New Delhi: Suffering a 2-0 deficit in the on-going 5-match series, Sri Lanka have replaced four players including Kumar Sangakkara to their squad for the fourth and fifth One-Day Internationals against India in Kolkata and Ranchi.
Sanngakkara, Dhammika Prasad, Suraj Randiv and Upul Tharanga will be withdrawn after the third ODI on Sunday and Shaminda Eranga, Ajantha Mendis, Lahiru Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal will be the part of the Sri Lankan squad.
Team manager Michael de Zoysa said that Sangakkara and Dhammika have been rested to manage themselves before the World Cup next year while Randiv and Tharanga have been dropped in favor of Mendis and Eranga.
Both Thirimane and Chandimal will be arriving with a decent form in a recent West Indies A tour of Sri Lanka where both scored three and two half centuries in their four outings respectively.
Chandimal may also keep wickets against India, in Sangakkara's stead, though Kusal Perera is also capable of filling that role.
Eranga is expected to add pace and experience to the pace attack, which has seemed flat and out of ideas in the first two matches. He has not played an ODI since July 2013, however. Ajantha Mendis' inclusion comes days after he was named in the ICC's ODI team of the year - the only Sri Lanka player to make that side.
The third ODI will be played on Sunday, 9th November in Hyderabad while fourth and fifth ODI will be played on 13th and 16th November in Kolkata and Ranchi.
