Welegedara needs to be considered for England Tests

Sri Lanka will begin their tour of England tomorrow with a warm-up game in Chelmsford, just half hour drive from London. Their opponents will be Essex, the county that has produced several recent England captains like Graham Gooch, Nasser Hussain and incumbent Alastair Cook.

The last time the Sri Lankans toured England in 2011, the team was in complete disarray. Players arrived in England in different batches due to their engagement in the IPL while injuries to several seam bowlers were a bitter blow. Into the bargain, Lasith Malinga had announced his retirement from Test cricket just before the tour and the team failed to make an impact losing the Test series 0-1 and the ODI series 2-3.

However, this time everything has been going in Sri Lanka’s favour and their preparation has been intense. Before the tour, the team trained at the practice facilities at R. Premadasa Stadium using the Dukes balls, which will be used in England. The coaching staff decided to leave grass on the wicket and practices began two hours earlier than the usual time in order to let the batsman have a crack while there was still moisture on the wickets.