England set to face ambidextrous spinner Kamindu Mendis in T20 against Sri Lanka
Kamindu, who bowls both right and left-arm spin, could make full debut in Colombo on Saturday
Monday 22 October 2018 13:00, UK
England could come up against ambidextrous spinner Kamindu Mendis once again after he was included in Sri Lanka's squad for the one-off Twenty20 international in Colombo on Saturday.
Kamindu, 20, bowled right-arm off-breaks to the left-handed Eoin Morgan and left-arm spin to the right-handed Joe Root when England played a 50-over warm-up game against a Sri Lanka Board XI earlier this month, with the youngster getting through eight overs for 37 runs.
Live International T20 Cricket
Kamindu - who also scored 61 from 72 balls with the bat in that match - is now in line for his full international debut after being included in a 15-man Sri Lanka squad that will be captained by Thisara Perera.
Speaking after coming up against Kamindu, England all-rounder Moeen Ali said: "I've never seen someone do that live but it's great and fantastic for the game. It's amazing he was so accurate with both arms and it will be the way cricket is going to go.
"You hear rumours about these guys being around but for him to bowl to that standard and be that good is fantastic. I've tried bowling left-arm but I was so bad! You just don't have that same feel."
Angelo Mathews, axed as captain and from the squad by Sri Lanka after they were dumped out of September's Asia Cup in the group stage, continues to be overlooked, but veteran seamer Lasith Malinga returns to the T20 fold for the first time in over a year.
Batsman Kusal Perea is also named in the party despite missing the backend of the ODI series against England with a quad strain.
Live One-Day International Cricket
Sri Lanka T20 squad: Thisara Perera (captain), Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella, Kusal Perera, Kusal Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka, Kamindu Mendis, Isuru Udana, Lasith Malinga, Akila Dhananjaya, Dushmantha Chameera, Kasun Rajitha, Lakshan Sandakan, Nuwan Pradeep
Watch the one-off Twenty20 international between Sri Lanka and England live on Sky Sports Cricket from 2pm on Saturday - the fifth and final ODI is live on Sky Sports Cricket from 9.30am on Tuesday.
