Maheesh Theekshana, a spinner for Sri Lanka, was ruled out of the second Test against Pakistan, which will begin here on July 24, on Thursday due to a finger injury on his right hand.
Theekshana has been dropped from the team after returning with statistics of 2/68 and 0/44 in the first Test against Pakistan. The 21-year-old has so far taken five wickets in two Test matches for Sri Lanka. Lakshitha Manasinghe, a 22-year-old off-break bowler, will take his place in the team.
Manasinghe has an impressive first-class cricket resume but has yet to play for Sri Lanka. In 17 games, he has taken 73 wickets. In those games, he contributed 582 runs with the bat, which is another useful skill.
Young all-rounder Dunith Wellalage, who made an impression on everyone at the 2022 ICC Men's U19 World Cup, could also make his Test debut in Theekshana's absence.
"The team will once again include Pathum Nissanka. Maheesh Theekshana was discharged from the team due to a finger injury the athlete experienced (right hand). Theekshana is replaced in the squad by Lakshitha Manasinghe "In a tweet, Sri Lanka Cricket stated.
The addition of Pathum Nissanka back to the team will also help the hosts. Nissanka, who has played in 9 Test matches and amassed 537 runs with 1 century and 5 fifty-sevens, was ruled out of the second Test against Australia midway through the match after testing positive for COVID-19. Additionally, he was unable to play in Galle's opening Test matchup with Pakistan.
For Sri Lanka, the series would be extremely significant in terms of World Test Championship points. They dropped to sixth place in the table with a points percentage of 48.15 following their four wicket loss in the first Test. Pakistan, on the other hand, rose to the third position, earning 58.33 points percentage.