Sri Lanka vs West Indies 2020: Nuwan Pradeep and Dhananjaya de Silva ruled out of T20I series
What's the story?
Sri Lanka have suffered a double blow ahead of their two-match T20I series against the visiting West Indies, as pacer Nuwan Pradeep and all-rounder Dhanajaya de Silva have been ruled out due to injuries.
The background
Led by Dimuth Karunaratne, Sri Lanka outplayed West Indies in the recently-concluded three-match ODI series, clinching it 3-0.
The hosts registered a thrilling one-wicket win in the series opener at Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo before inflicting a 161-run defeat on the visitors in the next fixture at Hambantota, having posted a massive total of 345-8 batting first.
The third and final game of the series went down to the wire but Angelo Mathews made sure Sri Lanka won the high-scoring encounter by giving away just six runs off the final over.
The 32-year-old Mathews, who finished the game with figures of 4/59 in 10 overs, was adjudged the Man of the Match for his exploits with the ball.
Meanwhile, all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga, who managed 75 runs and four wickets in the three ODIs, walked away with the Man of the Series award.
The heart of the matter
Nuwan Pradeep, who managed three wickets in as many games against Kieron Pollard's men, will be out of action for six weeks due to a hamstring injury he sustained during the third ODI. That means he will miss the upcoming T20I series against West Indies and the subsequent Test series against England.
Dhananjaya de Silva, who amassed 81 runs in three matches (including a half-century in the third ODI), has also been ruled out of the T20I series against West Indies due to a wrist injury.
While 22-year-old right-arm medium-fast bowler Asitha Fernando has been named as Nuwan Pradeep's replacement for the T20I series, no replacement has been announced as yet for Dhananjaya de Silva.
Also see – RCB 2020 team
What's next?
Having inflicted a whitewash in the ODI series, the 2014 T20 World Cup winners will be determined to continue their dominance over the reigning World T20 champions. Both the T20Is will be played at the Palleke International Stadium, on March 4th and March 6th respectively.
The visitors will be hoping for a turnaround in fortunes after a disappointing outing in the 50-over format.