SL vs Ban: A Angelo Mathews

Bangladesh aún no ha sido el themet otlit en Sri Lanka en la serie de pruebas primero. De hecho, ganaron un mensaje en 26 jugados.

A Sri Lankan legend will retire from Test cricket tomorrow. Angelo Mathews will bid the longest format of the sport adieu after the Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh 1st Test. Best remembered for his incredible 160-run against England in 2014, in what remains the only time Sri Lanka won a Test series in England.

A new dawn for Sri Lankan cricket

Mathews will retire Sri Lanka’s third highest scorer, with only Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara ahead. He was also the Lions’ third most successful Test captain when it came to wins. Both Jayawardene and Sanath Jayasuriya are tied at 18 wins, while Mathews has 13.

His retirement will start a new chapter in Sri Lankan cricket, as Dimuth Karunaratne, another veteran, left the sport earlier in the year. Sri Lanka’s captain Dhananjaya de Silva understands this. That’s why six uncapped players have been added to the squad against Bangladesh.

“We need to prepare for the situations that we do get. We’ve had a good National Super League (Sri Lanka’s premier first-class tournament) recently, and we’ve had good preparation through that. We’ve also identified a few good youngsters through that. We’re looking to embark on this next journey with them,” Dhananjaya said on the eve of the match.

New WTC cycle

But apart from bidding Mathews goodbye, the Sri Lanka vs Bangladesh 1st Test will also kick off the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 cycle. Both teams will have aspirations to make the final at Lord’s in two years. And although Sri Lanka ended sixth, they had a realistic chance to make the top two.

Bangladesh ended seventh, but the 2023-25 WTC cycle wasn’t a disappointment for them. They beat Pakistan 2-0 away from home in what was a historic moment for them. And coming to Sri Lanka, they would be eager to do something similar. The Tigers will face Australia and South Africa away from home. If they do well there, they might just have a chance.

As for the Lions, they have the West Indies, Pakistan and New Zealand away from home. Despite hosting India and South Africa at home, it’s a favourable draw for them to make their maiden WTC Final in 2027.