Madushanka, Wellalage and Arachchige sent to Zimbabwe as ’stand-by options’

20 June 2023 12:07 pm Views - 1629

Sri Lanka have sent three players – left arm fast bowler Dilshan Madushanka, left arm spinner Dunith Wellalage and all-rounder Sahan Arachchige – as stand by 'options' to the squad at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers in Zimbabwe. 

All three players were part of the Sri Lanka 'A' team that faced South Africa 'A' in a three-match unofficial ODI series, which the South Africans won 2-1. 

Madushanka had excellent returns for Sri Lanka 'A' in the limited over series and was among the wickets in the first unofficial Test that followed as well.

Wellalage took four wickets in the three unofficial ODIs against South Africa 'A', and if called on, would give Sri Lanka the option of a left-arm spinner which it doesn't have in its current squad. 

Arachchige meanwhile, could add some firepower to the batting, and was the second highest run scorer for Sri Lanka 'A' in the unofficial ODI series. 

As the qualifiers are an ICC organized tournament, Sri Lanka cannot add or change players in their squad unless it's due to injury and a request is evaluated by a Technical Committee.