SL name Kusal Mendis ODI and T20I captain for West Indies tour

by @Editor May 25, 2026

written by @Editor May 25, 2026

The new Sri Lanka Cricket selection panel headed by Kapila Wijegunawardene has handed the white-ball captaincy to Kusal Mendis for the upcoming all-format tour of the West Indies next month. Dhananjaya de Silva will continue to lead the side in the two Tests.

Kusal Mendis takes over the ODI captaincy from Charith Asalanka, who had earlier been elbowed out of the T20I job ahead of the T20 World Cup, and has now been replaced as ODI captain as well. He is named in the 16-man ODI squad, though he has lost his spot in the T20I outfit. Kamindu Mendis is vice-captain across formats.

In T20Is, it is Dasun Shanaka who Kusal Mendis takes over the leadership from. Shanaka led the side between December and February, as a stop-gap captain for the World Cup, after Asalanka’s ousting. He was unable to have significant impact in the role, but retains his place in the T20I squad.

Wanindu Hasaranga is set to return to action – named in the ODI and T20I squads – after his injury during the T20 World Cup has kept him off the field since early February. He tore his left hamstring at the time and missed the ongoing IPL after that for Lucknow Super Giants.

Unavailable, however, is Matheesha Pathirana, who injured a hamstring while playing a solitary match for Kolkata Knight Riders in mid-May. Nuwan Thushara, another round-arm seam bowler, finds a place in the T20I squad, however. Between Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka, and Eshan Malinga – who appear in both white-ball squads – Sri Lanka have three quicks who can exceed 140kph. Other seamers in the white-ball squads include Milan Rathnayake (both), Asitha Fernando, Pramod Madushan (ODIs), and Binura Fernando (T20Is).

The newcomers are largely batters. The 27-year-old opening batter Lasith Croospulle gets into the T20I squad on the back of some good recent performances, including a 103 off 76 balls against New Zealand A in a 50-over match in April. He had played for Sri Lanka in a low-profile Asian Games fixture, but this will be his first major tour.

On the Test side of things, meanwhile, uncapped batter Pasindu Sooriyabandara gets his first major tour as well, having impressed in the most-recent domestic season. Also in the squad is uncapped 29-year-old bowling allrounder Isitha Wijesundara.

Top-order batter Lahiru Udara, who has played two Tests, is in the squad again, as is left-arm spinning allrounder Sonal Dinusha, who has played one. The Test side has been out of action for almost a year, their last fixture having been against Bangladesh in June last year. The Test squad also sees the return of offspin-bowling allrounder Ramesh Mendis, who had missed out on selection following modest returns against Australia early in 2025.

The tour starts with three ODIs from June 3 to 8 followed by the three T20Is on June 11, 13 and 14. The two Tests will be played at the Viv Richards Stadium in North Sound from June 25 to 29 and July 3 to 7.

Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), Kamindu Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, Lahiru Udara, Nishan Madushka, Dinesh Chandimal, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Sonal Dinusha, Kusal Mendis, Milan Rathnayake, Prabath Jayasuriya, Ramesh Mendis, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Isitha Wijesundara, Kasun Rajitha

Kusal Mendis (capt), Kamindu Mendis (vice-capt), Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Pavan Rathnayake, Janith Liyanage, Charith Asalanka, Milan Rathnayake, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka, Eshan Malinga, Asitha Fernando, Pramod Madushan

Kusal Mendis (capt), Kamindu Mendis (vice-capt), Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Pavan Rathnayake, Lasith Croospulle, Dasun Shanaka, Milan Rathnayake, Dunith Wellalage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Dushmantha Chameera, Dilshan Madushanka, Eshan Malinga, Binura Fernando, Nuwan Thushara

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