Sri Lanka’s T20 World Cup campaign has started on a rough note, both on and off the field. Following their opening match defeat to South Africa by 6 wickets, skipper Wanindu Hasaranga and spinner Maheesh Theekshana have voiced their strong dissatisfaction with the tournament’s scheduling that has put their team at a significant disadvantage.

The primary source of Sri Lanka’s frustration lies in their unique travel arrangements. Unlike most teams who play their group stage matches in one or two venues, Sri Lanka has been assigned matches across four different locations: New York, Dallas, Lauderhill (Florida), and St. Lucia. According to ESPNcricinfo, this hectic itinerary has resulted in a lack of preparation time and significant fatigue for the players.

Theekshana, Sri Lanka’s key spinner, spoke candidly about the challenges: “So unfair for us, we have to leave every day [after the match] because we are playing [at] four different venues. It’s unfair. The flight we took from Florida, from Miami, we had to wait like eight hours in the airport to get the flight. And we came around. We were supposed to leave at 8 pm but we got the flight at 5 am. It’s really unfair for us, but it doesn’t matter when you play [on the field].”

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This lack of control over their schedule has also impacted Sri Lanka’s ability to train consistently. Theekshana revealed that they were forced to cancel a training session due to travel fatigue.

They were left scrambling to reach the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium for their opening match against South Africa: “Yeah, that’s why. Because even from the hotel, it’s one hour and 40 minutes. Even today [match day], we had to wake up around 5 am to come here.”

‘Unfair for us’

Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana ‘unhappy’ about scheduling

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Maheesh Theekshana elaborated on a fairer schedule for Sri Lanka: “I can’t say the [names of the] teams that are playing in the same venue, so they know what the conditions are like. They’re playing practice games at the same venue. No one will get that. We played the practice games in Florida and our third game is in Florida. There are some things that I think that everyone will rethink about next year because I know that this year, nothing will change. Our management is trying to fix today’s flight also because we are playing, we have to pack everything and [leave].”

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While acknowledging the logistical difficulties, Wanindu Hasaranga was cautious about attributing the loss entirely to these issues: “We can’t say that. We had a tough time the last few days. All four games in four venues. It’s hard. We didn’t know [anything about the conditions here]. This is our first game in New York. Next game in Dallas, we don’t know [anything about the conditions there]. The next game is in Florida where we played two games, that’s the only plus point we have.”

Sri Lanka’s next challenge comes against Bangladesh on June 8th in Dallas. With a win crucial for their Super Sixs qualification hopes, the team will have to overcome not only their opponents but also the logistical hurdles that have plagued their campaign so far.