Sri Lanka swings into ICC World Twenty20 2012

Dubai, May 30, 2012: ICC World Twenty20 2012 hosts Sri Lanka will begin its preparation for the upcoming global event that begins on 18 September when it takes on Pakistan later this week in a two-match Twenty20 International series in Hambantota.

The two teams will be keen to get some good match practice ahead of the tournament which runs from 18 September to 7 October in Colombo, Pallekele and Hambantota later this year.

Sri Lanka will need to win the series, which starts on Friday (1 June), 2-0 if it is to move up from third place in the Reliance ICC T20 Championship table.

Mahela Jayawardena’s side has the opportunity to rise to second in the table, and usurp South Africa which currently occupies second place, if the 2-0 scenario occurs. Sri Lanka’s ratings points would rise to 124 while Pakistan’s would drop to 107 and put the latter in seventh place just above India when the points are calculated to within the decimal point.

If Pakistan, the ICC World Twenty20 2009 champions, beat Sri Lanka 2-0 in the series, then newly appointed Twenty20 captain Mohammad Hafeez would see his side move up to fourth, one ratings point behind New Zealand.

Should Sri Lanka lose the series 2-0, it would see the ICC World Twenty20 2009 runners up drop to sixth in the Championship table, just below Australia when the points are calculated to within the decimal point.

Should the both matches be tied, neither side will move up or down the table while if one match is tied and Sri Lanka win the other match, Pakistan will drop to sixth in the table after losing two ratings points. If the scenario is reversed and Pakistan win one match, while the other is tied, this visitors will remain fifth, while hosts Sri Lanka will drop to fourth in the table.

Meanwhile, in the Reliance ICC Player Rankings for T20 batsmen there is plenty of opportunity for movement from the players on both sides. Sri Lanka captain Jayawardena is the highest ranked batsman involved in the series, currently fifth, while compatriots Tillakaratne Dilshan (sixth) and Kumar Sangakkara (eighth) are not far behind the diminutive batsman.

Further down the table, Pakistan’s Umar Akmal (15th) and all-rounders Shahid Afridi (24th) and Hafeez (27th) have a chance to rise up the rankings table which is currently topped by England’s Kevin Pietersen.

The Reliance ICC Player Rankings for T20 bowlers is currently topped by England’s Graeme Swann. Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis is currently in second, but with the spinner not involved in the series it gives Pakistan’s Saeed Ajmal, currently third on the list, the perfect opportunity to overtake the Sri Lanka bowler.

Pakistan’s bowlers dominate the top ten of the table, with Saeed (third), Afridi (fifth) and Hafeez (seventh) all vying for an elevated position. The highest ranked Sri Lankans involved in the series are Nuwan Kulasekara (26th) and Angelo Mathews (36th) and both will want to ensure the wickets tumble not only to improve their rankings but also to ensure they are fully prepared for the ICC World Twenty20 Sri Lanka 2012.

Finally, in the Reliance ICC Player Rankings for T20 all-rounders the table is topped by Australia’s Shane Watson with 438 ratings points but Pakistan’s Afridi is not far behind him with 413 points while Pakistan captain Hafeez is in fourth and could leapfrog Australia’s David Hussey who currently occupies third position.

Sri Lanka’s Dilshan is the highest ranked all-rounder for the hosts in fifth while Angelo Mathews occupies ninth place and the duo need strong performances in this series to push for a place in the top four.

The player rankings will now be updated after the conclusion of the Twenty20 International series between the two sides. To find out exactly how the forthcoming T20 series will affect the Championship table, please click here. The T20 Championship table is updated at the end of every match.

Matches schedule:

1 June – First T20I, Hambantota

3 June – Second T20I, Hambantota

Reliance ICC T20 Championship table (as on 30 May, before the start of a two-match T20I series between Sri Lanka and Pakistan)

Ranking/team Rating

1. England 129

2. South Africa 122

3. Sri Lanka 117

4. New Zealand 114

5. Pakistan 107

6. Australia 107

7. India 103

8. Ireland 95

9. West Indies 93

10. Afghanistan 83

11. Netherlands 64

12. Zimbabwe 51

13. Scotland 40

14. Canada 16

15. Kenya 13

Developed by David Kendix

(Bangladesh will have to play eight T20Is before it will have a ranking. The table reflects all T20Is played since August 2009)

Reliance ICC T20I Player Rankings (as on 30 May, before the start of a two-match T20I series between Sri Lanka and Pakistan)

Batsmen (top 30)

