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Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root had a gentle limber up for England Lions duty next week adding 231 runs for Yorkshire’s third wicket over a little under four hours

Les Smith at Headlingley01-May-2013
ScorecardJoe Root cashed in on a flat wicket with his highest first-class score•Getty ImagesThis time next week Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root will be preparing to play for England Lions against New Zealand at Leicester, with Root leading the team. This week they had a gentle limber up at Headingley, adding 231 runs for Yorkshire’s third wicket over a little under four hours during which they utterly dominated Derbyshire’s attack.Derbyshire’s bowling was diminished by the absence of opening bowler Tony Palladino, and the pitch has offered next to no help, but that should not detract from the magnificent display they provided for a Yorkshire crowd which had had to endure seeing their own bowlers taken apart by Chesney Hughes on the first two days.Bairstow joined Root shortly before lunch after Phil Jaques had been run out attempting a single on a misfield by Wayne Madsen. Root was visibly livid about his part in the debacle, no doubt especially because he ran out the same team mate at Durham last week, but it didn’t fluster him. In fact one of the most impressive aspects of his game is that he is always in control of it. He simply got his head down and carried on running Derbyshire ragged. Andrew Gale first got himself set, then got himself out, but that only brought Bairstow onto the stage and the fun was about to begin.Root was nurtured by the same club in Sheffield that produced Michael Vaughan, and there is a lot of Vaughan about him. They have similar builds, and like Vaughan’s, the weight of his runs is built on a sound, orthodox technique. Root’s selection as captain of the Lions has inevitably led to speculation that he is being groomed by the selectors for future leadership. His total of runs in his last three innings, 467, will presumably secure him an extended run in the Test team, if that wasn’t already a done deal. Whether he will emulate Vaughan and progress to Test captaincy remains to be seen. When asked the question at close of play he played a characteristically elegant dead bat.His stroke play was excellent, on both sides of the wicket and on both front and back feet. It was nearly all genuine, orthodox stuff, though a scoop over his shoulder off the front foot for four against Tim Groenewald showed that he’s capable of the outrageous as well. In the end Dan Redfern, who had only taken five first class wickets at an average of 56 before today, was too good for Root, bowling him round his legs with an off break.Root was, as you might expect, delighted with his recent form. “It’s nice to get some runs early on,” he said. “Especially in April when it’s not always that easy”. Asked about what he learned from his experience with England in the winter, he cited the importance of being “greedy” when he’s played himself in, and that “nice 60s and 70s don’t win games”. He’s certainly been greedy over the last five days.Bairstow’s innings was more belligerent and he scored more quickly. He was particularly effective in the early stages through the leg side on the front foot, but once really established he played all around the field.With Palladino injured, Jonathan Clare stepped in to share the new ball. At one stage in his second spell he had three fielders on the off side boundary barely 30 yards apart when bowling to Bairstow. Once Root had gone for a career-best 236 Bairstow was joined for the last hour of the day by left-hander Gary Ballance, and there was no letup in the pace.During the last half hour there were routinely seven or eight on the boundary as the pair added 117 runs off 14 overs before Bairstow was caught off Wes Durston in the penultimate over for 186. At the close of play Ballance had scored 50 off 61 balls and Yorkshire had batted themselves into a lead of 122.The brunt of the bowling fell on the spinners. Left-armer David Wainwright, enduring a difficult return to his old county, and offspinner Wes Durston got through 73 overs between them. While both had a thankless task on a flat pitch against two batsmen, and one in particular, in great form they rarely threatened, though in the circumstances Wainwright’s economy rate of 3.5 deserves credit.All the signs suggest that Yorkshire will look to pile on more runs in the first hour tomorrow then, as Joe Root put it, “have a good go at Derbyshire”. The odds must still be on the groundsman and his feather bed.

Jim Allenby and Murray Goodwin held sway in the sunshine as Glamorgan assumed the upper hand against Gloucestershire

