A player from alternate Sri Lanka squad tests positive ahead of India series

The Sri-Lanka ODI series was all set to commence on July 13 with three T20Is to follow up. However, as soon as the Lanka team came back after plying their trade in England, COVID-19 havoc started breaking in their camp. In the latest turn of events, a player from a group of senior cricketers who were training in a different setup has tested positive.

As per the SLC source, batsman Sandun Weerakkodi has tested for COVID-19 and he was with 15 senior players of Lanka who were training in Colombo. He along with Bhanuka Rajapaksa and a set of other cricketers were sent for practice sessions to Dambulla ahead of high-profile series against India. Now the entire squad which was at Cinnamon Grand Hotel that includes players like Asela Guneratne, Angelo Perera, and Bhanuka Rajapaksa will observe quarantine.

Another set of cricketers which includes 24 players are training in a separate bubble and they are believed to be completely safe as reported by SLC. The same squad was being prepared as an alternate squad to ply trade against India as the two staff members from the SL team have already tested positive.

SL’s batting coach Grant Flower and performance analyst have tested positive. In the same sequence of events, the SLC secretary opened up on fielding an alternate side against the Indian team if more cases pop up in the national side. The series has already been postponed and it will be a thing to see how it unfolds successfully.

All players of the team have tested negative: SLC secretary

“In the event that there are more positive cases leading up to the first ODI on 17 July, they were preparing to field an alternate team from the squads that are practicing in Dambulla and in Colombo and are in a bio-bubble,” said SLC Secretary Mohan de Silva, in an interaction with the media.

“All players of the team have tested negative, but we are mindful of the fact that the team’s batting coach & data analyst tested positive and for that reason, we are likely to reschedule the series,” he added.