Sri Lanka vs. UAE, Asia Cup: Date, Time, Live Stream, TV Info and Preview

Sri Lanka kick off the defence of the Asia Cup against qualifiers United Arab Emirates on Thursday.

The game takes place at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, Bangladesh. The same venue will host all of the round-robin matches, as well as the final.

The major change for the 2016 tournament sees a switch to the Twenty20 format, rather than continuing to play 100-over matches.

They have also introduced a qualifying event to work out the identity of the fifth nation to compete in the round-robin stage.

Date: Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016

Time: 7:30 p.m. local (1:30 p.m. GMT / 8:30 a.m ET)

Venue: Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur

Live Stream and TV Info: Star Sports (India), Geo Super, PTV Sports (Pakistan), MTV Sports (Sri Lanka), Channel 9 (Bangladesh), Willow TV (USA), SuperSport (South Africa)

Weather: According to AccuWeather.com, there is a 60 per cent chance of a thunderstorm on Thursday. Temperatures will still be warm—they are predicted to be around 19 degrees Celsius during the night.

Overview

Eranga Jayawardena/Associated Press

It may only be two years since Sri Lanka lifted the Asia Cup trophy in Mirpur, but much has changed for the defending champions since that five-wicket win over Pakistan.

Mahela Jayawardene—who made 75 in his side's successful run chase in the 2014 final—has since retired. So has Kumar Sangakkara, stripping the Sri Lanka batting lineup of their two pillars of strength.

Tillakaratne Dilshan is still going strong at the age of 39, while Rangana Herath, Lasith Malinga—who is now captain—and Angelo Mathews will be pivotal for their country, not just in the Asia Cup, but also in the ICC World Twenty20 that follows on in the month of March.

However, Sri Lanka's three-match T20 series against India in February showed a worrying reliance on the old hands. 

Although victorious in a low-scoring opener against their hosts, they struggled for runs throughout the short trip.

The bowling attack at least has a varied look about it. Dushmantha Chameera's pace adds an extra dimension to work alongside skipper Malinga, while Herath, Sachithra Senanayake and Jeffrey Vandersay offer a plethora of slow-bowling options.

Sri Lanka must hit the ground running if they are to have a hope of retaining their crown. After their opener, they take on host nation Bangladesh on Sunday.

The UAE, meanwhile, will hope to catch their opponents cold, particularly as they are match sharp after already playing three games just to get into the main group.

Victories over Afghanistan, Hong Kong and Oman clinched Amjad Javed's side the opportunity to rub shoulders with the big boys. 

It is a welcome addition to their schedule considering they failed to even qualify for the qualifying stage of the upcoming World T20. 

They have never faced Sri Lanka before in the shortest format. It is hoped the predicted thunderstorm doesn't wash out the inaugural meeting of the two nations.

Key Players

Sri Lanka

After being rested for the tour of India, Angelo Mathews returns to international action at the Asia Cup.

While his bowling may come in handy occasionally, the addition of the all-rounder to the XI considerably bolsters the batting.

Mathews averages 27.46 in the format at a strike rate of 123.72 runs per 100 deliveries.

United Arab Emirates

Mohammad Naveed's seven wickets—including three for 14 against Hong Kong—helped the UAE progress from the qualifying group.

The 28-year-old isn't going to surprise any top-tier players for pace, but he is reliable and accurate. If you miss, he is likely to hit.

Naveed's economy rate in T20 action is a very low 5.83 runs per over, although he can expect that to rise now the standard of the opposition is about to go up several notches.

Squads

Sri Lanka

Lasith Malinga (capt), Angelo Mathews, Dinesh Chandimal (wk), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Niroshan Dickwella, Shehan Jayasuriya, Milinda Siriwardana, Dasun Shanaka, Chamara Kapugedera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Dushmantha Chameera, Thisara Perera, Sachithra Senanayake, Rangana Herath, Jeffrey Vandersay.

United Arab Emirates

Amjad Javed (capt), Farhan Ahmed, Mohammad Naveed, Ahmed Raza, Fahad Tariq, Mohammad Shahzad, Muhammad Usman, Muhammad Kaleem, Qadeer Ahmed, Swapnil Patil (wkt), Rohan Mustafa, Saqlain Haider, Shaiman Anwar, Usman Mushtaq, Zaheer Maqsood.