Salman Ali Agha deems Sri Lanka series an ‘advantage’ ahead of the World Cup

On the eve of Pakistan’s first T20I against Sri Lanka, Salman Ali Agha looked content with his team’s preparation plan leading up to the T20 World Cup next month. Unlike other teams, Pakistan will play all of their games in Sri Lanka, which is why this series provides the team with the perfect warm-up. There are still a few bases that the visitors have yet to cover, but Salman believes this three-match series will help his team get the answers right.

"Yes, we are playing all our games in Sri Lanka ahead of the World Cup. This series is all about preparing for the tournament, and it will obviously help us understand the conditions better. We have been touring here for many years, so we know the conditions well. Playing a series here before the World Cup is always an advantage," Agha stated.

Big names missing

The Pakistan team arrived in Sri Lanka in two groups, as many players from the squad were busy with franchise leagues in different parts of the world. Some players, including Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, and Shaheen Shah Afridi, were earlier left out of the squad to allow them to carry on playing the Big Bash League (BBL). This leaves a relatively young side for Salman to lead. While he acknowledged it is a challenge, he expressed confidence in the emerging talents who will be on show in this series.

"They are megastars and have done so well for Pakistan, but the players we have brought here are very good as well. We wanted to give them a chance. There are a few players who are the future of Pakistan cricket, and hopefully, they will perform well," he said.

Nafay is an exciting prospect, says Salman

He was particularly full of praise for wicketkeeper-batter Khawaja Nafay, who is in contention to keep wickets for Pakistan in the World Cup.

"I think Khawaja Nafay is very exciting, a very good batsman. The best thing about him is that he can keep as well. We are very excited for him and hopefully we can give him a game," he stated.

"I hope he performs the way he has been doing in domestic cricket and leagues, and carries that form into international cricket. We have come here as a strong team, and hopefully everyone contributes so we can win the series," he added.

All three games of the series will be played in Dambulla, though weather is expected to play spoilsport in each of them.

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