Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bat first against hosts Sri Lanka in the first Test match of 2025-27 World Test Championship Cycle at the Galle International Stadium.
The Galle Test will mark the farewell appearance of Sri Lankan veteran Angelo Mathews, as the 38-year-old bids adieu to the longest format of the game. A pillar of Sri Lanka바카라™s middle order for over a decade and a half, Mathews retires with an impressive tally of 8,167 Test runs, placing him third on the country바카라™s all-time list behind legends Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene.
Najmul Hossain Shanto (Bangladesh Captain): "We바카라™d like to bat first. The wicket looks pretty dry, so batting in the first innings should be ideal. In the fourth innings, the spinners will have a good chance to pick up all the wickets. Yeah, we have good memories from the last match, but this is a new game with new conditions. We need to play good cricket here.
Dhananjaya de Silva (Sri Lanka Captain): "Yeah, we would have batted first as well. Well, it바카라™s a different kind of wicket바카라”one that looks more favourable for the batters, I think. Hopefully, it will help us put some runs on the board and then go on to take 20 wickets.
On Angelo Mathews' retirement: Well, yeah. He바카라™s one of the greatest players Sri Lanka has produced. He바카라™s third on the all-time run scorers list. It바카라™s definitely going to be a big loss, but we have some promising youngsters who can step into his position. Of course, they can바카라™t replace Angelo Mathews, but they can take on the role in the team.
Tharindu Ratnayake and Lahiru Udara are set to make their Test debuts for Sri Lanka.
SL vs BAN 1st Test Playing XIs:
Bangladesh Playing XI: Shadman Islam, Anamul Haque, Mominul Haque, Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Mushfiqur Rahim, Litton Das (wk), Jaker Ali, Taijul Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Nahid Rana, Nayeem Hasan
Sri Lanka Playing XI: Pathum Nissanka, Lahiru Udara, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kamindu Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva (c), Kusal Mendis (wk), Milan Rathnayake, Tharindu Ratnayake, Prabath Jayasuriya, Asitha Fernando
