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Tuesday, 11 January 2022 02:21 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Sa’adi Thawfeeq
It required two young members of the Sri Lanka squad selected for the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe to test COVID-19 positive for the national selectors to bring in two experienced batters in an otherwise totally inexperienced line-up.
Replacing opening bat Avishka Fernando and uncapped middle-order batsman Janith Liyanage, who have been ruled out of the series after testing COVID-19 positive, are Kusal Mendis and Dinesh Chandimal.
The squad also sees two other changes with fast bowlers Lahiru Kumara and uncapped Kalana Perera both failing the mandatory fitness test. They are replaced by Vishwa Fernando and Asitha Fernando.
Mendis has been recalled to international cricket after seven months during which he underwent a one-year international ban from all forms of cricket and was also fined by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) for breaking the team bio-bubble during the tour to England in June last year. SLC lifted the ban last week on an appeal made by Mendis and two other Sri Lankan players Niroshan Dickwella and Danushka Gunathilaka, who were also handed similar bans.
Mendis made up for those lost months by finishing as the leading run-getter in the recently concluded Lanka Premier League with 327 runs (avg. 36.33) and a top score of 85. He was at the top of his form for Galle Gladiators who made it to the final.
Chandimal fell out of favour with the national selectors over the controversial performance-based player contracts last May and along with three other senior players – Angelo Mathews, Dimuth Karunaratne and Suranga Lakmal – was left out of white-ball cricket for the ODI series against Bangladesh, England and India before being recalled for the third and final ODI against South Africa where he replaced Minod Bhanuka as wicketkeeper and also made his 150th ODI appearance. Since then he has been recalled into Sri Lanka’s T20I side, for the home tour against South Africa, and also made it to the T20 World Cup in the UAE. His original absence from the ODI squad for the series against Zimbabwe was somewhat mysterious with the selectors forsaking experience for inexperience by promoting youngsters, naming as many as five uncapped players in the squad of 18.
Two other players who contracted the COVID-19 virus skipper Dasun Shanaka and fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera have been cleared to play in the series after undergoing successful PCR tests.
The three ODIs will be played at Pallekele on 16, 18 and 21 January.
Sri Lanka ODI Squad:
Dasun Shanaka (captain), Dhananjaya de Silva (vice-captain), Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, Charith Asalanka, Minod Bhanuka, Chamika Karunaratne, Maheesh Theekshana, Jeffrey Vandersay, Vishwa Fernando, Nuwan Thushara, Dinesh Chandimal, Ramesh Mendis, Praveen Jayawickrama, Dushmantha Chameera, Chamika Gunasekara, Asitha Fernando, Kamil Mishara.