05-Jun-2013
ScorecardJim Allenby and Murray Goodwin held sway in the sunshine as Glamorgan assumed the upper hand on the first day of their Championship second division match against Gloucestershire at Bristol. Glamorgan’s fifth-wicket pair staged a restorative stand of 185 in 50 overs as the visitors recovered from 85 for 4 to reach 318 for 5 by the close afterbeing put in to bat by Gloucestershire skipper Michael Klinger.That decision appeared a good one when Craig Miles and David Payne took two wickets each with the new ball, but Allenby and Goodwin redressed the balance to help Glamorgan bank three batting bonus points with the prospect of more to come on the second day.Fresh from scoring a career-best 138 not out in his last innings against Leicestershire at Grace Road, Allenby raised his second hundred inside a week to alter the complexion of the game. He eventually succumbed to the second new ball, pinned lbw on the front foot by James Fuller having mustered 105 runs from 159 balls in a forthright knock that included 16 fours.Goodwin and Allenby fell just short of Glamorgan’s record fifth-wicket stand in matches against Gloucestershire, established by Michael Powell and James Franklin at Cheltenham in 2006. Rather more circumspect in his approach, Goodwin was still there at stumps, having chiselled an unbeaten 96 from 212 balls with 12 fours and added a further 48 runs with Mark Wallace for the sixth wicket.Klinger’s decision to insert Glamorgan raised a few eyebrows among County Ground regulars, but the tactic paid dividends initially as Gloucestershire’s seam bowlers made the most of early moisture to rip through the top order.Miles continued his rich vein of form when accounting for openers Ben Wrightand William Bragg in successive overs after being switched to the Ashley Down Road end. Having already claimed 20 first-class wickets at an average of 20.55 in four previous outings this season, the 18-year-old Academy product further pressed his claims for an England Under-19 call up on a flat County Ground pitch.Offering his team-mates an object lesson in line and length, Miles induced Wright to prod defensively at a ball outside off stump and offer a regulation catch to Gareth Roderick behind the stumps. Bragg succumbed in Miles’ next over, pushing tentatively outside off stump and directing a thickish edge to Dan Housego in the gully for 23.Payne’s left-arm swing ensured the home side made further in-roads while the shine was still on the ball, former Gloucestershire overseas batsman Marcus North and Stewart Walters departing either side of the lunch interval.Australian North was squared up by a ball that came back into him and was caught at the wicket having contributed just four runs, while the aggressive Walters fell to a poor shot. The former Surrey batsman had scored 28 when he flashed at a wide delivery from Payne and was held by the dependable Roderick.

Fluent knocks from Usman Khawaja and Phillip Hughes and a sparkling half-century from Brad Haddin led the Australians to a six-wicket win over Somerset

Daniel Brettig in Taunton29-Jun-2013
ScorecardPhillip Hughes came in at No.3 and collected another valuable half-century to press his case for Ashes selection•Getty ImagesUsman Khawaja, Phillip Hughes and Ed Cowan were all useful if not quite compelling on a day of sunshine and blue skies at Taunton as they duelled for places in the Australian batting order for the first Ashes Test. Each played fluently until the moment of his dismissal, but none turned their start into the sort of tally captain Michael Clarke and coach Darren Lehmann so desired from their charges.Still, a win is a win and as the first such result in a first-class match by an Australian team overseas since the third Test in Dominica in April 2012, it should not be sniffed at. Brad Haddin, the vice-captain, completed formalities with a second six in an innings that underlined how the tourists’ goal of an outright result has never been in question.Haddin’s was in fact the most arresting batting of all the Australians. He walked out with a potentially tense 56 runs still to get and proceeded to clobber 52 of them himself. Following on from fluent runs for Australia A, Haddin looks more than capable of playing in the top six if required.The Australians made one concession for preparatory needs by keeping Shane Watson from batting in the second innings, even though four wickets fell. He is completely certain of his place, but others less so. Khawaja and Hughes gained most from the final day’s batting, on a surface that had finally begun to wear. Though he did not impress in the first innings, Khawaja was composed and unhurried while compiling 73 runs, including 10 boundaries. Hughes played his shots with increasing levels of self-assurance, benefiting from the gains of day two.However Cowan trudged grimly from the wicket after falling short of a major score, despite looking untroubled until the moment of his dismissal, which for the second time in the match went the way of the tall seamer Gemaal Hussain. It remains to be seen whether he will get another chance to push for his retention in the Test team against Worcestershire next week.Sun blazed over the County Ground as Cowan and Khawaja resumed play in the morning. Runs were soon being collected with efficiency and no great fuss, any edges snuck through the gap between slips and gully running along the ground. Cowan drove attractively through cover and also punched through point off the back foot, while Khawaja rotated the strike more effectively than he has done so at times in the past.So comfortable did both batsmen look that the fall of a wicket was unexpected. Cowan, on 46, flailed at Hussain in search of the boundary to reach his half-century and managed only to edge behind. The dismissal continued a worrying pattern: not since the first Test of last summer against South Africa in Brisbane has Cowan made a first-class century, despite consistently making starts. Australia may be able to afford this kind of recurring issue with one of their openers, but having guaranteed a berth to the hundred-shy Watson they may be hesitant about including another.Hughes walked out at No. 3 as the tourists sought to bolster his confidence further, and it was evident in a rollicking start to his innings including one big six heaved over midwicket from the bowling of George Dockrell. This was the sort of shot Hughes looked afraid to play in India, and he balanced his aggression with plenty of singles while at the other end Khawaja raised his fifty.Lunch came and went, and just when Khawaja appeared to be cantering towards a century, the rough Dockrell had been floating his left-arm spin towards caused him to play for too much spin and snick a catch to slip. Hughes and Clarke prospered for a time, before the former slogged at Dockrell and was bowled. Clarke had played his second pleasing cameo of the match but authored a similarly inattentive stroke three runs later, dancing down the wicket and playing around a ball that did not turn.But Haddin was in a joyful hurry, and he allowed the tour bus a chance to be revved up for Worcester well ahead of the scheduled close. It gathered valuable momentum at Taunton, even if Cowan, Hughes and Khawaja might have preferred more runs to take with them.

