Injury-hit Sri Lanka seek Scottish balm

Wednesday, 11 March 2015 00:06 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Hobart (Australia) (AFP): Sri Lanka will look to tie up some loose ends ahead of the World Cup quarter-finals when the former champions take on winless minnows Scotland in their last group match in Hobart on Wednesday. The Islanders, who have won three of their five matches, will likely take third place in Pool A behind co-hosts New Zealand and Australia should they win at the at the Bellerive Oval.

Angelo Mathews’ side return to action just three days after going down to Australia by 64 runs in Sydney despite a heroic run chase led by remarkable veteran Kumar Sangakkara. The 37-year-old left-hander smashed 104 to become the only batsman to score three successive centuries in a World Cup and is the leading run-scorer in this edition with 372 runs at an average of 124. Opener Tillakaratne Dilshan, 38, is fifth in the list with 291 runs, but former skipper Mahela Jayawardene’s lean patch on either side of a match-winning century against Afghanistan will be worrying. Jayawardene, 37, fell for zero in the tournament opener against New Zealand, did not get to bat against Bangladesh and England, before being run out for 19 against Australia. Sri Lanka will need the three senior pros to fire if they are to repeat their 1996 triumph after losing the last two World Cup finals in 2007 and 2011. The batsmen have so far made up for a wayward bowling attack which has leaked runs in the final overs to allow rivals to plunder big totals. New Zealand took 134 runs from the last 14 overs, England garnered 148 from 15 and Australia smashed 200 in the last 16 overs. “We have got to improve our bowling and fielding,” said Mathews. “If we can keep the opposition to 300, we can chase it down.” Sri Lanka, who have already seen all-rounder Jeevan Mendis and batsman Dimuth Karunaratne depart from the tournament due to injuries, suffered another blow on Tuesday when Dinesh Chandimal was ruled out with a hamstring injury. Chandimal retired hurt after making a 24-ball 52 against Australia and has been replaced by left-hand batsman Kusal Perera, who has played 41 one-day internationals and scored 839 runs with one century. With a week to go before the quarter-finals, Sri Lanka may look to rest tired limbs and test their bench strength against Scotland, who are lying at the bottom of the group with five defeats from as many matches. Sri Lanka have played the non-Test side just once in a one-day international, winning easily by 183 runs in Edinburgh in July 2011, and another one-sided game appears likely. Statistics reveal the wide gulf between the two sides. The combined ODI appearance total of the entire Scotland squad is 332 -- 114 fewer matches than Jayawardene’s 446 ODIS, 70 below Sangakkara’s 402 and just 20 more than Dilshan’s 312. Scotland have yet to win a match in three World Cups, and with the International Cricket Council planning to reduce the number of teams involved from 14 to 10 in 2019, Wednesday’s fixture could be their last in the showpiece event.

Chandimal ruled out of 2015 World Cup, Kusal as replacement

Dinesh Chandimal leaves the field after retiring hurt during their Cricket World Cup match against Australia in Sydney, 8 March 2015 - Reuters ESPNcricinfo: Dinesh Chandimal has been ruled out of the World Cup due to the hamstring strain he suffered in Sunday’s match against Australia. Kusal Perera, who has been training with the squad in Australia since last week, has been included into the squad, coach Marvan Atapattu confirmed. Chandimal tweaked a hamstring in his right thigh when attempting a tight second run in the 41st over in Sydney. He immediately called for on-field treatment, but despite a rest and a rub-down, was significantly hampered by the injury. He stayed at the crease to complete his fifty, but was forced to retire hurt in the 42nd over, when running between the wickets proved too difficult. His 52 not out off 24 balls – in his first World Cup innings – had done much to raise hopes of a successful Sri Lanka run chase. Their challenge petered out after his exit. Kusal Perera has largely played as an opener over the past two years, but if he enters the XI, he is likely to resume batting in the middle order, where he had begun his career. He had been flown into Sydney as cover last week, when Dimuth Karunaratne suffered a blow on his hand that ruled him out of the tournament. Kusal arrives with a little form behind him. He hit a 68-ball 74 and a 69-ball 108 not out in a first-class encounter at home a few days before he set out for Australia. Chandimal is the fifth Sri Lanka player to sustain an injury during Sri Lanka’s campaign. Fast bowler Dhammika Prasad, slow-bowling allrounder Jeevan Mendis and batsman Karunaratne have already been ruled out of the tournament, and Rangana Herath is still recovering from a cut to his spinning finger. Herath is also unavailable for the match against Scotland.