SL vs ZIM: Huge Blow! Sri Lanka Star Hospitalized; Gets Ruled Out Of Zimbabwe ODIs

In a major blow for Sri Lanka National Cricket Team, star batsman Pathum Nissanka has been ruled out of the ODI series against Zimbabwe National Cricket Team after getting hospitalised due to an infection.

The Zimbabwe National Cricket Team are all set to tour Sri Lanka for a limited-overs series. The series consists of a three-match ODI and a three-match T20I series. The ODIs will be played on January 06, 08, and 11 while T20I matches will be held on January 14, 16, and 18.

The venue for all the matches is the same as the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium (RPICS) in Colombo will be hosting the series

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) took to their official X (formerly known as Twitter) handle to make the announcement regarding the 25-year-old top-order batsman.

SLC stated that Pathum Nissanka is suspected to have a dengue infection and will miss the entirety of the ODI series against the Chevrons. If his illness does turn out to be dengue, he will also miss the T20I series.

“Team Update: Pathum Nissanka has been admitted to the hospital with a suspected dengue infection. Accordingly, the player is admitted for further management and will be out of the ODI series against Zimbabwe,” SLC stated in an official media release.

Shevon Daniel Named Pathum Nissanka’s Replacement In Sri Lanka ODI Squad

SLC has named the 19-year-old Shevon Daniel as the replacement for Pathum Nissanka in the squad for the ODI series against Zimbabwe.

“Cricket selectors have included Shevon Daniel in the ODI squad in place of Nissanka. #SLvZIM,” SLC further stated.

?Team Update: Pathum Nissanka has been admitted to the hospital with a suspected dengue infection.

Accordingly, the player is admitted for further management and will be out of the ODI series against Zimbabwe.

Cricket selectors have included Shevon Daniel in the ODI squad in… pic.twitter.com/ZLAg4neKRS

— Sri Lanka Cricket ?? (@OfficialSLC) January 5, 2024

Daniel is a capped player as he has already played a T20I game for Sri Lanka. However, he is yet to make an appearance in the ODI format, which might come during the Zimbabwe series, but it is highly unlikely as Avishka Fernando and Kusal Mendis can open the innings for the side.

Even though the series of Sri Lanka is against Zimbabwe, they will very much miss the services of Pathum Nissanka as he has been a consistent performer for the team at the top of the order.

He had a great run in the year 2023 as he scored 1151 runs in ODIs at an amazing average of 44.26 and a strike rate of 87. Also, against the Chevrons he has an exceptional average of 82.33.

Sri Lanka recently underwent massive changes following their poor performance in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023. There was a lot of controversy and the ICC even handed a ban to the SLC and the ICC U19 World Cup 2024 hosting rights were taken away from them. After a few days, ICC confirmed that the Lankan Lions would be allowed to play international cricket despite the ban.

Meanwhile, Dasun Shanaka has been sacked as the white-ball captain of the side and he has been replaced by Kusal Mendis in ODI cricket and Wanindu Hasaranga in T20I cricket. Also, the board has removed Dimuth Karunaratne from the Test captaincy and handed it over to Dhananjaya de Silva, who will become the 18th player from his country to lead in Tests. The above-mentioned development was recently confirmed by Chief Selector Upul Tharanga.