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Angelo Mathews Returns To Sri Lanka Test Squad

Angelo Mathews returns to Sri Lanka Test squad

Sri Lanka have named the squad for the Test series against England at home. The team would be led by Dimuth Karunaratne while a major boost for the hosts has come with the inclusion of Angelo Mathews and Nuwan Pradeep. Apart from these, Roshen Silva, Lakshan Sandakan and Ramesh Silva are the other three to find a place for themselves.

Dhananjaya de Silva and Kasun Rajitha have been dropped from the squad after sustaining individual injuries. Dhanajaya tore a ligament in his thigh while Rajitha injured his groin.

Mathews was a part of the Sri Lankan squad but had to withdraw his name after he suffered a hamstring injury in a domestic T20 competition.

The two-match Test series between England and Sri Lanka begins on Thursday. The matches will take place behind close doors in Galle. Sri Lanka are coming into the series after suffering a 0-2 loss at the hands of South Africa away from home.

The England team on the other side has a big and busy schedule ahead of them with 17 Tests lined up. They will first play Sri Lanka and will then travel to India and then are likely to face New Zealand and India at home which would be followed by the Ashes series in Australia.

Squad: Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), Kusal Janith Perera, Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Oshada Fernando, Niroshan Dickwella, Minod Bhanuka, Lahiru Thirimanne, Lasith Embuldeniya, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dilruwan Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Lahiru Kumara, Vishwa Fernando, Dushmantha Chameera, Dasun Shanaka, Asitha Fernando, Roshen Silva, Lakshan Sandakan, Nuwan Pradeep, Ramesh Mendis

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It's still not an advantage for us: Nathan Lyon on India's injury woes

The Indian team will be missing some key players in the fourth Test against Australia in Brisbane but spinner Nathan Lyon feels that this isn’t an advantage for the home side. "I wouldn''t say that (Australia have the advantage). You look at the class throughout the Indian squad, yes they will be missing a couple of big players but they have got a talented squad they can pick from," Lyon said during a virtual press conference on Wednesday. The off-spinner further said that the Australian team needs to focus more on their on performance. "To be honest, we have to worry about our preparation. We can''t look too far at what they are doing. As bowlers, we are very well suited for the Gabba and hopefully we can put them into play nice and early when we have the ball in hand." India have some major injury concerns after Ravindra Jadeja and Hanuma Vihari were the latest additions to the list of injured Indian players. Both the players sustained injuries during the third Test in Sydney. The Indian team suffered another huge blow after pacer Jasprit Bumrah was also ruled out of the 4th Test after sustaining an abdominal strain. Off-spinner R Ashwin and Mayank Agarwal’s place in the XI is also under dark clouds as the two players too have sustained injuries. Agarwal was hit on the gloves and taken for scans while Ashwin has been suffering from back spasms. Earlier, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav and KL Rahul were ruled out of the Test series due to respective injuries.

IPL this time wasn’t ideal timing for anyone: Justin Langer

Coach Justin Langer has questioned the timing of the Indian Premier League after both India and Australia have some injury concerns during the on-going series between the two nations. India’s injury woes continue after Jasprit Bumrah was also ruled out of the fourth Test against Australia. The IPL was held in Dubai during September-November. “It is really interesting how many injuries (it) has been throughout this summer. I can’t help and think that the IPL this year (2020) was in really, probably wasn’t ideal timing for anyone, certainly for such a big series like this,” Langer said at a virtual press conference. Langer said that he “loves” the IPL but the timing of the tournament has certainly created some problems. “I love the IPL, I look at IPL now like I used to look at county cricket for our young players. They go and play county cricket and it helps them (in) their cricket development enormously, I think it is the same with the IPL, helps their white-ball development. “But the timing of it…because of what happened with COVID…probably wasn’t ideal, and I just wonder whether that is having an impact on the injuries that we are seeing for both teams throughout the summer, so I’m sure they’ll review that,” said the Australian head coach. All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, Hanuma Vihari and R Ashwin were injured during the third Test. Jadeja and Vihari have already been ruled out of the last match while are also likely to miss the first two Tests against England. Earlier, KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav were ruled out after sustaining individual injuries. The fourth and final Test begins on January 15 in Brisbane with the series levelled at 1-1.

Amir was dropped as his performances were not up to the mark: Babar Azam

Pakistan captain Babar Azam has explained the reason behind Mohammad Amir’s exclusion from the side. Azam said that the left-arm pacer wasn’t performing well and was out of form. "Mohammad Amir was dropped as his performances were not up to the mark. If he regains his form and continues to perform, then selectors will definitely consider his return and talk to him," he said. Amir had announced his retirement from the international cricket after being snubbed from the side for the New Zealand tour. The pacer had earlier alleged that he was facing mental torture from the team management. Earlier, head coach Misbha-ul-Haq had said that the team management had decided to drop Amir as his performance wasn’t up to the mark. "Nobody was supporting his selection on the basis of performance. I have no idea why he made up everything and tried to give this whole scenario a context that is out of proportion. For him, it was a simple method: go back and prove his form and get back in the team and everything else is irrelevant," Misbah said in a press conference. Babar Azam who missed the New Zealand tour due to a thumb injury will be back in action against South Africa at home. The South African team is slated to play a two-match Test series and a three-match T20I series against Pakistan. The first Test begins from January 26 in Karachi while the second will take place in Rawalpindi. The teams will then travel to Lahore for the T20I series.

It is something I do in games: Smith defends scuffing of Pant’s guard

Steve Smith, the former Australian captain has defended his actions where the camera caught him erasing the guards marked by Rishabh Pant during the drinks break on the fourth day of third Australia- India Test at Sydney Cricket Ground. Explaining his actions, Smith told News Corp, “It’s something I do in games to visualize where we are bowling, how the batter is playing our bowlers and then out of habit I always mark center.” “It’s such a shame that this and other events have taken away from what was a great batting performance by India yesterday,” he added. Earlier, Tim Paine, the Australian skipper too had defended Smith’s actions saying that it is one of Steve Smith’s quirkiness which he needs to improve upon, but it was definitely not cheating. “If you’ve watched Steve Smith play test cricket, that’s something that he does every single game five or six times a day,” Paine had told reporters. “He’s always standing in the batting crease shadow batting. As we know, he’s got those many Steve Smith quirks and one of those is he’s always marking the center. It’s something that he might need to look at because of the perception of it,” the 36-year-old skipper, who took over the captaincy from Smith post the sandpaper gate case added.