Sri Lanka have announced squads for their tour of New Zealand, which is scheduled to start from 10 December and will go on until 10 January.
In this tour of New Zealand, Sri Lanka will be playing two Test matches, five ODIs and two T20 international matches.
There are a number of surprises in the squads that Sri Lanka Cricket have announced. Lahiru Thirimanne has been dropped from the Test squad. But he has been retained as the vice-captain in the five-match ODI series.
Udara Jayasundera has also been named in the Test squad. An uncapped batsman who has scored a lot of runs in the domestic circuit.
Meanwhile, Chamara Kapugedara has been recalled in the ODI squad. Kapugedara last played an ODI in 2012. Shehan Jayasuriya has been replaced by Kapugedara in the ODI squad. Kapugedara featured in the list A matches in New Zealand yet he was not selected for the ODI series against West Indies.
Jeffrey Vandersay has made it into all the three squads for this tour. He has been a revelation in the Sri Lanka off-late and the selectors are hopeful that he will come in handy against New Zealand in the forthcoming tour.
Dhammika Prasad's form in the Test matches have pushed the national selectors to select the seamer for the ODI outfit as well. Prasad took the place of Nuwan Kulasekara who was not performing well recently.
Here are the squad for Sri Lanka for their tour of New Zealand:
Test squad: Angelo Mathews (C), Kusal Mendis, Udara Jayasundera, Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Janith Perera, Milinda Siriwardana, Kithuruwan Vithanage, Dimuth Karunaratne, Dhammika Prasad, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal, Dushmantha Chameera, Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera, Jeffrey Vandersay.
ODI squad: Angelo Mathews (C), Lahiru Thirimanne (vice-captain), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kusal Janith Perera, Dinesh Chandimal, Milinda Siriwardana, Danushka Gunathilaka, Sachithra Senanayake, Ajantha Mendis, Dhammika Prasad, Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Pradeep, Suranga Lakmal, Dushmantha Chameera, Chamara Kapugedera, Jeffrey Vandersay.
T20 squad: Lasith Malinga (C), Kusal Janith Perera, Shehan Jayasuriya, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Milinda Siriwardana, Chamara Kapugedera, Kithuruwan Vithanage, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Nuwan Kulasekara, Dushmantha Chameera, Thisara Perera, Jeffrey Vandersay, Sachithra Senanayake, Isuru Udana.