In what comes as a major setback for the Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka, star pacer Dushmantha Chameera has been ruled out of the remainder of the T20 World Cup. The right-arm pacer reportedly suffered a calf injury which will force him out of the multi-national tournament. Chameera also missed the 2022 Asia Cup with a leg injury.
The Sri Lankan pacer played a vital role in his team's 79-run win against the UAE on October 18 (Tuesday). He bagged three wickets and finished with figures of 3/15. Chameera was seen hobbling off the field after sustaining an injury during the last over of his spell against the UAE.
Earlier, Dilshan Madushanka was ruled out of the tournament due to an injury and Binura Fernando replaced injured pacer in the Sri Lankan squad for the T20 World Cup.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka bounced back from their opening matchday loss to Namibia with a comprehensive 79 run-victory over the United Arab Emirates (UAE), keeping their hopes of making it to the Super 12 very much alive. Led by Pathum Nissanka with the bat and then a complete bowling performance for the Lankans, it was not only a crucial and important win, but also impressive as they hope to work their way up in Group A.
Opener Nissanka improved from his nine runs in the first match against Namibia and was the main aggressor despite yet another middle-order collapse for his side. Only the first three batters for Sri Lanka managed to reach double digits, but this did not stop the Lankan batters from reaching a competitive score of 152/8. Then the bowlers did their job to perfection, dismissing the UAE batters for just 73 runs in 17.1 overs.
