Afghanistan to tour Sri Lanka for a bilateral series

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) have unveiled the fixtures for their bilateral series against Sri Lanka in a media release on Monday, October 17. The series was originally scheduled to be held in February 2023, but since the cricketing calendars of both teams permitted for a preponement, the series has now been rescheduled to November 2022., which means that the Asian sides will be seen in action soon after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup in Australia.

Afghanistan’s tour of Sri Lanka will consist of three One Day Internationals, which will be played at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on November 25, 27, and 30. All the games will be a part of the World Cup Super League. Both teams will be hoping to make the most of this bilateral series to get a much-needed boost heading into next year’s Asia Cup in Pakistan and the ODI World Cup. 

Meanwhile, Afghanistan will be visiting the island nation for their first-ever bilateral series. The teams have locked horns with each other in the past in multi-nation tournaments like the Asia Cup and the World Cup. The Lankans enjoy a superior 3-1 record in the four ODIs that both sides have played against each other so far. 

Commenting on this bilateral series, ACB Chairman Mirwais Ashraf expressed his happiness of a spirited Afghanistan uniting and challenging the former world champions Sri Lanka in their own backyard.

“We are pleased with the outcomes of our discussions and negotiations with Sri Lanka Cricket on shifting the schedule to November this year. We are looking forward to playing Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka, which is a heavy task but a challenge that I know our players will embrace,” said Mirwais Ashraf, ACB Chairman as quoted by Cricbuzz.