Rank Player Team Pts Ave HS Rating

1 Kevin Pietersen Eng 850 37.93 882 v Aus at Barbados 2010

2 Martin Guptill NZ 791 35.81 793 v SA at Hamilton 2012

3 Eoin Morgan Eng 788 40.06 872 v Ind at Old Trafford 2011

4 B.McCullum NZ 781 34.66 833 v Aus at Christchurch 2010

5 M. Jayawardene SL 769 31.76 785 v Aus at Kandy 2011

6 T.Dilshan SL 741 31.92 802 v NZ at Colombo (RPS) 2009

7 Suresh Raina Ind 734* 31.42 776 v Eng at Kolkata 2011

8 K.Sangakkara SL 717 31.53 763 v WI at Barbados 2010

9 Shane Watson Aus 706 26.79 732 v WI at St Lucia 2012

10 David Warner Aus 681 26.24 826 v WI at St Lucia 2010

11 JP Duminy SA 674 31.76 690 v Aus at Cape Town 2011

12 Jacques Kallis SA 671* 35.81 729 v WI at Antigua 2010

13 Graeme Smith SA 670 31.67 778 v Zim at Kimberley 2010

14 Gautam Gambhir Ind 660 32.43 723 v SL at Mohali 2009

15 Umar Akmal Pak 658 28.41 709 v Zim at Harare 2011

16 H.Masakadza Zim 649*! 27.95 649 v NZ at Hamilton 2012

17 David Hussey Aus 619 25.06 708 v Pak at Edgbaston 2010

18 Yuvraj Singh Ind 609* 31.50 793 v SA at St Lucia 2010

19 Cameron White Aus 606 31.60 657 v SA at Johannesburg 2011

20 Craig Kieswetter Eng 524*! 25.50 524 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2012

21 Richard Levi SA 522*! 53.33 522 v Ind at Johannesburg 2012

22 Misbah-ul-Haq Pak 513 37.52 661 v Net at Lord’s 2009

23 AB de Villiers SA 512 24.28 571 v WI at Antigua 2010

24 Shahid Afridi Pak 490 17.39 537 v SA at Abu Dhabi 2010

25= Mike Hussey Aus 487* 37.85 506 v Pak at Edgbaston 2010

Brendan Taylor Zim 487*! 33.90 487 v NZ at Hamilton 2012

27 M.Hafeez Pak 481* 20.44 508 v Eng at Dubai 2012

28 MS Dhoni Ind 467* 28.89 473 v Aus at Melbourne 2012

29 Ross Taylor NZ 465 21.51 538 v Pak at Hamilton 2010

30= J.Chibhabha Zim 451* 24.66 470 v NZ at Harare 2011

Kyle Coetzer Sco 451* 30.75 477 v Ire at Dubai 2012

Bowlers

Rank Player Team Pts Avge Econ HS Rating

1 Graeme Swann Eng 750 16.47 6.39 760 v Pak at Cardiff 2010

2 Ajantha Mendis SL 739 11.12 5.63 746 v Aus at Kandy 2011

3 Saeed Ajmal Pak 736 16.41 6.24 756 v SA at St Lucia 2010

4 Johan Botha SA 715 21.21 6.26 733 v NZ at Auckland 2012

5 Shahid Afridi Pak 694 19.91 6.16 814 v SL at Colombo (RPS) 2009

6 N. McCullum NZ 678 16.11 6.49 709 v Zim at Harare 2011

7 M.Hafeez Pak 660 20.72 6.87 662 v Eng at Dubai 2012

8 Lasith Malinga SL 645 20.39 7.34 680 v Eng at Bristol 2011

9 Stuart Broad Eng 639 21.90 7.26 672 v Pak at Cardiff 2010

10 Darren Sammy WI 635 16.43 6.43 686 v Eng at The Oval 2011

11 Morne Morkel SA 629 17.21 6.65 646 v Aus at Cape Town 2011

12 Shaun Tait Aus 622 17.78 6.94 769 v Pak at Edgbaston 2010

13 Shane Watson Aus 621*! 23.23 7.45 621 v WI at St Lucia 2012

14 Shakib Al Hasan Ban 620*! 17.95 6.61 620 v Pak at Mirpur 2011

15 Trent Johnston Ire 617 17.70 6.12 628 v Can at Dubai 2012

16 Umar Gul Pak 611 15.69 6.50 857 v Ire at The Oval 2009

17 Abdur Razzak Ban 610*! 16.52 6.66 610 v Pak at Mirpur 2011

18 Tim Southee NZ 602! 25.74 8.37 602 v SA at Auckland 2012

19 Harbhajan Singh Ind 597 30.05 6.44 701 v WI at Barbados 2010

20 Prosper Utseya Zim 596*! 27.06 6.78 596 v NZ at Hamilton 2012

21 Mitchell Johnson Aus 587 20.11 7.14 713 v WI at St Lucia 2010

22 Tim Bresnan Eng 584* 34.21 7.40 621 v Ind at Kolkata 2011

23 Ray Price Zim 565*! 27.61 6.13 565 v NZ at Hamilton 2012

24 George Dockrell Ire 558*! 11.79 5.28 558 v Afg at Dubai 2012

25 David Hussey Aus 544* 19.10 6.34 553 v Ind at Melbourne 2012

26 N.Kulasekara SL 521* 32.35 8.26 532 v Aus at Kandy 2011

27 L.Tsotsobe SA 517*! 21.00 6.00 517 v Ind at Johannesburg 2012

28 Boyd Rankin Ire 515*! 19.12 6.00 515 v Afg at Dubai 2012

29 Pieter Seelaar Net 513*! 15.68 5.96 513 v Ire at Dubai 2012

30 Kyle Mills NZ 510 29.58 8.60 558 v Zim at Auckland 2012

All-rounders

Rank Player Team Pts HS Rating

1 Shane Watson Aus 438 /*! 438 v WI at St Lucia 2012

2 Shahid Afridi Pak 340 413 v NZ at Dubai 2009

3 David Hussey Aus 337 /* 350 v Ind at Melbourne 2012

4 M.Hafeez Pak 317*/ 335 v Eng at Dubai 2012

5 T.Dilshan SL 192 /*! 192 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2011

*indicates provisional rating; a batsman qualifies for a full rating after he has scored 600 or more runs; a bowler qualifies for a full rating after he has bowled 400 deliveries.

!indicates career-highest rating

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