Opening batter Pathum Nissanka has been withdrawn from Sri Lanka’s squad for the tri-nation ODI series set to begin in Pakistan. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) announced on Thursday (October 15) that he has still not received medical clearance to play.
A hamstring injury picked up on the England tour had already cost him the earlier T20I series against Pakistan. When the squad was named on October 4, his inclusion was conditional on medical reports alone.
Lahiru Udara has been called up to the ODI squad in his place. He has yet to play an ODI, but has already played 5 Tests and 7 T20Is for Sri Lanka.
He featured in the T20I series against England in September and against Pakistan earlier this month. In the first T20I against Pakistan he scored 91, his maiden T20I half-century, and in July he made a superb Test century of 188 against the West Indies.
Nissanka has also been named in the squad for the two-match Test tour of Pakistan, which begins on November 9. His participation in the Test series will depend entirely on his fitness.
The tri-series, featuring England and Pakistan, begins on October 18, with the final scheduled for October 31.
