Sri Lanka sack national selectors

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka sacked their selectors Sunday as the national team headed toward a whitewash defeat in their Test series against England.

The selection panel headed by former Test bowler Graeme Labrooy and also including Gamini Wickremasinghe, Eric Upashantha, Chandika Hathurusingha and Jeryl Woutersz were only appointed in June.

Sri Lanka’s Sports Minister Faiszer Musthapa summoned the panel on Sunday and “thanked them for their services”, said a national cricket board statement.

Sri Lanka Cricket said a four-member panel headed by former Test player Asantha de Mel, 59, will choose the squad to play two Tests, three One-Day Internationals and a T20 game in New Zealand starting next month.

De Mel will be backed up by former players Brendon Kuruppu, Hemantha Wickramaratne and Chaminda Mendis.

Sri Lanka will be lucky to get through the fourth day of the Colombo Test after letting England off the hook to take a dominant position.

Dilruwan Perera took Keaton Jennings lbw with the first ball of the day to shake England who at one stage looked in trouble on 39-4 after more failures by their top-order batsmen.

Buttler said it would be “fantastic” for England to get a rare whitewash triumph in an overseas series.

Buttler, who has signed again for the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL next year, said that Tests are now “a big driver” in his career.

For Sri Lanka, spinner Perera took a creditable 5-88 to pass 100 wickets in home Tests but their batting crumbled.

India, whose position as number one Test nation is now at risk from England, whitewashed Sri Lanka in their three Test tour last year. Before that only Australia managed the feat in 2004.