Sri Lanka’s fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera will not play in the remaining T20 World Cup matches. A calf injury has taken the speedster out of the race.
Earlier, Chameera missed the 2022 Asia Cup due to an ankle ailment, but after being deemed healthy, he was included in their World Cup team.
The 30-year-old took the first three wickets to fall in the innings, contributing significantly to Sri Lanka’s crushing 79-run victory against the UAE in Geelong, finishing with figures of 3 for 15. He was seen shaking his head as he staggered off the pitch, having suffered the injury in the final over of his term.
Pramod Madushan, who will have scans for a hamstring injury, and Danushka Gunathilaka, who missed the UAE game, are also causes for concern. Sri Lanka’s medical staff is optimistic that the latter’s injury is not too significant.
A Blow to Sri Lanka
After Sri Lanka’s bowlers dominated the encounter against UAE, dismissing the opposition for 73 in just 18 overs, the loss of Chameera and, perhaps, Madushan is a blow. After the team’s batting crumbled in the 15th over, going from 117 for 3 to barely 152 for 8, there are still questions about the team’s performance.
Sri Lanka’s middle order enters the last game of the qualification stage substantially short of runs after also having a dismal batting performance against Namibia. Given that temperatures have routinely dropped into the low teens in Geelong during the past two weeks, coach Chris Silverwood believes that the weather may be a factor in this.
The boys are not accustomed to the temperatures we are now experiencing, according to Silverwood. “Colombo is definitely not it. In a little way, I’m freezing as well. You can’t avoid it. In spite of our early arrival, the facilities and preparation were excellent. We’ve prepared as much as we can with the boys. Before flying here, we enjoyed a fantastic camp in Kandy. The truth is, we did our best with what we had.”
At least the bowlers gave a thorough performance on Tuesday. Before the spinners destroyed UAE’s middle and lower order batsman, seamers Chameera and Madushan bowled away the top order.
At the beginning of the game, Sri Lanka’s top three also created a solid foundation. The top batsman for Sri Lanka was opener Pathum Nissanka, who scored one run (74 off 60) more than the whole UAE squad. He advanced gradually through the first few overs before hitting boundaries late in the innings to increase his strike rate on a challenging surface.
