Sri Lanka batsman Dinesh Chandimal out of Asia Cup with finger injury
The 28-year-old fractured his right middle finger while playing Colombo in a domestic T20 league match.
Sri Lanka Test captain Dinesh Chandimal has been ruled out of his country’s Asia Cup campaign after failing to overcome a finger injury, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) announced on Monday.
The 28-year-old batsman fractured his right middle finger while representing Colombo in the SLC T20 League earlier this month. He will be replaced by wicket-keeper Niroshan Dickwella, who was a reserve player in the squad.
The South Asian team will begin their Asia Cup campaign with a match against Bangladesh on 15 September, before taking to Afghanistan on 17 September.
Chandimal’s full-fledged return on hold
Chandimal was found guilty of ball-tampering during a St. Lucia Test in June, and was handed a six-match ban.
He subsequently missed two Tests and four ODIs against South Africa in July and August. Still, he was recalled for the one-off Twenty20 against the Springboks on 14 August.
The batsman was in doubt for this month’s Asia Cup, as Sri Lankan selectors decided to keep him in the provisional squad. However, medical assessments stated that his broken finger needs more treatment to recuperate.
The 2018 Asia Cup will be held in the United Arab Emirates from the 15 to the 28 of September.
The six teams competing for the trophy are: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.