News
Ben Stokes: England all-rounder to come out of ODI retirement for Cricket World Cup
Ben Stokes’ return to the England one-day side for the defence of the World Cup will be confirmed on Wednesday.
Stokes, 32, will come out of retirement to be named in a 15-man squad for a four-match series against New Zealand in September.
Stokes was man of the match in the final when England won the World Cup for the first time in 2019.
The all-rounder retired from one-day internationals last summer, saying that playing three formats was unsustainable.
He continued to lead the England Test team and play in T20 internationals, starring in the final as England lifted the World Cup in the shortest format in Australia in November.
When asked in July if he would play in the 50-over World Cup, Stokes reiterated he was retired.
But in an interview with the Daily Mail, England white-ball coach Matthew Mott said captain Jos Buttler would approach Stokes over reversing that decision. A number of newspaper reports on Monday said Stokes was considering the request.
A quirk of the schedule means England have no Tests until they tour India for five matches between January and March next year.
Stokes had planned to use the gap to address a long-standing left-knee problem, which has severely limited his ability to bowl.
Therefore, his role at the World Cup could largely be as a specialist batter.
England will name their squad for the New Zealand ODIs, played between 8-15 September, at 10:00 BST on Wednesday. They will also name a strong 15-man party for four T20s against the Black Caps, beginning on 30 August.
Following the New Zealand series, England will play three ODIs against Ireland at the end of September. A separate squad for this will be named at a later date.
Because of that series’ close proximity to the beginning of the World Cup on 5 October, most of the first-choice players will be rested.
England begins their World Cup campaign against New Zealand in a repeat of the 2019 final.
Mott also said England might be willing to take a risk on the fitness of pace bowler Jofra Archer, who has been plagued by injuries since bowling the super over in the thrilling finale four years ago.
England’s World Cup squad will have a familiar feel, probably including nine of the squad that was successful on home soil in 2019.
බෙන් ස්ටෝක්ස්: එංගලන්ත තුන් ඉරියව් ක්රීඩකයා ක්රිකට් ලෝක කුසලානය සඳහා යළිත් එක්දින ක්රිකට් පිටියට
ලෝක කුසලානය සඳහා බෙන් ස්ටෝක්ස් එංගලන්ත එක්දින කණ්ඩායමට නැවත පැමිණීම බදාදා ස්ථිර වනු ඇත.
32 හැවිරිදි ස්ටෝක්ස් විශ්රාම ගැනීමෙන් පසු සැප්තැම්බර් මාසයේදී නවසීලන්තයට එරෙහිව පැවැත්වෙන තරග හතරකින් යුත් තරගාවලිය සඳහා 15 දෙනෙකුගෙන් යුත් සංචිතයකට නම් කරනු ඇත.
2019 වසරේ පළමු වරට එංගලන්තය ලෝක කුසලානය දිනූ විට අවසන් මහා තරගයේ වීරයා වූයේ ස්ටෝක්ස් ය.
තුන් ඉරියව් ක්රීඩකයා පසුගිය ගිම්හානයේදී එක්දින ජාත්යන්තර තරඟවලින් විශ්රාම ගියේ ආකෘති තුනක් ක්රීඩා කිරීම තිරසාර නොවන බව පවසමිනි.
ඔහු නොවැම්බරයේ ඕස්ට්රේලියාවේ පැවති විස්සයි විස්ස ආකෘතියෙන් එංගලන්තය ලෝක කුසලානය ඔසවද්දී අවසන් මහා තරගයට ක්රීඩා කල අතර ඔහු එංගලන්ත ටෙස්ට් කණ්ඩායමට නායකත්වය දෙමින් T20 ජාත්යන්තර තරගවලට ක්රීඩා කළේය.
ඔහු ඕවර 50 ලෝක කුසලානයට ක්රීඩා කරන්නේ දැයි ජූලි මාසයේදී ඇසූ විට, ස්ටෝක්ස් නැවත වරක් කියා සිටියේ තමා විශ්රාම ගත් බවයි.
නමුත් ඩේලි මේල් සමඟ සම්මුඛ සාකච්ඡාවකට එක්වෙමින් එංගලන්ත පුහුණුකරු මැතිව් මොට් පැවසුවේ නායක ජොස් බට්ලර් එම තීරණය වෙනස් කිරීම සඳහා ස්ටෝක්ස් වෙත පැමිණෙනු ඇති බවයි. සඳුදා පුවත්පත් වාර්තා ගණනාවක් පැවසුවේ ස්ටෝක්ස් ඉල්ලීම සලකා බලන බවයි.
