Asia Cup 2022: Srilanka Team Strengths and Weaknesses

The Asia Cup 2022 is just around the corner and the preparations are on. The teams have reached the UAE where the tournament is set to take place. 

In this article, we will discuss about how Team Srilanka is likely to perform, analyze its strengths and weakness, and their possibility of winning the cup…

Every team has its own struggle, it’s just that Srilanka’s are seeming bigger and longer. The team is transitioning from being home to one of the greatest to ever play the game to one that has lost the most number of matches in a calendar year. The phase of new players trying to get hang of the international scene is ongoing and it seems we have to wait a little bit more to see their best form.

Since the 2021 T20 World Cup, the team may have lost all of the T20 International series they have played. Against Australia in Australia they lost 4-1, against India in India they lost 3-0 and against Australia again, but at home, they lost 2-1. 

Hope is a kind word and we have players in the Srilanka team that make their fans hopeful about their future. Jayawardane, Jayasuriya or Sangakara were not made in a day. Srilanka now has budding talent in Hasaranga, Shanaka, Theekshana or Nissanka and they are glowing. They have talent and potential to turn games around and the team will be banking on players like them.

Srilanka doesn’t have the strongest batting lineup. They have strength in their middle order thanks to newly appointed captain Shanaka’s form. Their spinners are the ones they would rely on given the UAE pitches that support spinners in the middle overs. They have enough work to do in their fast bowling department. 

In this cup, Srilanka is coming with a squad of youthful players who should be excited to be on the top of their form. With the struggle of qualifying in the 50 over World Cup in 2023, the Asia Cup will work as a dress rehearsal for the T20 World Cup 2022 to be held in Australia. 

Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths:

1. Their batting can boom anytime given Shanaka or Nissanka are one of best batters in form.
2. Brimming with allrounders, the team has the power performers required in T20 cricket.
3. Their spinner Hasaranga and Shanaka are the one the best in business and they will play big part in deciding the team’s future.
4. The team is so unpredictable because of the potential it has. It can work in its favor anytime. 

Weaknesses:

1. This is amongst Srilanka’s least experienced side ever.
2. The series of series losses the team has suffered in the last 6 month must have a toll on their confidence.
3. Lack of genuine fast bowlers who can create impact early on.

Matchup Reviews: Predicted Wins and Losses for Asia Cup 2022: 

Sri Lanka is the third-highest ranked side on the continent, behind Pakistan and India, and is ranked eighth in the ICC T20I team rankings. Sri Lanka, which is going through a difficult economic and political crisis, will have something to show in this tournament. The goal of Captain Dasun Shanka and his team is to bring some hope and encouragement to the thronging Sri Lankans by winning the cup. They have had a great history in the tournament winning the most number of matches. They are in a group of newbies and can totally perform well with an underdog tag and show their talent at the world stage.