ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers 2023: Sri Lanka vs UAE Match 3 Fantasy Predictions
Match 3 Details
The ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers began on Jun 18 and we witnessed a fantastic opening of the first two matches. The first match was won by the hosts of this tournament Zimbabwe comfortably and West Indies won the second match with a decent margin of 39 runs. The 3rd match will be played between Sri Lanka and UAE at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo on 18 June. Sri Lanka is pretty confident about this fixture while the UAE would want to do their best in the field.
Pitch Report
It is a fresh wicket and the captains would want to bowl first. The surface would be a bit slow initially and as the game progresses, it gets better to bat on.
Sri Lanka vs UAE Match 3 Preview
Team Sri Lanka
The Lankans have been shaping well for the upcoming ICC CWC 2023 in India. They got the better of Afghanistan recently in the 3-match ODI series at home. They won it by 2-1 and therefore they are coming into this match on the back of that series win. They look like favourites to qualify for the World Cup.
Dasun Shanaka has grown as a good leader for Sri Lanka. The top order includes stylish Pathum Nissanka and an experienced southpaw Dimuth Karunaratne who made a strong comeback in the ODIs for Sri Lanka. The middle order is strong enough to attack the opposition with the likes of Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka and the wicketkeeper Kusal Mendis.
The bowlers have also shown some discipline in their lines and lengths. Kasun Rajitha, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lahiru Kumara and Maheesh Thikshana could handle the proceedings.
Team UAE
Currently, there are some weak performances that have cost them some matches. Especially, the three-match series at home with West Indies winning it by 3-0. They got thrashed completely and now they would want to rectify their mistakes in this must-win tournament.
Muhammed Waseem would lead the team again but there are some concerts regarding his form. He bats at the top order but is yet to fire. The experienced Vritya Aravind and Basil Hameed would be the key players in the middle order. Ali Naseer, the star all-rounder of the team has been exceptionally doing well. He scored back-to-back fifties against West Indies and also took some wickets.
The bowlers really need to rise to the occasion. Their economies have been on the higher side and couldn’t take crucial wickets. Zahoor Khan would be the key bowler who can strike early. Karthik Meiyappan had been brilliant for his team and he would be the key asset in the spin department.
Head-to-Head Records
Whenever these teams faced each other, Sri Lanka won both games while UAE none.
| Matches Played | SL Won | UAE won | Tie | Result |
| 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Key Players To Watch
We are taking stats of the recently concluded ICC CWC 2023 Qualifiers warm-up matches to understand their form.
Team Sri Lanka
| Player | Matches | Runs | Bat. Avg. | Bat. SR | Wickets | Bowl. Avg |
| D Karunaratne | 2 | 158 | 79 | 101.9 | ||
| K Mendis | 2 | 132 | 66 | 115.7 | ||
| D Shanaka | 2 | 122 | 122 | 110.9 | ||
| K Rajitha | 2 | 5 | 9.4 | |||
| M Pathirana | 2 | 5 | 13.4 |
Team UAE
| Player | Matches | Runs | Bat. Avg. | Bat. SR | Wickets | Bowl. Avg. |
| B Hameed | 2 | 122 | 122 | 110.9 | ||
| A Naseer | 2 | 5 | 15 | |||
| K Meiyappan | 2 | 4 | 19 |
Squads
Team Sri Lanka
Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kusal Mendis(wk), Charith Asalanka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara, Chamika Karunaratne, Matheesha Pathirana, Dushan Hemantha, Kasun Rajitha
Team UAE
Muhammad Waseem (c), Aryansh Sharma, Vriitya Aravind (wk), Asif Khan, Rohan Mustafa, Basil Hameed, Ali Naseer, Aayan Afzal Khan, Sanchit Sharma, Karthik Meiyappan, Junaid Siddique, Zahoor Khan, Rameez Shahzad, Muhammad Jawadullah, Ethan DSouza
SL vs UAE Match 3 Fantasy Predictions
Sri Lanka
UAE
Probable Playing XI
Team Sri Lanka
Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Charith Asalanka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Mendis (wk), Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Thikshana, Kasun Rajitha, Matheesha Pathirana
Team UAE
Muhammad Waseem (c), Aryansh Sharma, Vriitya Aravind (wk), Asif Khan, Rohan Mustafa, Basil Hameed, Ali Naseer, Aayan Afzal Khan, Sanchit Sharma, Karthik Meiyappan, Zahoor Khan
Fantasy Playing XI
Based on the stats above, this could be the fantasy team.
Conclusion
Sri Lanka would be pleased with its form and they would want to win this fixture comfortably. The only matter is their lower order which isn’t tested due to good performances from the upper order. They need to be aware of it. On the other hand, UAE could only hope for a better performance than previous outings. They should fight till the end to give good competition. This is surely a good contest to watch. Will Sri Lanka dominate or the USA would do some magic? Let’s wait for the results to come.
