ICC World Cup 2023: Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka Ruled Out, Chamika Karunaratne Named Replacement

Sri Lanka’s World Cup campaign in 2023 got off to a shaky start, as they suffered back-to-back losses, and it went from bad to worse as captain Dasun Shanaka has been ruled out of the tournament due to a right thigh muscle injury.

🚨 The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 has approved Chamika Karunaratne as a replacement for Dasun Shanaka in the Sri Lankan squad.

Karunaratne who has played 23 ODIs, was named as a replacement after Shanaka was ruled out due to a right thigh… pic.twitter.com/pgejuMWjVw

— Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) October 14, 2023

Dasun Shanaka, who has been experiencing a rough patch recently, suffered this injury in Sri Lanka’s recent match against Pakistan, a game they lost by seven wickets at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad.

Kusal Mendis is likely to lead Sri Lanka in the remainder of the tournament while Chamika Karunaratne has been named as a replacement for Dasun Shanaka, whose thigh injury needs at least three weeks to recover.

Sri Lanka kicked off their World Cup campaign with back-to-back defeats against South Africa and Pakistan. They couldn’t defend a total of 344 against Pakistan, who made a historic World Cup record chase powered by centuries from Mohammad Rizwan and Abdullah Shafique.

Sri Lanka will next lock horns with Australia in Lucknow on October 16.