Sri Lanka skipper Dimuth Karunaratne won the toss and elected to bat against Pakistan in the opening Test of the two-match series on Saturday.
The hosts made two changes to the team that beat Australia in a series-levelling win earlier this week at the same venue in Galle, which saw some rain in the morning.
Dhananjaya de Silva and Oshada Fernando replaced Kamindu Mendis and Pathum Nissanka, who was one of the four players to get Covid ahead of and during the second Australia Test.
No. 3⃣ and No. 4⃣ in #WTC23 standings clash!
Sri Lanka win the toss against Pakistan and opt to bat 🏏
Buy the Test series pass and watch the #SLvPAK series LIVE on https://t.co/CPDKNx77KV (in select regions) 📺 pic.twitter.com/jeeCgMUTpt
— ICC (@ICC) July 16, 2022
Pakistan, led by Babar Azam, recalled leg-spinner Yasir Shah and all-rounder Mohammad Nawaz to their team, which has three fast bowlers.
All-rounder Salman Ali Agha was handed his first Test cap by batting coach Mohammad Yousuf during a team huddle before the beginning of play on Saturday.
Teams
Sri Lanka: Oshada Fernando, Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya de Silva, Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Ramesh Mendis, Maheesh Theekshana, Prabath Jayasuriya, Kasun Rajitha
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam (capt), Salman Ali Agha, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Nawaz, Yasir Shah, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah
Read more: Sri Lanka-Pakistan Tests will be a battle between Spinners
Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena (SRI), Marais Erasmus (RSA)
TV Umpire: Rod Tucker (AUS)
Match Referee: Jeff Crowe (NZL)
AFP with additional input by GVS News Desk