A disciplined bowling effort from the Habib Bank Limited bowlers ensured they defended their 148-run target against Port Qasim Authority, winning the second semi-final by a margin of 14 runs in Karachi

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jul-2013
ScorecardHasan Raza’s unbeaten 42-ball 58 ensured Habib Bank posted a competitive total•Pakistan Cricket BoardA disciplined bowling effort from the Habib Bank Limited bowlers ensured they defended their 148-run target against Port Qasim Authority, winning the second semi-final by a margin of 14 runs in Karachi. Habib Bank will now play Pakistan International Airlines in the final of the Ramadan T20 Cup on July 25.Habib Bank chose to bat first, but their top order struggled against PQA’s new-ball attack as pacer Mohammad Talha snared three wickets within the first four overs of the match. Habib Bank were a precarious 47 for 5 in the 11th over before Hasan Raza and Humayun Farhat combined for a 46-run, sixth-wicket stand. Once Farhat fell for 22, Hussain came in and immediately began attacking PQA’s bowlers, hitting 30 off 16 balls. Hussain and Raza put on a further 41 runs before the innings closed at 148 for 7. Raza finished with an unbeaten 42-ball 58, with Talha taking three wickets for 29 runs.In reply, PQA’s chase looked to be on track at 53 for 1 before a flurry of wickets between the 9th and 13th overs reduced them to 75 for 5. Sarmad Anwar dismissed PQA’s top order to finish with 3 for 26. The constant pressure applied by the HBL bowlers made PQA’s batsmen run ragged, with the last two wickets falling to run-outs. In the end, the 149-run target looked too much for PQA, who eventually finished 14 runs short, at 134 for 9.

Allrounder Sean Williams has reached an agreement with Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) and agreed to sign a contract with the board

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Sep-2013Allrounder Sean Williams has reached an understanding with Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) and agreed to sign a contract with the board. ESPNcricinfo has learned that Williams, who had made himself unavailable to play the first Test against Pakistan because of the ongoing payments issue, was satisfied with an offer made to him on Thursday and will commit to the country in future.Williams told sources close to the team he never planned on turning his back on Zimbabwe and that people had misunderstood his reasons for not playing the first Test. Williams was not on a central contract but a lower-grade one and reportedly had an issue with the exact amount, rather than the non-payment. He is also believed to have secured an offer in the BPL, where many of his team-mates including Brendan Taylor, Hamilton Masakadza and Elton Chigumbura already play.The rest of the Zimbabwe players are expected to receive some money before the second Test against Pakistan, as ZC seeks to prevent the threatened boycott. The newly-formed players’ union, of which Williams is a member, remained adamant it would strike if they were not paid their outstanding dues, which include July and August salaries.Though the players had said before the first Test that if, “even one of us doesn’t want to play, we will all not play,” they allowed Williams to act unilaterally because the rest of the group agreed to take ZC’s word they would be paid. The board has introduced drastic cost-cutting measures, including moving the second Test from Bulawayo to Harare, to be able to foot the bill.Williams’ availability will not guarantee him a place in the starting XI, though he was likely to have played the first match. He is a regular fixture in Zimbabwe’s limited-overs side but has only played one Test and the performance of the team in this match may make it difficult to make room for him.With all the batsmen getting starts in Harare, and Brendan Taylor likely to replace Richmond Mutambami after returning from paternity leave, Williams would have been considered in the place of one of Malcolm Waller, Sikandar Raza or Prosper Utseya. The first two batted well while Utseya had a decent return with the ball. It could give Zimbabwe a welcome selection conundrum for the second Test.

