New Zealand vs Sri Lanka: Islanders announce 17-man squad for the Test series

Sri Lanka didn’t have the best of times by any means in their erstwhile Test series against England in their own backyard. The Three Lions, led by Joe Root, slapped the Islanders with a 3-0 whitewash. Moreover, they didn’t have the services of the veteran Dinesh Chandimal, who was ruled out owing to a groin injury and he didn’t play the last two Tests in Pallekele and Colombo respectively.

The Lankans are now scheduled to tour New Zealand and will play a two-match Test series to start their campaign. The opening Test will be played at Basin Reserve in Wellington from Saturday, December 15 followed by the second encounter at Hagley Oval in Christchurch from Wednesday, December 26. In the meantime, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has announced a 17-man squad for the red-ball fixtures.

Chandimal returns

The visitors have a good news for the reason that Chandimal has been included as their skipper for the tour along with vice captain Dimuth Karunaratne. Suranga Lakmal, who captained in the last two Tests, has been removed from the vice captain’s role as well. There’s no place for off-break bowler Akila Dananjaya, who was reported after the first Test on account of having a suspect bowling action.

Chinaman bowler Lakshan Sandakan and Dilruwan Perera are the spinners in the lineup. Bearing in mind the conditions in New Zealand, the visitors have included a number of fast-bowlers, something which haven’t sprung a surprise. It goes without saying the Lankans would be looking upon Angelo Mathews, their most experienced player in the squad, to step up and deliver the goods.

Here is the squad

Dinesh Chandimal (C), Dimuth Karunaratne (VC), Kusal Mendis, Dhananjaya de Silva, Angelo Mathews, Roshen Silva, Niroshan Dickwella, Danushka Gunathilaka, Lahiru Thirimanne, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dilruwan Perera, Lakshan Sandakan, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Kasun Rajitha, Lahiru Kumara, Dushmantha Chameera

[interaction id=”5c01040a8f812fb7f30d18c5″]

Get the latest Cricket News and updates, Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com.