By Fathima Zanaida
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| Angelo Mathews given role to lead young Sri Lankan Twenty20 side |
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (TheSportsNEXT) October 24, 2012: The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Wednesday appointed all-rounder Angelo Mathews as Sri Lankan Twenty20 skipper for a period of a year.
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Angelo Mathews’ stint as T20 captain will start on October 30 when Sri Lanka will take on New Zealand in one of the two Twenty20 Internationals at Pallekele.
Sri Lankan captaincy slot was left vacant by Mahela Jayawardene who resigned from the position after failing to lead his country to World Twenty20 title on home soil earlier this month.
Angelo Mathews, 25, has been performing his duties as vice captain of Sri Lankan cricket team since July 2012 and is the most likely option to lead his country in all formats after Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara will call it quits.
The SLC Chief Selector Ashantha de Mel told reporters, "We are giving Mathews a free hand to captain the Twenty20 side for a year, after which we will review his performance”.
The orthodox fast bowler Lasith Malinga has been appointed as vice-captain of the Sri Lankan Twenty20 team.
The Sri Lankan selectors are also likely to name a new Test and ODI captain by February 2013 when Mahela Jayawardene would reconsider his options as skipper in both Test matches and One Day Internationals after tour to Australia.
New Zealand are starting their tour to Sri Lanka from October 30, 2012 and will play two Test matches, five One Day Internationals, and two Twenty20 Internationals.
