Malinga injured, Chandimal to lead Sri Lanka in NZ T20s

(Reuters) – Dinesh Chandimal will lead the Sri Lankan Twenty20 team in New Zealand following a knee injury to Lasith Malinga, the country’s cricket board has said.

Regular Twenty20 captain Malinga sustained the knee injury during the home series against West Indies but was expected to play the two Twenty20 matches that conclude Sri Lanka’s tour of New Zealand.

“Lasith Malinga the T20 Captain is injured and unable to tour New Zealand. Dinesh Chandimal has been appointed as the stand-in captain for the T20 leg of the tour,” Sri Lanka Cricket said in a statement.

Sri Lanka are also missing injured pacer Dhammika Prasad while stumper-batsman Kusal Perera has been suspended for failing a dope test.

Opening batsman Danushka Gunathilaka and paceman Suranga Lakmal have been added to the squad for the Twenty20 matches on Jan. 7 and 10.

(Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; editing by Sudipto Ganguly)