Poor form, injury and internal doubts put Charith Asalanka’s leadership under the microscope
With the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup just weeks away, co-hosts Sri Lanka find themselves facing a major decision: whether to stick with Charith Asalanka as their T20I captain or make a last-minute leadership switch.
The left-hander, who was named Sri Lanka’s white-ball skipper last year, is officially sidelined from the ongoing tri-series in Pakistan due to illness. But growing speculation points to deeper concerns about his form, tactical leadership, and standing within the dressing room — with selectors now openly admitting a captaincy change is on the table.
“We have to weigh our best options after this series,” said Tharanga as quoted by ESPNcricinfo, when asked whether the selectors were considering a change in captaincy.
“With a World Cup so close we can’t make a lot of big changes. The selectors, after talking to the coach, will have to make a decision on what’s best for the team.”
Illness or internal conflict?
Asalanka was withdrawn from the tri-series squad just before the opening match against Zimbabwe, with Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) attributing the decision to a viral fever and body aches. Yet the timing of his exit — and the rapid appointment of Dasun Shanaka as interim captain — has fueled rumors of an internal disagreement.
Local media suggested that Asalanka was among the players hesitant to remain in Pakistan following a deadly bombing in Islamabad, leading some to interpret his departure as disciplinary rather than medical.
Tharanga, however, insisted illness was the only reason for his early return.
“Still Charith is our captain. It’s because of an illness to Charith that we appointed Dasun as our stand-in captain. Charith is still the captain in our plans. We haven’t made a decision to change that. We’ve planned all along for Charith to captain this World Cup. We’ll see what happens. We haven’t made a decision about that yet.”
“He had a viral fever, and he had body aches,” Tharanga said of Asalanka. “The physio told us that it’s hard for him to predict when Charith would get better, and that’s why we had to make that decision.”
“We’ve also had a problem in the middle order, and we’ve not been consistent there. If he couldn’t play, we needed to have someone else there. That’s why we brought Charith to Sri Lanka.”
Shanaka’s vice-captaincy seen as pre-emptive move
The move to name former captain Dasun Shanaka as vice-captain ahead of the Pakistan series is now being interpreted as a signal that SLC had already begun exploring leadership alternatives — even before Asalanka’s withdrawal.
“That was to give us another option,” Tharanga said.
Shanaka, who led Sri Lanka during the 2023 ODI World Cup and has captained across formats, is viewed by some within SLC as a steady hand, especially under pressure. His return to a formal leadership role just weeks before a World Cup adds to the growing sense that a shift in captaincy is imminent.
Form slump fuels scrutiny
While Asalanka has enjoyed some success in ODIs, his performances in T20Is have been underwhelming — especially in 2025. He has scored only 156 runs in 12 innings this year at a strike rate of 122, well below expectations for a middle-order T20 batter.
Across his career, Asalanka has 1357 T20I runs at a strike rate of 126.35, numbers that highlight consistency issues rather than elite firepower. Under his captaincy, Sri Lanka has won just 11 of 25 T20Is, with 14 losses — including two narrow defeats in Super Overs against India.
This drop in form, coupled with Sri Lanka’s failure to reach the final of the 2025 Asia Cup, has only amplified doubts about his suitability as both a leader and a core player heading into a high-stakes tournament at home.
A role still in the World Cup plans — for now
Despite the ongoing speculation, Tharanga made it clear that Asalanka remains part of Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup plans — even if not necessarily as captain.
“Charith is a very talented cricketer, with a lot of experience. I’m sure he’ll be an important cricketer for Sri Lanka in the T20 World Cup. We’ve seen what he can do in the middle order, where sometimes he’s won games by himself. He’s in our World Cup plans.”
Clock ticking for a final decision
As the tri-series against Pakistan and Zimbabwe continues, all eyes are on SLC and the national selectors. Whether they persist with Asalanka as captain or reinstall Shanaka in time for the World Cup will likely define Sri Lanka’s campaign — and could shape the next phase of leadership in Sri Lankan cricket.
For now, the message is one of caution and calculation. But with the tournament fast approaching and public confidence wavering, a final call can’t be far away.
