Sri Lanka have suffered a major blow with the news that skipper Dasun Shanaka will miss the remainder of the 2023 ODI Cricket World Cup due to injury.
Shanaka picked up a quad injury during Sri Lanka’s World Cup clash against Pakistan on Tuesday and scans have since revealed that the hard-hitting all-rounder will be sidelined for a minimum of three weeks.
Sri Lanka have opted to replace Shanaka in their squad with fellow all-rounder Chamika Karunaratne, with the move approved by the Event Technical Committee earlier today.
Karunaratne is already in India and has been travelling with the team as their reserve player and could come into contention to play Sri Lanka’s next match against Australia in Lucknow on Monday.
The 27-year-old hasn’t played for Sri Lanka since he appeared in a T20I against New Zealand at the start of April, but has made more than 60 appearances for his country in all three formats.
In-form batter Kusal Mendis is the vice-captain of Sri Lanka’s squad and is expected to step up and take the captaincy reins in the absence of Shanaka.
