Sri Lanka vs Australia, 1st T20I: Match Preview, Head to Head, Playing XI and Broadcast Details

Sri Lanka will be facing Australia in the first T20I at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on June 7. The tour, which was once in jeopardy due to the ongoing political and economic crisis in Sri Lanka, has been given the green signal as both teams will compete on the field now in all the three formats over the next few weeks.

The Australians have shown why they are the T20 world champions, having dominated in the two T20I series that they have played this year. The Aaron Finch-led side head into this contest on the back of an impressive win over Pakistan in their own backyard during a one-off match in April and would now be eyeing a third straight series win.

Sri Lanka, on the other hand, have failed to make an impact in the shortest format. They were decimated 4-1 by the Aussies during their last visit Down Under in February, which was followed by a 3-0 away whitewash against India. Not only would the Lankans be eager to avenge the away bilateral series loss, but also prove their dominance on home soil.

Pitch Conditions

The surface at the R Premadasa Stadium has been providing a lot of assistance to the bowlers i.e. both the pacers and spinners of late and the batters have really struggled at this venue. A total in excess of 160 is expected to be a challenging one. However, with the chasing sides having won four of the last five, the captain winning the toss will look forward to bowling first.

Playing Combinations for SL vs AUS

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka will be fielding a solid team for this contest. While the batters would be expected to provide good starts, the focus will be on their bowling line-up including the likes of spinner Wanindu Hasaranga and the promising duo of Maheesh Theekshana and Matheesha Pathirana who showcased outstanding performances in IPL 2022.

Probable XI: Pathum Nissanka, Danushka Gunathilaka, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa (wk), Dasun Shanaka (c), Chamika Karunaratne, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Lahiru Madushanka, Matheesha Pathirana.

Australia

Australia will also be fielding their full-strength squad for this encounter. The T20 World Cup holders would be expecting their players who participated in the IPL to come out all guns blazing and make a strong statement upfront. More importantly, Finch, who had an underwhelming IPL, would be hoping to make his bat do the talking.

Probable XI: Aaron Finch (c), David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steven Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade (wk), Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Kane Richardson, Josh Hazlewood.