Retired Sri Lankan opener Upul Tharanga has been named the new chairman of the selection committee for Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). Ajantha Mendis, Tharanga Paranavitana, Indika de Saram, and Dilruwan Perera make up the five-person committee that Tharanga will chair. In the wake of Sri Lanka's underwhelming 2023 World Cup performance—winning just two of their nine games and missing out on the 2025 Champions Trophy—the decision to establish a new committee has been made.
The new committee's first task will be to choose the team for Sri Lanka's home series against Zimbabwe in January, then for a series against Afghanistan. They will also be keeping a close eye on the T20 World Cup in June. The committee, which will serve a two-year term, is one of the youngest ever appointed to such a post at SLC. While de Saram is the oldest at 50, Paranavitana and Dilruwan are both 41, and Tharanga and Mendis are the youngest at 38.
Harin Fernando, Sri Lanka's sports minister, who has the authority to appoint selection committees under Sri Lankan sports law, made the decision to create the new committee. SLC preferred the outgoing committee, which Pramodya Wickramasinghe led, to continue until the T20 World Cup the following year. However, Fernando believed that fresh faces were needed.
During Wickramasinghe's tenure, Sri Lanka underwent a youth-driven overhaul, with several senior players being replaced by younger ones. The results were mixed, with Sri Lanka winning the 2022 T20 Asia Cup and home series against Australia, South Africa, and India, but performing poorly in the T20 World Cups and the ODI World Cup.
The new committee will likely focus on finding the right balance between youth and experience in selecting the squad. This has been a key issue in Sri Lanka's recent form, and addressing it will be a priority for the new committee.
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