Sri Lanka are waiting on the fitness status of leg spinning all-rounder Jeevan Mendis, who pulled a hamstring in Melbourne on Tuesday. Mendis is awaiting an assessment from the ICC’s doctors after which his reports may be forwarded to the Event Technical Committee.
As a precautionary measure, opener Upul Tharanga has been asked to join the squad in Melbourne, on the request of Sri Lanka’s selection committee, Angelo Mathews and coach Marvan Atapattu.
Initial reports of Mendis’ tear suggest he could recover in 10 days, but further assessment is required to confirm the seriousness and recovery time of the injury. Mendis has featured in both games of the World Cup, taking three wickets and scoring 13 runs.
Tharanga had been cut from the squad for the New Zealand tour due to mediocre performances in ODIs. He played only five games in 2014 scoring 111 runs at an average of 22.20, but has lately been in good form in Sri Lanka’s domestic cricket. He opened the batting in the 2007 and 2011 World Cups, and has 13 ODI hundreds, and 5339 runs.
Sri Lanka are currently fourth in Pool A, after they bounced back from an opening loss against New Zealand to win a tense game against Afghanistan.