Dilshan Madushanka and Matheesha Pathirana, two of Sri Lanka’s main pace bowlers, will miss the India ODI series, which commences on August 2. Having already lost Dushmantha Chameera and Nuwan Thushara to injuries prior to the commencement of the T20I series, Sri Lanka’s bowling is now even more weakened.
Eshan Malinga and Mohamed Shiraz, two uncapped fast bowlers, have been called up to the ODI team to fill in. The Sri Lankan ODI team has also added three players as standbys: Jeffrey Vandersay, Pramod Madushan, and Kusal Janith Perera.
Madushanka sustained a Grade 2 left hamstring injury while fielding during a practice session. On the other hand, Pathirana’s right shoulder sprained somewhat while diving to grab a catch during the third Twenty20 International against India on July 30 at Kandy.
Shiraz’s List A record has been quite impressive. He has a total of 80 wickets to his name in 47 games at a miserly economy of 4.57. The 23-year-old Malinga debuted in July 2022, with 12 wickets in seven games at an economy rate of 5.80. Given Sri Lanka’s previous history of frequent fast bowling ailments, the uncapped pair will want to take advantage of this opportunity to push themselves up the selection hierarchy against India.
The ODI series will commence on the 2nd of August, followed by games on the 4th and the 7th of August. All the games will be played at the R Premadasa stadium in Colombo.