Alex Hales hit a match-winning 74 as Nottinghamshire beat Kent by five wickets at Canterbury to top Group A and earn themselves a Yorkshire Bank 40 home semi-final

26-Aug-2013
ScorecardAlex Hales ensured Nottinghamshire’s chase was always on course•Getty ImagesAlex Hales hit a match-winning 74 as Nottinghamshire beat Kent by five wickets at Canterbury to top Group A and earn themselves a Yorkshire Bank 40 home semi-final.Hales and Samit Patel, who scored 59, put together the decisive partnership of 107 in 22 overs as the visitors overhauled Kent’s 40-over total of 195 for 6 with 10 balls to spare.Michael Lumb also helped to give the Nottinghamshire reply a confident start with 28 from 23 balls before being stumped off a legside wide from Mark Davies in the seventh over, with the total on 42.James Taylor could make only 6 in a scratchy 18-ball stay before being caught at the wicket off the accurate Davies, who bowled his eight new-ball overs straight through for figures of 2 for 33.But Hales and Patel, who came together at 57 for 2, were more than equal to the task of guiding Nottinghamshire to the victory which gives them the chance of silverware at the end of an often frustrating season.Hales included only three fours in a 55-ball half-century but kept the scoreboard ticking despite a sluggish surface which made expansive strokeplay difficult, and Patel also worked the ball around expertly to reach his own fifty from 60 balls to negate the efforts of a Kent attack in which James Tredwell did his best in a losing cause with an eight-over stint of one for 31.Patel fell in the 33rd over, clubbing Tredwell to long on after a 70-ball innings which included four fours and a driven six off Adam Riley, while a fine throw from deep square leg by Adam Ball finally sent back Hales in the 36th over, the England Twenty20 batsman run out after facing 90 balls and hitting four fours.Riki Wessels lofted Darren Stevens to deep mid-wicket on nine but David Hussey finished the match in style by straight-driving Ball for six to end on 19 not out.Sam Northeast, driving loosely on two, edged Harry Gurney to second slip in the second over of Kent’s innings but the home side, who won the toss, were steadied by Rob Key and Brendan Nash in a partnership of 76 in 18 overs.Key’s 62-ball 41 ended when he was beaten by a ball from part-time offspinner Hussey that moved the other way up the Canterbury slope to take the edge of his defensive bat on its way into wicketkeeper Chris Read’s gloves.Nash made 47 off 66 balls before skying an attempted pull at Jake Ball to mid-on and Stevens’ bright 27 from 32 balls came to a disappointing end for the predominantly Kent-supporting 4,500 crowd when he holed out to Steven Mullaney at long-off trying to hit Patel’s left-arm spin for six.Kent stumbled to 135 for 5 when Geraint Jones was hit on the boot by a full delivery from Patel and leg-before for one, and with Mullaney conceding just 25 runs from his eight overs, but youngsters Fabian Cowdrey and Ball hit out defiantly in a stand of 39 in five overs to boost the home total.Ball had just reached 22 with successive fours off Ajmal Shahzad, over extra cover and swung to mid-wicket, when he skied to wide mid-off, but Cowdrey produced some more inventive strokes to finish on an unbeaten 39 off 48 balls.

Former BCCI president Shashank Manohar has criticised N Srinivasan, saying the latter had no right to continue as the chief of the board.

