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Mahela Jayawardene arrives to bolster injury-hit squad

Sri Lanka have called up Mahela Jayawardene to boost their injury-hit squad midway through the tri-series in Bangladesh

The promising Dinesh Chandimal joins the senior team as the backup wicketkeeper  •  International Cricket Council

The promising Dinesh Chandimal joins the senior team as the backup wicketkeeper  •  International Cricket Council

Sri Lanka have called up Mahela Jayawardene to boost their injury-hit squad midway through the tri-series in Bangladesh. The team has lost the services of three men on this tour: Tillakaratne Dilshan picked up a groin injury during the first game against Bangladesh, Chamara Silva fractured his thumb during training, and Muthumudalige Pushpakumara injured his shoulder in the game against India. In addition to Jayawardene, Sri Lanka have called up the 20-year old uncapped wicketkeeper Dinesh Chandimal and the opener Mahela Udawatte, 23, who has played nine ODIs.
"Mahela is fit and ready to play," Brendon Kuruppu, the manager, said. "Dilshan and Pushpakamara are under observation and Chamara Silva has gone back to Sri Lanka."
Chandimal, who admires Romesh Kaluwitharana, was drafted into the Nondescripts Cricket Club at the behest of Sangakkara and came into limelight when he scored his maiden first-class century against New Zealand in 2009, against an attack that included Chris Martin, Daryl Tuffey, Iain O'Brien, Jacob Oram and Daniel Vettori.
Udawatte , an attacking batsman, has been seen as the potential long-term prospect for the national ODI side for some time now. He is rated highly by the likes of Jayawardene and made his debut in 2008 and hit his highest score of 73 in his third ODI against West Indies.
Sri Lanka have already been badly hit by injuries in the recent past with 10 players missing games at various points. Apart from the injured trio in this series, Jayawardene, Muttiah Muralitharan, Dilhara Fernando, Thilan Thushara, Angelo Mathews, Lasith Malinga, and Nuwan Kulasekara have been sidelined by injuries.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at Cricinfo