Sri Lanka’s 2023 World Cup campaign took a major hit as Dasun Shanaka, their captain, was ruked out with a right thigh-muscle injury. In response, the ICC Technical Committee gave approval on October 14 for the inclusion of Chamika Karunaratne as a replacement player.
“Karunaratne, who has played 23 ODIs, was named as a replacement after Shanaka was ruled out due to a right thigh muscle injury sustained during Sri Lanka’s match against Pakistan on 10th October,” said the ICC statement. “The injury needs three weeks to recover.”
Shanaka suffered the quadriceps injury during the loss to Pakistan, and subsequent scans revealed that the dynamic all-rounder would likely be unavailable until at least the end of the league phase.
Karunaratne is already with the team in India, serving as a reserve player. He will be available for Sri Lanka’s upcoming match against Australia in Lucknow on Monday.
Karunaratne, a 27-year-old all-rounder, hasn’t featured for Sri Lanka since his last appearance in a T20I against New Zealand in early April.
As a result of Shanaka’s unavailability, Kusal Mendis, the vice-captain of the team, is expected to step up and assume leadership of the side.