Sri Lankan left-arm spinner Rangana Herath will miss out on the crucial 3rd Test against India. The visitors are already 0-1 down in the 3-match Test series. The veteran spinner will not take part in the Feroz Shah Kotla Test, owing to recurrent back problems. Herath is an important bowler for the team and comes in handy with the bat as well. With Herath not playing at such a crucial juncture of the series will act as a blow to the visitors, who are anyways looking for inspiration. Sri Lanka was crushed by India in a decimating manner. They lost the second test at Nagpur by an innings and 239 runs.
The 39-year old has been around for quite some time and his experience in such a big match could have tipped the scales in the Lankans’ favour. The visitors on November 28 called up Jeffrey Vandersay to replace the 39-year-old for the New Delhi Test, which Sri Lanka must win to avoid another series defeat.
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Selectors’ chairman Graeme Labrooy told reporters,
We have recalled Herath and he will return immediately as we decided to rest him. Herath will be replaced by Jeffrey Vandersay.
Team manager Asanka Gurusinha added,
Rangana complained of stiffness in his back during the match. This happens to him whenever he tries to bowl a little faster.
Jeffrey Vandersay is rather inexperienced at this stage, hence it will be tough for him to get going straight away and that will do his confidence no good.
Meanwhile, the Indian team is brimming with confidence after defeating the visitors in the second Test. Virat Kohli, the captain, got his 5th double hundred and is in ominous form. He will be given rest after the Test series and the ODI squad will be helmed by Rohit Sharma.
#TeamIndia for the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka announced #INDvSL
Rohit (capt), Shikhar, Ajinkya, Shreyas, Manish, Kedar, Dinesh, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik, Axar, Kuldeep, Chahal, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Sidharth Kaul pic.twitter.com/w4GWP9weCa
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 27, 2017
India has also announced their team for the ODIs that will take place just after the Delhi Test.
