IND vs SL 2021: Major injury scare for Sri Lanka as 3 players likely to miss 2nd T20I

Bhanuka Rajapaksa (L) and Charith Asalanka

Sri Lanka Cricket's already stretched resources have taken another hit as three players have suffered injuries and are likely to miss out on the second T20I against India on Tuesday (July 27).

Bhanuka Rajapaksa, who was struck on the finger by Hardik Pandya during his match-winning 65 in the third ODI, has been ruled out of the whole series. Scans revealed severe damage to his finger and had earlier forced him to miss the first T20I. Overall, the aggressive left-handed batter had accrued 89 runs from three innings in the ODI series at an average of 29.67.

24-year-old Charith Asalanka, one of the finds of the series for Sri Lanka, is also doubtful to play on Tuesday due to a hamstring injury he reportedly suffered during the first T20I. Asalanka was not only Sri Lanka's second-highest scorer in the ODI leg - 127 runs from 3 innings - but also singlehandedly kept them in the T20I with his knock of 44.

WATCH:📽 Charith Asalanka's maiden T20I inning | 1st T20I vs India 💥

Full Highlight 👉 https://t.co/evGxMW1cy4#SLvIND pic.twitter.com/o1V5wgG6sC
— Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) July 26, 2021

And finally batsman Pathum Nissanka was hit in the arm during a net session on Sunday. The hosts are waiting for scan results but he also looks unlikely to take the field on Tuesday.

So far, Sri Lanka had only Nissanka and Sadeera Samarawickrama as batting replacements in the squad and three simultaneous injuries could prove to be a killer blow for a team already struggling for wins. It remains to be seen if the host board ropes in players from a backup squad which was kept ready and under Covid-19 protocols before the series.

The triple whammy comes after Test captain Dimuth Karunaratne was looked over for the whole tour due to contractual issues and fast-bowlers Karun Rajitha and Binura Fernando were also ruled out before the T20I series.

Full schedule of India's tour of Sri Lanka

What happens when #TeamIndia's swing kings @BhuviOfficial & @deepak_chahar9 are Chahal TV's special guests? 🤔@yuzi_chahal tickles their funny bone & it's laughter galore in Colombo 😎😎 - by @28anand & @ameyatilak

Watch the full video 🎥 👇 #SLvIND https://t.co/6UMBozEOT0 pic.twitter.com/YOWEF7fOl9
— BCCI (@BCCI) July 26, 2021

ODI series:

First ODI: July 18 - India won by 7 wickets
Second ODI: July 20 - India won by 3 wickets
Third ODI: July 23 - Sri Lanka won by 3 wickets (DLS)

T20I series:

First T20I: July 25 - India won by 38 runs
Second T20I: July 27
Third T20I: July 29