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Oct-2013Former BCCI president Shashank Manohar has criticised N Srinivasan, saying the latter has no right to continue as the chief of the board in the aftermath of alleged corruption in the IPL. Manohar also stated that a few members of the board, including Jagmohan Dalmiya, had asked him to contest the election for the post of the BCCI president at the board’s annual general meeting on September 29.”Srinivasan has no right to continue as president,” Manohar told . “If you had the slightest of conscience, self-esteem and care for the board, you ought to have put in your papers the moment your son-in-law was arrested. You did nothing and, as a result, the board’s reputation has taken a hit to the extent that the people have lost faith in this board.”Manohar, who was the BCCI chief between 2008 and 2011, said certain members had requested him to contest against Srinivasan. The current president, however, was re-elected unopposed for an extended tenure.”Many people, including Mr Dalmiya, requested me to come back and contest,” Manohar said. “I left the board two years back and I have not entered its premises again. I have no intention to come back. I said if all the members want me, I will not shirk the responsibility. This board has given me a lot and I was willing to give something back.”Terming Srinivasan as an “autocrat”, Manohar said that the BCCI president had no intention of cleaning up the board and had “damaged” the reputation of the organisation within a span of a few months.”He is trying to shield everybody, his team included,” Manohar said. “He does not want to clean this mess. If my son was in Srinivasan’s position, I would have asked him to resign. Srinivasan is an autocrat and wants all the power for himself. He told the media that his son-in-law was just ‘an enthusiast’. His counsel argued before the courts that Srinivasan did not choose his son-in-law but his daughter did. It is laughable. A person who cannot defend his family member has no right to say he will take responsibility of the board.”Manohar said that there was evidence to prove Gurunath Meiyappan’s role in Chennai Super Kings: “There is a lot of evidence of Meiyappan being the team principal. The truth will come out. I don’t have to state this. It is a fact. He has been chargesheeted and the law will take its own course, but the evidence is very much there.”BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel declined to comment on the board’s behalf on Thursday on Manohar’s remarks and said running the board is a “collective responsibility” of all the office bearers.”I have not gone through the [news] report but some media friends have told me and I was busy right through the morning,” Patel said. “I would like to say nothing more than that but any ex-BCCI officer, before making any remarks about the colleagues on the board, should have considered that BCCI is running with [the help of] all the office bearers. My personal view is that it is always the collective responsibility of all office bearers. One cannot absolve himself by leaving aside the others. I don’t know much in detail about the issue but that is the only thing I can say.”

Sri Lanka’s sports ministry has denied that it is preparing to disburse Rs. 389 million to Sri Lanka Cricket for development of cricket facilities outside the main centres

Andrew Fidel Fernando06-Oct-2013Sri Lanka’s sports ministry has denied that it is preparing to disburse Rs. 389 million to Sri Lanka Cricket for development of cricket facilities outside the main centres. The figure (approx US$ 2.96 million) was first reported in the and confirmed to ESPNcricinfo by SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga, but the sports ministry’s spokesperson told this reporter that the sum is actually closer to Rs. 30 million (approx US 228,000).”The sports ministry can’t give that kind of money to just one sport,” Harsha Abeykoon, the sports ministry spokesperson, said. “The amount is more likely to be around 30 million. We are currently in the process of giving away Rs 100 million to sports, particularly to those representing us in the Commonwealth and Asian Games, and cricket will get a portion of that. That money will go towards developing facilities and providing equipment to schools.”Ranatunga, however, said that SLC made a special request to the ministry for a grant amounting to Rs 389 million, and that the sports minister “was quite keen” to grant the sum, although it had not yet been officially confirmed. He said the funds would be directed towards building turf pitches, which are almost non-existent outside major cities. New matting pitches and improvements to practice facilities in rural schools would also be covered by the grant.Ranatunga had told the that the prospect of drawing foreign teams to Sri Lanka during their off seasons also featured in the board’s decision to apply for the grant. “We are very fortunate that in the Indian sub-continent, there is an opportunity of playing the game right through year barring rain. As a result of the time restrictions in these [foreign] countries, there is a huge influx of teams arriving in the island to indulge in the game during their off seasons.”So if we could offer better facilities in the outstations, it would be a boon to the economies even in those areas. When a team arrives to play cricket in Sri Lanka there is a big contingent of tourists that arrive and they spend for their hotel bookings.”

Australia’s fast-bowling stocks for the Ashes have thinned still further after it was revealed Josh Hazlewood is suffering from shin soreness and will be out of action for up to a month while he recovers