ඔහුගේ පන්දු යැවීමේ හැකියාව දැඩි ලෙස සීමා කර ඇති දිගුකාලීන වම් දණහිසේ ගැටලුවක් නිසාවෙන් ලෝක කුසලානයේ ඔහුගේ භූමිකාව බොහෝ දුරට විශේෂඥ පිතිකරුවෙකු ලෙස විය හැකිය.
Cricket
LPL Sixth Edition to Be Played Across Four Venues from July 10 to August 5
The sixth edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) is set to take place from July 10 to August 5, 2026, promising another exciting season of top-quality Twenty20 cricket. As Sri Lanka’s premier domestic T20 competition with a strong international presence, the tournament continues to attract both local and overseas talent.
This year’s matches will be held across four venues: Sinhalese Sports Club Ground (SSC), R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium (RPICS), Pallekele International Cricket Stadium (PICS), and Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium (RDICS). These iconic grounds are expected to provide a vibrant atmosphere and excellent playing conditions throughout the competition.
The online registration portal for foreign players will officially open on May 4, 2026, allowing international cricketers to sign up and participate in the league. This step ensures the continuation of LPL’s global appeal, as overseas players add competitiveness and diversity to the tournament.
The event will be organized by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), the official owner of the league, in partnership with The IPG Group, which holds the event rights. Their collaboration has been instrumental in maintaining the league’s high standards since its inception.
Launched in 2020, the LPL has rapidly grown in popularity among cricket fans. Mr. Samantha Dodanwela, an Executive Committee Member of SLC, will continue in his role as Tournament Director, ensuring smooth organization and execution.
With thrilling matches and star players expected, LPL 2026 is set to deliver another unforgettable cricketing spectacle.
Cricket
Dambulla Gears Up for Women’s ‘A’ Cricket Action in May 2026
Sri Lanka is set to host an exciting bilateral cricket series as the New Zealand Women’s A Team tours the island in May 2026. The series, featuring both One Day and T20 matches, will see the visitors compete against the Sri Lanka Women’s A Team in what promises to be a competitive showcase of emerging talent.
All matches will be held at the Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium (RDICS), with play scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. each day. The New Zealand side is expected to arrive in Sri Lanka on 7 May 2026, giving them several days to acclimatize before the series begins.
The tour will consist of three One Day matches followed by three T20 encounters. The One Day fixtures are scheduled for 12th, 15th, and 18th May, while the T20 series will take place on 21st, 23rd, and 25th May.
This series is seen as an important opportunity for both teams to develop their next generation of international players. With a mix of promising players and those on the cusp of senior national selection, the matches are expected to be closely contested.
Cricket
Bangladesh beat Chamari-less Sri Lanka despite late drama
Bangladesh Women edged out Sri Lanka Women in a tense finish during the first ODI of the Sri Lanka Women’s tour of Bangladesh 2026, chasing down 206 with just nine balls to spare in a match that swung dramatically in the final overs.
Put into bat, Sri Lanka Team posted a competitive 205/9 from their 50 overs, built on steady contributions rather than a single dominant innings. Imesha Dulani (52 off 77) and Hansima Karunaratne (54 off 71) anchored the innings with a crucial middle-order stand after early setbacks. Captain Hasini Perera made a brisk 27, but Sri Lanka struggled to accelerate in the final 10 overs, losing wickets at regular intervals.
Bangladesh’s bowling attack kept things tight throughout. Ritu Moni was the standout performer, claiming 3 for 36 and breaking key partnerships, while Nahida Akter and Marufa Akter maintained pressure with disciplined spells.
In reply, Bangladesh got off to a disastrous start, losing two wickets within the first two overs. However, Sharmin Akhter produced a match-defining innings, scoring a composed 86 off 127 balls to anchor the chase. She found support from Sobhana Mostary, who made 41 before retiring hurt, and later Shorna Akter, whose 35 added momentum in the middle overs.
Despite being in control for much of the chase, Bangladesh nearly stumbled at the finish. A late burst from Sri Lanka’s bowlers saw Dewmi Vihanga pick up three crucial wickets, triggering a collapse that left Bangladesh at 200/7 after being comfortably placed at 199/3.
The match briefly tilted back in Sri Lanka’s favor, but Bangladesh held their nerve. Extras proved decisive, with 21 wides significantly easing the chase. Eventually, Bangladesh crossed the target in 48.3 overs, sealing a hard-fought three-wicket victory.
Sri Lanka will rue their inability to capitalize on key moments, particularly in the death overs with both bat and ball. The absence of star player Chamari Athapaththu was evident, as they lacked the firepower to push their total beyond reach.
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