Awful News for Sri Lanka | Dimuth Karunaratne Doubtful For Tests vs Pakistan
Dimuth Karunaratne is battling hamstring injury [Source: Twitter]
In what could be a massive blow for Sri Lanka, Test skipper Dimuth Karunaratne could potentially miss the first Test against Pakistan, which begins on Sunday as a part of a two-match series.
Karunaratne is struggling with a hamstring injury and will undergo a fitness test in Colombo, and if found unfit, will not travel to Galle, the venue for the first Test.
As confirmed by a close SLC source to Daily Mirror, all-rounder Dhananjaya de Silva will lead Sri Lanka if Karunaratne remains unavailable. The hamstring forced the Southpaw to sit out of Sri Lanka's ICC World Cup Qualifier 2023 Final against the Netherlands last Sunday as well.
The 35-year-old was Sri Lanka's second-highest run-getter in CWC Qualifiers 2023, slamming 369 runs with one hundred and three fifties.
This source further stated that selectors have zeroed in on the squad but are awaiting Karunaratne's fitness report.
Here's what SLC source said
"In the event of Dimuth (Karunaratne)'s unavailability, the team will be led by the 31-year-old all rounder Dhananjaya de Silva, who is already the vice captain. They have selected the squad for the first Test only. The team for the second Test (to be played in Colombo (July 24-28) will be finalized on the third day of the first Test."
Pacer Lahiru Kumara is also expected to miss the Test, as he is yet to recover from a side-strain injury. The second and final Test will be played in Colombo from July 24.
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