Asela Gunaratne after injuring his thumb against India. (Source: AP)
On the first day of series, Sri Lanka suffered a big blow as middle-order batsman Asela Gunaratne was ruled out of the entire India-Sri Lanka Test series. According to Cricbuzz, Arjun de Silva, member of the Sri Lanka Cricket medical staff, has confirmed that the batsmen won’t take any further part in the series.
“Asela will be taken for surgery soon. After this kind of injury, a player requires about six weeks to recover and play again. He is definitely out of the Test and ODIs. Maybe he stands a chance for the T20 International,” De Silva said.
Gunaratne was ruled out after he fractured his left thumb while trying to take a catch at second slip during India innings of the first Test at Galle. He sustained the injury while fielding at second slip when tried to take a catch off Shikhar Dhawan diving towards his left. Though he got two hands to it, he dropped it and was in pain.
Asela went off the field after the drop, seemingly in pain before scans revealed that he has a fractured thumb. According to reports, Gunaratne has been rushed to Colombo for an operation. Now, Sri Lanka have to play the first match in Galle with only 10 batsmen which could affect their chances of winning or drawing the match.
Dhawan scored 190 runs before getting out while Cheteshwar Pujara has made an unbeaten century for India as the visitors piled on misery and took control of the Test.
