Angelo Mathews won't bowl, Kapugedara ruled out of the match, confirms Sri Lankan manager

After playing exceptionally well against Pakistan in their tournament opener, India will now lock horns with a relatively young Sri Lankan side tomorrow at the iconic Oval. India will be the favourites going into the game, not on the back of their 124 runs victory, but also because Sri Lanka have been bogged down with quite a few issues. Angelo Mathews will not bowl for his side in the important clash since he is coming back from a hamstring injury.

And if that was not a big backset already, senior batsman Chamara Kapugedera also sustained a knee injury and left the ground in considerable pain. Sri Lankan manager Asanka Gurusinha informed that although Mathews will play and captain the side, he will not be bowling and it will certainly affect the balance of the team. Sri Lanka have already got two replacements though, who are travelling with the team.

Dhanushka Gunathilake replaces Kapugedera

“Angelo is playing against India but he will only be batting. He is still not fit enough to bowl. As far as Kapu (Kapugedera) is concerned, it looked bad and we are still not sure whether we can avail his services,” Gurusinha told PTI from the sidelines of the Sri Lankan training on the eve of India match.

Kapugedera has been ruled out of the Champions Trophy and Sri Lanka requested the ICC Technical Committee to allow them to add Danushka Gunathilaka as a replacement and the ICC TC has approved it.

#ct17 Event Technical Committee approves Danushka Gunathilaka as a replacement player for Chamara Kapugedera in @OfficialSLC squad #INDvSL

— ICC Media (@ICCMediaComms) June 7, 2017

Sri Lanka lost to South Africa in their first game of the tournament and will be very eager to win against India to still keep their hopes of a semi-final berth alive. For India, a win will guarantee them a place in the top 4, and a loss will mean the game between South Africa will be a must-win encounter.

Although India have both their batting and bowling departments sorted, they need to improve on their fielding to win the game with ease and march into the semi-finals of the tournament.