Sri Lanka vs England: Kusal Perera ruled out of the ODI series

Already in trouble, Sri Lanka have been dealt with an injury blow in the ongoing ODI series against England. The swashbuckling batsman Kusal Perera has been ruled out of the remaining three matches due to the hamstring injury. He has been the vital cog of the otherwise struggling Sri Lankan ODI team and the hosts now have a daunting of overhauling the lead which they’ve conceded in the series already.

The third ODI is set to be played in Pallekele as England enter the game as the favourites and they will be looking to take a safe lead with a victory in this encounter. Sadeera Samarawickrama, who is in the squad, will replace Kusal Perera in the XI for the last three ODIs now and being an opener, he might have to make do with a middle-order slot it seems.

There is also a possibility of Niroshan Dickwella moving down the order to accommodate Sadeera in the line-up. An aggressive batsman is a decent option to have at the top-order as his attacking might surprise the visitors early in the innings.

Dawson too ruled out

The spate of injuries are not only in Sri Lanka’s camp. England too have been jolted as their third spinner Liam Dawson has returned home due to an injury according to News 18. He has been replaced by Joe Denly who is also the part of the Test squad. Though it will be interesting to see if they include an extra batsman as his replacement in the XI.

Mark Wood or Tom Curran might be included in the line-up for the third ODI. Sam Curran can also get a nod as his batting is also decent even as England look to extend their lead on the struggling home side. Sri Lanka, however, have nothing to lose and with fewer expectations, they can catch Eoin Morgan’s men off-guard with a spirited show.

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