The BCCI has named Sri Lanka as the replacements for Zimbabwe for 3 T20I matches to be played from 5th- 10th January 2020.
“In the wake of Zimbabwe’s suspension by ICC, the BCCI invited Sri Lanka to participate in the three-match series. Sri Lanka Cricket has confirmed their participation and the itinerary is as under,” the BCCI said in a release.
The tour consists of 3 T20I matches that will be played on 5th, 7th and 10th January 2020. The first match will be played on 5th January at Guwahati, 2nd at Indore on 7th and the final T20I match to be played at Pune on 10th January.
It will serve good preparations for both teams for the World T20 2020 to be played in Australia. The Indian Cricket team were settled with 1-1 draw against South Africa at home. Under the captaincy of Virat Kohli, India won the 2nd T20I at Mohali by 7 wickets and then lost the 3rd T20I at Bangalore by 9 wickets.
India is currently fourth in the latest ICC Team rankings in T20I. Sri Lanka who were outside the top rankings as of 31st December 2018, will join Bangladesh and six other qualifiers to play 1st stage of the tournament. 4 top teams will make it into the Super 12 stage.
The Indian team will take on Bangladesh in 3 matches T20I series at home, followed by West Indies with 3 T20Is and 3 ODI matches in December.
After facing West Indies, they will take on Sri Lanka at home replacing Zimbabwe. They will take on Australia in 3 ODI match series at home. The Indian Cricket will face a tough ask when they travel to New Zealand for 5 matches T20I series, 3 ODIs and 2 Test match series.
Last time Sri Lanka took on India in India, the Men in Blue whitewashed Sri Lanka 3-0. It promises to be an exciting encounter as both teams would be looking to perform their best in this series.
