw our talent at ODI and T-20 and we want to show our prowess in Test cricket. Every player should play with responsibility,” he said.

“We are mentally tough and never give up as Afghan players are talented and determined to do well. Our coach Former English player Jonathan Trott is giving good guidance to the team. I am quite happy with our coach who has taught us to play positive cricket with much success,” he said.

According to SLC entrance will be free for spectators while Siyatha TV will provide live telecast and former players Russal Arnold, Farveez Maharoof and Roshan Abeysinghe with Sikandar Bakth and Ahamad Fidai are the International cricket commentators.

Match Officials for the Test Match: Chris Broad – ICC Elite Referee, Michael Gough – ICC Elite Umpire, Alex Wharf – ICC Umpire, Chris Brown – ICC Umpire, Prageeth Rambukwella – ICC Umpire.

Teams

Sri Lanka test team from: Dhananjaya de Silva ( Capt) , Kusal Mendis ( V.Capt), Dimuth Karunaratne, Nishan Madushka, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ramesh Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Kaduna Rajitha, Kamindu Mendis, Lahiru Udara, Chamika Gunasekara, Milan Ratnayake

Afghanistan Test squad: Hashmatullah Shahidi (Capt), Ibrahim Zadran, Abdul Malik, Noor Ali Zadran, Rahmat Shah (V.Capt), Bahir Shah, Nasir Jamal, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Mohammad Ishaq (wk), Qais Ahmad, Zia-ur-Rehman, Zahir Khan, Yamin Ahmadzai, Nijat Masood, Mohammad Saleem and Naveed Zadran