A day after naming Dimuth Karunaratne as captain, Sri Lanka Cricket pulled off more surprises on Thursday as they dumped established stars including former captain Dinesh Chandimal as the 15-member squad for the World Cup was announced.
Milinda Siriwardana, Jeffrey Vandersay and Jeevan Mendis made remarkable comebacks as well.
Siriwardana and Vandersay last played one-day internationals in October 2017, while Jeevan Mendis’ previous appearance in the format came in the 2015 World Cup match against Afghanistan.
However, many of the regulars, including Niroshan Dickwella, Danushka Gunathilaka, Chandimal, Upul Tharanga and Akila Dananjaya, were excluded from the squad altogether, with Oshada Fernando, Angelo Perera, Kasun Rajitha, and Wanindu Hasaranga placed on standby.
READ: All the World Cup squads announced so far — here.
Earlier, on Wednesday, veteran pacer Lasith Malinga was sacked as ODI skipper and Test captain Dimuth Karunaratne was announced as the man to lead the island nation at the marquee event.
The 31-year-old Karunaratne, who didn’t play a single ODI since the 2015 World Cup, has only featured in 17 matches in the format and averages 15.83 with a high score of 60. He will replace Malinga, who had captained the team during the 0-5 loss to South Africa in the ODI series.
Opening batsman Avishka Fernando and paceman Nuwan Pradeep were also named for the 50-over event which starts in England and Wales on May 30.
The 1996 champions kick off their campaign against New Zealand in Cardiff on June 1.
Squad: Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Avishka Fernando, Lahiru Thirimanne, Kusal Perera, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya de Silva, Jeffery Vandersay, Thisara Perera, Isuru Udana, Lasith Malinga, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Jeevan Mendis, Milinda Siriwardana
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