Asia Cup 2018: Sri Lanka's Dinesh Chandimal likely to miss the tournament

Ahead of Asia Cup 2018, two Sri Lanka stars are likely to miss at least a couple of games. While Akila Dananjaya is set to miss at the least the first two matches of the tournament as he awaits the birth of his first child, Dinesh Chandimal's fractured right-hand middle finger could well rule him out of the tournament.

More news on Chandimal's availability will be known in the upcoming week but he is likely to be replaced by Niroshan Dickwella, who is on standby after missing the cut for Sri Lanka's Asia Cup 2018 squad. Despite a decent series against South Africa, where he averaged over 30 and had a strike rate in excess of 80, Dickwella's omission was a surprise despite his forgettable display in the domestic T20 tournament that followed South Africa's tour.

Chandimal, who was widely expected to be an integral part of the Sri Lankan side in UAE, is likely to miss the Asia Cup completely as he recovers from the hairline fracture he suffered during Sri Lanka's domestic T20 tournament where he featured for Colombo.

Sri Lanka's Asia Cup 2018 campaign begins when the tournament commences on September 15 as they take on Bangladesh at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Their next encounter is against Afghanistan on September 17 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

Dananjaya is certain to miss both games and that will be a big blow for Sri Lanka, not only because of his wicket-taking ability but also because of the flexibility he provides by sometimes taking up the new ball as well.

With the Super Four stage set to begin on September 21, it remains to be seen if either player is available for it as the side will be hoping that the returning Lasith Malinga and Dilruwan Perera can plug the gap in both departments.