Does the Sri Lanka squad for the forthcoming T20 / ODI series against India include Viyaskanth? Find Out the Facts…

Sri Lanka Cricket Selection Committee has announced a 20-member squad to participate in the upcoming T20I & ODI series tours in India. Social media posts claimed that Vijaykanth Viyaskanth, a cricketer who shone in the recently concluded IPL, was also named in these squads to tour India.

However, Factcresendo Sri Lanka found these claims to be fabricated.

Social Media Posts:

A list containing the names of 20 cricketers circulated on social media stating that the Sri Lanka Cricket Selection Committee named a squad of 20 players for the white-ball tournament to be held in India starting from 03^rd January 2023.

The 20 players named in the squad included Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, Avishka Fernando, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dunith Wellalage, Dasun Shanaka, Angelo Mathews, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Binura Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, Nuwan Thushara and Vijayakanth Viyaskanth.

Many had congratulated the young leg spinner from Jaffna, Vijaykanth Viyaskanth, for being selected for the touring party on the back of his excellent performances in the recently concluded LPL.

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We decided to check the facts behind these claims and to find out who was actually selected for the touring party in India.

Fact Check:

We first checked whether the Sri Lankan cricket selection committee had named a 20-man squad for the upcoming white-ball tournament against India.

Accordingly, the Sri Lanka Cricket Board issued a press release on the 20-man squad that would participate in the upcoming 2022/23 visit to India.

The Sports and Youth Affairs Minister, Roshan Ranasinghe, approved this particular squad.

The Sri Lankan Squad to India

Dasun Shanaka – Captain

Pathum Nissanka

Avishka Fernando

Sadeera Samarawickrama

Kusal Mendis – Vice Captain for ODIs

Bhanuka Rajapaksa – Only for T20Is

Charith Asalanka

Dhananjaya de Silva

Wanindu Hasaranga – Vice Captain for T20Is

Ashen Bandara

Maheesh Theekshana

Jeffrey Vandersay – Only for ODIs

Chamika Karunaratne

Dilshan Madushanka

Kasun Rajitha

Nuwanidu Fernando- Only for ODIs

Dunith Wellalage

Pramod Madushan

Lahiru Kumara

Nuwan Thushara – Only for T20Is

The Sri Lanka team will participate in 03 ODIs, and 03 T20I matches during this tour, and the official press release is here. Archived Link

Many of the players mentioned in the above speculative posts on social media were, in fact, included in the squad for the Indian tour. Still, some players mentioned there were not included in the actual squad. For example, the players mentioned in the above social media posts, yet not picked for the touring party to India, were Angelo Mathews, Binura Fernando and Vijayakanth Viyaskanth.

Sri Lanka’s white-ball Skipper Dasun Shanaka will lead the ODI and T20I teams as usual, while Kusal Mendis has been named his deputy in ODIs. In addition, Sri Lanka’s spinner Wanindu Hasaranga has been given leadership responsibility for the first time, as he will take up the role of Vice Captaincy in Sri Lanka’s T20I squad.

The tour will consist of 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is, which will be played at six different venues in India. The T20I series will be played from the 3^rd to the 7^th of January, while the ODI leg of the tour will be played from the 10th to the 15^th of January.

India’s squad for the Mastercard Sri Lanka tour of India, along with the schedule for the series, can be reached here. Hardik Pandya will lead the T20I team for India, while India’s regular captain will join the squad to lead the ODI leg of the tournament.

Even though not picked for the Indian tour, Viyaskanth has secured a contract for the forthcoming Bangladesh Premier League.

Some cricket fans showed their displeasure for Vijayakanth Viyaskanth not being included in the squad for India. However, the 21-year-old leg spinner had reasons to smile as his heroic with the ball for the LPL Champion Jaffna Kings didn’t go unnoticed, Chattogram Challengers have signed Viyaskanth to play in the Bangladesh Premier League 2023.

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Conclusion:

A list containing the names of 20 cricketers circulated on social media claiming to be the official touring party to India, released by the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Selection Committee. But some of the players mentioned in these social media posts, Angelo Mathews, Binura Fernando and Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, were not part of the SLC selection committee’s final list for the tour to India.