Sri Lanka all-rounder Dasun Shanaka is likely to replace Kusal Perera as the captain of the national side in the upcoming ODI and T20I home series against India beginning July 13. The 29-year-old will be Sri Lanka's sixth captain in less than four years if he gets appointed.
According to a report in ESPNCricinfo, the removal of Perera is partly because of the on-field performance but majorly due to his central role in the contract standoff between the board and the players.
“The captaincy switch is only partly a consequence of on-field performance. Although Sri Lanka has comfortably lost all three series that they played under Perera, the board and selectors have replaced him after he was deemed to have played a central role in the contracts standoff between the players and board, over the past few months,” the report said.
There was a big issue between Sri Lanka cricket and its players as the latter were not happy with the national contracts. But the issue has been put to bed on Wednesday as 29 out of 30 players signed the contract ahead of the India series.
It is believed that Perera was the one who had "encouraged the group to continue holding out", while "Shanaka it seems had been among the first to agree to sign Sri Lanka Cricket's tour contracts".
“According to some players, the group had decided early on Tuesday to continue defying the board. However, some players - Shanaka included - had signed the contracts soon after,” the report further stated.
As far as Team India is concerned, Shikhar Dhawan will be leading the side with Bhuvneshwar Kumar as his deputy.
The Men in Blue will play three ODIs on July 13, 16, and 18 respectively, followed by as many T20Is on July 21, 23, and 25. All the matches will be played at the R Premadasa Stadium Colombo.
(With ESPNCricinfo Inputs)