Daniel Brettig08-Nov-2013Australia’s fast-bowling stocks for the Ashes have thinned still further after it was revealed Josh Hazlewood is suffering from shin soreness and will be out of action for up to a month while he recovers. Hazlewood had been set aside by Cricket Australia as one of eight fast bowlers to be prepared for the Ashes, and was believed to be in line for consideration around the time of the second match of the series in Adelaide.However Hazlewood’s likely absence for a month will rule him out of action until mid-December, forcing CA’s team performance manager Pat Howard and the selectors to look elsewhere for their eighth fast man. Others in the group are believed to include Ryan Harris, Peter Siddle, Mitchell Johnson, Ben Cutting, Ben Hilfenhaus, Nathan Coulter-Nile and Clint McKay. Chadd Sayers and the discarded Doug Bollinger are two pacemen who will now be under closer consideration.”New South Wales Blues paceman Josh Hazlewood will miss grade cricket tomorrow due to shin soreness,” a Cricket New South Wales spokesman said. “The management plan for Josh was for him to miss the second round of Sheffield Shield cricket, play grade cricket tomorrow [Saturday] before returning for round three of the Shield. Josh had some shin soreness during the first Sheffield Shield game that has not resolved, as such he will not play in the grade cricket match on the weekend and is likely to miss the next few weeks until he has fully recovered.”Hazlewood had been the subject of controversy earlier this week when he was removed from the New South Wales Sheffield Shield side for their match against Victoria as part of a pre-arranged CA management plan. This raised the objection of the state bowling coach Geoff Lawson, who thought Hazlewood needed to bowl after a poor display against Tasmania in the opening round.A compromise was therefore reached in which Hazlewood turned out for his Sydney grade side over the weekend before returning to the Blues’ Shield team for their match against Queensland in Brisbane a week before the first Test. However he has now joined James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc and Jackson Bird among the list of quick bowlers unavailable as the Ashes series looms.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Prasanna Jayawardene has been named in Sri Lanka’s 16-man Test squad for the upcoming series against Pakistan, having last played a Test against Australia last year

Andrew Fidel Fernando23-Dec-2013Sri Lanka’s squad for Pakistan Tests

Angelo Mathews (capt), Dinesh Chandimal, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Kaushal Silva, Dimuth Karunaratne, Lahiru Thirimanne, Prasanna Jayawardene, Nuwan Kulasekara, Suranga Lakmal, Shaminda Eranga, Nuwan Pradeep, Sachithra Senanayake, Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera, Vishwa Fernando
In: Prasanna Jayawardene, Kaushal Silva, Vishwa Fernando, Sachithra Senanayake, Dilruwan Perera, Nuwan Pradeep, Mahela Jayawardene
Out: Ajantha Mendis, Chanaka Welegedara, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Jeevan Mendis, Kusal Perera, Kithuruwan Vithanage, Tharindu Kaushal

Wicketkeeper-batsman Prasanna Jayawardene will return to Sri Lanka’s 16-man Test squad for the upcoming series against Pakistan, after being left out for the home series against Bangladesh in March. The squad features a raft of young and inexperienced places, as Sri Lanka work towards replacing its seniors over the next 18 months.Kaushal Silva has also been named, ostensibly as a replacement for the retired Tillakaratne Dilshan, as an opener. Left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando has been named in an international squad for the first time, despite missing out on both A team tours in the year. Offspinners Sachithra Senanayake and Dilruwan Perera are the other uncapped Test players in the squad, though both have played ODIs and Twenty20s. Ajantha Mendis was omitted, after he had been part of the squad for the Bangladesh series.Fast bowlers Shaminda Eranga and Nuwan Pradeep will make a return to international cricket as well. Eranga had been omitted from the limited overs squad in the last two series, while Pradeep has not played for Sri Lanka since the New Year Test in Sydney. Suranga Lakmal and Nuwan Kulasekara also find places in the squad, but there is no room for Thisara Perera. Chanaka Welegedara was unavailable for selection, as he remains in rehabilitation for his latest injury.Prasanna Jayawardene had played club cricket for Woodhall Spa in England during the summer before returning to Sri Lanka for the four-day triangular tournament in October. He has had good scores in the past few months, and if he plays, will also add experience to Sri Lanka’s batting order in Dilshan’s absence. There are two other wicketkeeping options in the squad however, with both Silva and Dinesh Chandimal also capable of taking the gloves.Silva has been prolific in first-class cricket over the last year, topping the run-scoring lists in the Premier League Tournament and as well as in the unofficial Tests against New Zealand A at home. He had played three Tests in 2011, but was unable to secure a place, averaging 14. He has hit 8489 first-class runs with 27 hundreds, and is likely open alongside Dimuth Karunaratne, who is already in the UAE with the ODI side.Fernando, a whippy opening bowler who plays for Bloomfield Cricket Club, has not achieved outstanding results in domestic cricket so far, but has been chosen largely on potential.Rangana Herath and Mahela Jayawardene will also both join the team in the UAE after they had ruled themselves out for the limited-overs legs of the tournament for personal reasons. The first of the three Tests begins in Abu Dhabi on December 31.16-man Squad: Angelo Mathews (capt), Dinesh Chandimal, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Kaushal Silva, Dimuth Karunaratne, Lahiru Thirimanne, Prasanna Jayawardene, Nuwan Kulasekara, Suranga Lakmal, Shaminda Eranga, Nuwan Pradeep, Sachithra Senanayake, Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera, Vishwa Fernando