Pakistani batsman Imam-ul-Haq and Zimbabwean fast bowler Richard Ngarava were among the last minute additions to Colombo Strikers and Galle Titans franchises respectively, ahead of the fourth edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) that starts on Sunday.

The Strikers, led by Niroshan Dickwella, have also brought in Shoriful Islam in for Wahab Riaz, with ul-Haq coming in place of Irish batsman Lorcan Tucker. 

Dambulla Aura were also forced into making a change to overseas players, with their marquee overseas players Lungi Ngidi and Matthew Wade unavailable. 

They have signed Ben McDermot and Hasan Ali as replacements. 

Ngarava meanwhile, will come in for the Galle Titans with Australian Ben Cutting coming in, while Lahiru Kumara, who was ruled out for the early stages of the tournament with injury, has been replaced with Milan Rathnayake. 

The defending champions Jaffna Kings have also had to make changes to overseas players, with Shoaib Malik and Zaman Khan being replaced by Towhid Hridoy and Nandre Burger. 

Malik is expected to join the franchise after the first few matches of the tournament. 

The least inconvenienced by last minute changes are B-Love Kandy, with Pakistan’s Asif Ali dropping out to be replaced by compatriot Sarfaraz Ahmed.