South Africa VS Sri Lanka Test Series: 5 Key Talking Points

Progress of the Sri Lankan Batting

Kusal Mendis would be expected to score big in the absence of Chandimal and Mathews

With both their senior pros in the batting line-up – Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal – out of the series, the youngsters in the team will have to carry the main load of batting for Sri Lanka.

Dimuth Karunaratne, who has been in good form over the last year, will lead the way, in more ways than one. As the captain, he has to set an example; as an opener, he has to face the brunt of South Africa’s powerful pace attack.

Equally important would be Kusal Mendis – arguably the most talented batsman in the team. After getting dropped in 2017, he has been able to make a successful comeback into the team and produce great performances. The stage is set for him to establish himself as a leading batsman in the world.

Vice-captain Niroshan Dickwella has consistently played impressive innings down the order. It would be interesting to see whether he changes his free-flowing approach on assuming a bigger responsibility.

Opener Kaushal Silva is back in the team. His earlier stints haven’t been good enough to make him a regular in the side. Focus would be on Dhananjaya de Silva also who has shown talent without producing consistent performances.

The likes of Kusal Perera and Lahiru Thirimanna will look to cement their places as well. The latter seems to have more capability of making it big at the Test level as he has played some knocks of substance in the past.

Angelo Perera, who recently hit the headlines after smashing a double hundred in each innings of a first-class game, could be the exciting talent to watch out for.