Dimuth Karunaratne has made a return to the Test side as Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Saturday announced a 17-member squad for the two-match Test series against West Indies.
The cricket board also informed Lahiru Thirimanne, Dhananjaya De Silva, Roshen Silva, Vishwa Fernando, and Lasith Embuldeniya will leave for the Caribbean on Saturday night to take part in the Test series, which starts from March 21.
Dimuth Karunaratne Returns To Lead Test And ODI Squad
Opener and regular skipper, Dimuth Karunaratne will return to the side after missing the home Test series against England due to a thumb injury. Sri Lanka, led by Dinesh Chandimal, was whitewashed by Joe Root’s side. Dimuth Karunaratne will also lead the side in the upcoming ODI series beginning on March 10.
“The National Cricket Selectors have chosen the following squad to play the 02 Match Test Series vs West Indies. The squad was approved by the Minister of Youth and Sports Honorable Namal Rajapaksa,” the SLC said in an official statement.
Along with Dimuth Karunaratne, Dhananjaya De Silva, who was ruled out against England owing to a thigh injury that he sustained in South Africa, returns to the team. Pacer Lahiru Kumara continues to be out of the squad after testing positive for the covid-19.
Pathum Nissanka has earned a maiden call-up for the two Tests against West Indies. Dilruwan Perera, Kusal Perera, and Lakshan Sandakan were missing from the Test squad.
Pathum Nissanka, the 22-year-old top-order batsman, has already impressed in the ongoing T20Is in the West Indies with scores of 39 off 34 and 37 off 23. He has also been a consistent performer in first-class cricket, maintaining an average of 67.54 across the 59 long-format innings he has played so far.
In those innings, he has hit 13 hundred and 13 fifties. Middle-order batsman Roshen Silva has also impressed in domestic cricket but has not played a Test in over two years.
Dasun Shanaka Who Had Missed The Flight To West Indies Will Join Teammates During The ODI Part Of The Tour
Earlier, Sri Lanka all-rounder Dasun Shanaka, who had missed the flight to West Indies due to an issue related to securing his visa, will now travel on Sunday to join his teammates. Dasun Shanaka, who was named in the ‘White Ball Squad’ for the West Indies series, did not travel with the team due to a visa issue he confronted, pursuant to the loss of his previous passport, which had a valid visa for the USA stamped on it.
Sri Lanka Cricket on Friday said that the all-rounder will now travel to West Indies via France and is expected to join the national team during the ODI segment of the tour. The newly appointed T20I skipper, all-rounder Dasun Shanaka will travel to the West Indies, but through France and not the USA to join the ODI squad.
Sri Lanka and West Indies are currently locking horns in the T20I series. West Indies defeated Sri Lanka in the first T20I but the visitors made a comeback displaying an all-around performance in the second T20I.
Dasun Shanaka couldn’t leave in time for the T20I series due to US transit visa issues. Hence, Angelo Mathews was asked to captain the side in the T20I series against Kieron Pollard’s team.
Both teams would now lock horns in the third and final T20I on Sunday. After the T20I series, West Indies will shift focus towards the 50-over format. The first ODI between Sri Lanka and West Indies will be played on March 10.
Sri Lanka squad: Dimuth Karunaratne (Captain), Dasun Shanaka, Pathum Nissanka, Oshada Fernando, Lahiru Thirimanne, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Niroshan Dickwella, Roshen Silva, Dhananjaya De Silva, Wanindu Hasaranga, Ramesh Mendis, Vishwa Fernando, Suranga Lakmal, Asitha Fernando, Dushmantha Chameera, Lasith Embuldeniya.