Marvan to test his back in practice game

by Sa'adi Thawfeeq

Sri Lanka captain Marvan Atapattu recovering from a nagging back injury has been picked to lead the Sri Lanka Cricket XI in a two-day practice match against the touring West Indies at the NCC grounds on Saturday and Sunday.

This will be the West Indies' only practice match ahead of the two Test series against Sri Lanka starting at the SSC grounds on July 13.

For Atapattu who is under treatment from former Sri Lanka team physio Alex Kountouri this will be his first competitive match since the second cricket Test against New Zealand ended on April 14 at Wellington.

Picked to play alongside Atapattu will be his deputy Mahela Jayawardene, wicket-keeper/batsman Kumar Sangakkara and batsman Tilan Samaraweera. These players have been included to give them match practice ahead of the Test series.

Apart from Sangakkara and Jayawardene who have been involved playing charity one-day matches in England, Samaraweera too has been out of competitive cricket for over two months.

One of the pleasing features of the selection is that six of the players picked in the squad of 14 are those who toured Pakistan recently with the Sri Lanka under 19 side. Included are under 19 captain Harsha Vithana, Upul Tharanga, Kaushal Silva, Gihan de Silva, Chamara Kapugedera and Charitha Jayaweera.

The Sri Lanka Cricket XI squad: Marvan Atapattu (captain), Upul Tharanga, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Tilan Samaraweera, Gihan de Silva (w/k), Kaushal Lokuarachchi, Suraj Mohamed, Chanaka Wijesinghe, Thilan Thushara, Charitha Jayaweera, Chamara Kapugedera, Harsha Vithana, Kaushal Silva.

Three changes for deciding 'test'

Three changes have been made to the 14-member squad picked for the decisive third and final cricket 'test' between Sri Lanka 'A' and West Indies 'A' starting at the P. Saravanamuttu Stadium on Thursday.

National Test players Tillakaratne Dilshan, Rangana Herath and Farveez Maharoof have been included to give them match practice ahead of the Tests against West Indies. Dropped from the squad are Dilhara Fernando, Kaushal Lokuarachchi and Suraj Mohamed. The three-match unofficial test series stands at one-all.

Sri Lanka 'A' squad: Russel Arnold (captain), Avishka Gunawardene, Ian Daniel, Shantha Kalavitigoda, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Prasanna Jayawardene (w/k), Farveez Maharoof, Danushka Lokuhettige, Nuwan Zoysa, Rangana Herath, Sajeewa Weerakoon, Malintha Gajanayake, Michael van Dort, Gayan Wijekoon.