Mendis cleared to return for third Aussie T20I

Sri Lanka will be boosted by the return of Kusal Mendis for the third T20I against Australia, after he returned a negative Covid-19 test yesterday. Mendis tested positive last Tuesday, which resulted in him missing the first two T20Is of the five match series, both of which Sri Lanka lost.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) yesterday confirmed Mendis’ availability and that he had been medically cleared to join the team. Mendis could be brought straight into the team at the expense of either Dinesh Chandimal or Danushka Gunathilaka, with the latter’s failures at the top of the order particularly pronounced. He scored 1 and 0 in what was his first outings for the country since his international cricket ban was lifted earlier this year.

Sri Lanka will however be without fast-bowler Binura Fernando who tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday. Fernando, who was excellent in the opening match of the series with figures of 2 for 12, missed the second T20I before it was reported that he had tested positive, with Nuwan Thushara debuting in his place. Former Australian captain Steven Smith meanwhile has been ruled out for the rest of the series, picking up a concussion when he banged his head on the ground attempting to save a six on the boundary line on Sunday.