Colombo, June 23 (IANS) Sri Lanka pacer Milan Rathnayake has been ruled out of the second Test against Bangladesh, to be played in Colombo from Wednesday. The pacer sustained a left-side strain in the opening Test of the two-Test series last week. He had briefly left the field on the second morning in Galle but returned to claim three wickets by the end of the first innings, finishing the Test with four in total.
Milan was particularly economical, and his late burst on day two helped restrict Bangladesh’s first innings total to a manageable target for Sri Lanka. With the bat, he contributed a valuable 39 off 83 balls as part of a crucial 84-run seventh-wicket partnership with Kamindu Mendis.
Left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando has been named as his replacement. Spin-bowling allrounder Dunith Wellalage has also been added to Sri Lanka’s squad, with the 22-year-old set to take the place of Angelo Mathews, who retired from Test cricket following the first match of the series.
If Sri Lanka opt to replace Milan with another allrounder, they currently lack a seam-bowling allrounder in the squad. Wellalage and Sonal Dinusha, both left-arm spinners, could be considered, but with the SSC pitch typically offering less assistance to spinners than Galle – already unusually batter-friendly – Sri Lanka may prefer to include an extra fast bowler instead. If one of the spinners is selected, Tharindu Rathnayake may be the one to miss out. The pace attack includes Vishwa Fernando, Asitha Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, and uncapped Isitha Wijesundara.
As for filling Mathews’ spot in the XI, the likely options are Pasindu Sooriyabandara or Pavan Rathnayake, both of whom have shown strong form in recent domestic cricket and for Sri Lanka A. Oshada Fernando is also in contention, having returned to the national setup after a productive spell with Sri Lanka A late in 2024.
Following this second Test against Bangladesh, Sri Lanka will not play another Test match until 2025.
Sri Lanka squad for second Test: Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), Pathum Nissanka, Oshada Fernando, Lahiru Udara, Dinesh Chandimal, Kamindu Mendis, Kusal Mendis, Dunith Wellalage, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Sonal Dinusha, Pavan Rathnayake, Prabath Jayasuriya, Tharindu Rathnayake, Akila Dananjaya, Vishwa Fernando, Asitha Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, Isitha Wijesundara.
–IANS
ab/bsk/
