Tilak Varma Leads India A Into June 9 Opener at Dambulla — Ind A Vs Sl A

Tilak Varma leads India A into ind a vs sl a on June 9 at Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium. Sri Lanka A hosts the opener in Dambulla, and both sides enter a tri-nations one-day series that runs every other day through June 19 before the top two meet in the final on June 21.

Tilak Varma at Dambulla

India A named Varma as captain for the opening match, putting a 15-year-old developmental setup in motion against a Sri Lanka A side led by Sahan Arachchige. Niroshan Dickwella is the vice-captain for Sri Lanka A.

The setup matters because this is the first match in a double round-robin that also includes Afghanistan. The format gives both teams more than one look at each opponent before the final spot is settled on June 21.

Sri Lanka A's recent form

Sri Lanka A comes in after sweeping three matches from New Zealand A in April. Ahan Wickramasinghe, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth and Mohamad Shiraz are back from that side, giving Sri Lanka continuity at the start of the series.

India A also added a late piece to its squad. Ruturaj Gaikwad replaced Riyan Parag after Parag was ruled out with a hamstring injury, and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is in the group after scoring 776 runs for the Rajasthan Royals in the recently completed Indian Premier League T20 tournament.

Galle waits after June 21

The tri-nations schedule leaves little downtime. The round-robin continues every other day through June 19, and Sri Lanka A and India A are then set for two unofficial Test matches in Galle from June 25-28 and July 2-5.

For viewers, the opener is available on Willow Sports. For the teams, it is the first checkpoint in a run that moves from one-day cricket into a longer format within the same Sri Lanka-India sequence.