Five Sri Lankan players have been kept out of residential camps after refusing to sign contracts for the series against India
The Sri Lankan cricket squad, without a doubt, has some issues. They have been struggling at the top and are losing a lot of matches in international cricket. They have been losing series after series over the last few years. Things are not looking good for the once Asian giants, as the teams are heading into the T20 World Cup. The level of cricket that they have been playing in recent times has been really poor.
With the upcoming series against India ready to be played prior to the second phase of the IPL rank 2021, things have gone downhill once again. Five Sri Lankan cricketers have been kept out of the residential camps. They have not entered the bio bubble that has been set up for the limited-overs series against India in Dambulla and Colombo. This means that they will not be part of this upcoming series, which will be a huge blow for the team that is already trying their best to resolve multiple issues.
Lasith Embuldeniya, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Ashen Bandara, and Kasun Rajitha are the five cricketers. According to Sri Lankan Cricket CEO Ashley de Silva, these five cricketers have been invited to sign a contract and enter the bio bubble that has been set up.
However, because these players did not sign the contract, they would not be attending the residential camps for the next series against India.
“They were asked to sign the tour contract if they are going to be available for the Indian series till the national contract problem is addressed so that they may go into a bubble since we are investing in them. However, because they refused to sign the tour contract, they were excluded from the residential camps. They didn’t join the bubble in Dambulla or Colombo.” said SLC CEO Ashley de Silva.
Selectors will consider them if they sign a tour agreement: SLC CEO confirms for the upcoming series
The players should have signed a tour contract, according to Ashley De Silva, but they declined to do so. De Silva ended by adding that these players will be considered for selection if they sign the contract before preparation for the series against India begins.
“A tour contract was given to these five players. That is, they will be considered for national selection for the Indian series if they participate. You require a tour contract for the Indian series, which they didn’t sign because they were among the 24 players granted national contracts. The selectors would consider them if they sign the tour agreement before the start of preparation for the Indian series.” added De Silva.
India will play Sri Lanka in a limited-overs series comprising of three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and three Twenty-20 Internationals (T20Is). The series will begin on July 13th, 2021.
Regarding the Indian Cricket Team for the series; what are the latest updates and news
Team India, captained by Shikhar Dhawan, will play Sri Lanka in a three-match One Day International (ODI) and as many Twenty20 International (T20I) series beginning on July 13. Due to COVID-19 limitations in the nation, all six matches of this series will be played at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. The new-look Team India headed for the island country on June 28 for a white-ball series. Team India was quarantined for two weeks in the BCCI’s Mumbai bio-bubble prior to their departure. In the absence of head coach Ravi Shastri, Rahul Dravid, a former Indian captain and NCA director, has been named as the team’s head coach.
Shastri is at present with India’s Test team in England. The Virat Kohli-led Team India will play England in a five-match Test series after losing by eight wickets to New Zealand in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.
Meanwhile, it will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Dhawan to captain Team India. In Devdutt Padikkal, Nitish Rana, Krishnappa Gowtham, and Chetan Sakariya, the Delhi lad will have a bevy of youngsters at his disposal for the next white-ball series. It will be interesting to see whether these young talents actually come good or not. They will have a lot of pressure on their shoulders. The expectations will be high from them. Let’s wait and watch what happens next!!
