Afghanistan won the toss and elected to bowl first, citing the pristine condition of the Hambantota pitch. Captain Hashmatullah Shahidi anticipated some early activity. Dasun Shanaka stated that he would have bowled first as well, but anticipated that there would be runs on the pitch. Sri Lanka will debut two players. Matheesha Pathirana, who played a key role in Chennai Super Kings’ IPL championship-winning campaign, will play his first ODI, while Dushan Hemantha, a legspin-allrounder, will also play his first match. Wanindu Hasaranga, who is suffering from a foot ailment, and Dushmantha Chameera will miss the first match for Sri Lanka.
Dimuth Karunaratne plays his first one-day international in two years.
Rashid Khan is unable to play in this match due to injury, but left-arm wristspinner Noor Ahmad will partner Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Azmatullah Omarzai, an all-rounder who bowls seam, bats before Gulbadin Naib.
There was already a breeze at the Sooriyawewa ground, and it will likely intensify as the day progresses, making Sri Lanka’s bowling challenging in the afternoon.
Sri Lanka XI: 1 Dimuth Karunaratne, 2 Pathum Nissanka, 3 Kusal Mendis (wk), 4 Charith Asalanka, Angelo Mathews, number five 6 Dasun Shanaka (captain), 7 Dhananjaya de Silva, 8 Dushan Hemantha, 9 Kasun Rajitha, 10 Lahiru Kumara, and 11 Matheesha Pathirana
Afghanistan XI: 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Rahmat Shah, 4 Hashmatullah Shahidi (captain), 5 Najibullah Zadran, 6 Mohammad Nabi, 7 Azmatullah Omarzai, 8 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 9 Noor Ahmad, 10 Fazalhaq Farooqi, and 11 Fareed Ahmad
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