Sri Lanka suffered a big blow ahead of their must-win ICC World Cup match against Afghanistan as pacer Lahiru Kumara was ruled out of the tournament with a left thigh muscle injury.
Lahiru Kumara suffered the niggle during a training session in Pune. The ICC technical committee has approved pacer Dushmantha Chameera as his replacement.
Kumara had shown fine form during Sri Lanka's eight-wicket win over England in Bengaluru on October 26. His three-wicket haul (3/35) helped the Islanders bowl out the defending champions for a paltry 156.
Chameera was not included in Sri Lanka's initial 15-member World Cup squad after he suffered an injury during the Lanka Premier League.
But later, the right-arm quick was called up as a travelling reserve along with veteran Angelo Mathews.
Mathews was also drafted into the Sri Lanka squad as a replacement for injured pacer Matheesha Pathirana ahead of the match against England.
Sri Lanka (NRR: -0.205) have four points from five matches and are now placed fifth on the table, while Afghanistan (NRR: -0.969) with similar numbers are placed seventh on the basis of net run rate.