Colombo, Sri Lanka

Kusal Mendis and Wanindu Hasaranga have replaced Dasun Shanaka as Sri Lanka's ODI and T20I skippers. The decision was taken by Sri Lanka new selection committee and now for that first time the island nation has three different skippers in all three formats with Dimuth Karunaratne leading the side in Tests.

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Shanaka was first appointed Sri Lanka's white-ball captain on their maiden tour of Pakistan in 2019 since the terror attack of 2009. It was, however, in 2021 that he became the regular skipper. He captained the side in 41 ODIs with 23 wins and 48 T20Is with 22 wins.

The all-rounder's stint saw Sri Lanka have an unbeaten run in 2023 ODI World Cup qualifier as well. The side although saw poor campaigns in 2022 and 2021 T20 World Cup as well as the recently concluded 2023 ODI World Cup. The highest point came in 2022 T20 Asia Cup when they beat Pakistan in final to lift the trophy.

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His replacement in ODIs, Mendis, is not new to captaincy and had performed the duties in the 2023 ODI WC until being injured after Shanaka's exit. Mendis is also the skipper of Dambulla Aura in Sri Lanka's domestic T20 tournament Lanka Premier League (LPL). Previously, Mendis has also been the skipper of U-19 Sri Lankan side as well.

As for Hasaranga, the spinner led B-Love Kandy to their inaugural LPL title earlier this year. He is a force to reckon with in the T20 leagues around the world, although for his bowling.

Under Shanaka, the rebuilding side did decent after exodus of its marquee cricketers. His form with the bat, however, was something that got everybody to question his place in the side. Nonetheless, the all-rounder is still believed to play a crucial role in Sri Lanka's white-ball teams as the 1996 World Cup winners continue to rebuild.