Sri Lanka makes wholesale changes to ODI squad

Following their 2-0 loss at the hands of England in the recently concluded three-match Test series, the Sri Lanka management has decided on making wholesale changes to the squad. The Lankan side is expected to stay on the island of the United Kingdom as they will play Ireland and England in a series of ODIs and T20 internationals over the next month.

Milinda Siriwardana, the 30-year old all-rounder who was a part of the Sri Lanka side for the second Test at Durham has been dropped from the side. Moreover, Dimuth Karunaratne, Kaushal Silva, Niroshan Dickwella, and Dilruwan Perera have all been dropped from the side to make way for five new players who the Lankan management believe could very well make an impact. The same was confirmed by Lankan team manager Charith Senanayake.

Farveez Maharoof, Upul Tharanga, Seekkuge Prasanna, Danushka Gunathilaka and Suraj Randiv would be joining the squad for the ODIs and the one-off Twenty20 International (T20I) against England.

Sri Lanka has also recalled opening batsman Upul Tharanga back into the side, a move that certainly adds a bit of solidity to the otherwise feeble looking batting unit. However, the major news is the exclusion of Milinda Siriwardana. In spite of being impressive in his previous ODI encounters against New Zealand with both bat and ball, the southpaw was excluded from the ODI squad.

The Lankans will first make the trip to Dublin to take on Ireland in a mini-series before making the short trip back to England to play a bevy of ODIs and T20Is.

Sri Lanka squad: Angelo Mathews (C), Lahiru Thirimanne, Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Perera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Upul Tharanga, Dhananjaya de Silva, Shaminda Eranga, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal, Kusal Mendis, Dasun Shanaka, Farveez Maharoof, Suraj Randiv, Seekkuge Prasanna

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