Afghanistan to host Sri Lanka for historic white-ball series in UAE

Afghanistan are set to host Sri Lanka for the first time in a multi-format white-ball bilateral series in March, with the matches scheduled to be played in the UAE from March 13 to 25. The tour will feature three T20 Internationals and three One Day Internationals.

The T20I leg will be held in Sharjah on March 13, 15, and 17, while the ODI series will take place in Dubai on March 20, 22, and 25. Notably, the T20I series begins just five days after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup on March 8. Meanwhile, the ODI leg will wrap up only a day before both the IPL and PSL commence on March 26, making scheduling and player availability an important factor.

This will be only the second bilateral T20I series between Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, with their first meeting in the format taking place in February 2024. In ODIs, it will be their fourth bilateral series following previous contests in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Over the past few years, the rivalry between the two sides has grown steadily, with closely fought encounters adding intrigue to their meetings.

Several prominent players from both nations, including Dasun Shanaka, Rashid Khan, Kusal Perera, and Noor Ahmad, are part of various franchise squads across the IPL and PSL, further highlighting the significance of managing workloads ahead of the busy franchise season.

In the recently concluded T20 World Cup group stage, Afghanistan were eliminated after losing two crucial matches. They registered comfortable victories against Canada and the UAE. Against Canada, they posted 200 runs and secured an emphatic 82-run win. They also chased down 161 against the UAE to claim a five-wicket victory. However, defeats to South Africa and New Zealand dashed their hopes of reaching the Super Eight stage.

Sri Lanka, on the other hand, lost only one group-stage match against Zimbabwe while recording wins over Australia, Oman, and Ireland. They recently suffered a Super Eight defeat against England and are set to face Pakistan and New Zealand in their remaining fixtures.

Sri Lanka’s tour of Afghanistan in UAE