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| November 20, 2001 | Tuesday | Ramazan 4, 1422 |
King, Zoysa fit for Kandy Test
KANDY, Nov 19: Fast bowlers Reon King of West Indies and Nuwan Zoysa of Sri Lanka are set to return to the fold after injuries kept them out of the first Test, which Sri Lanka won by 10 wickets at the weekend.
Both bowlers are expected to be named in the final line up for the second Test, beginning at the Asgiriya International Stadium in Kandy on Wednesday.
King was ruled out of the Galle Test after suffering pains in his abdomen at practice and has since undergone tests for a suspected hernia, which have proved negative.
“The doctor has given King the all-clear to continue playing. He shouldn’t have any problems,” said West Indies coach Roger Harper.
King will join fellow paceman Mervyn Dillon in spearheading the West Indies bowling attack, which lacked venom at Galle as Sri Lanka ran up their highest total against them with 590 for nine declared.
West Indies will have to decide whether to go in with three quicks or stick to their first Test policy of playing two spinners.
Colin Stuart, who stepped in for the injured King, was unimpressive in the Sri Lankan innings, taking two for 138 off 37.4 overs and may find it hard to retain his place.
The Kandy pitch and cool conditions usually help seam bowlers, and West Indies will be counting on the home team’s poor record on this ground to level the series.
Sri Lanka have lost their last three Tests played at Kandy after taking a lead in the series by winning at Galle.
“A cricket match is not won or lost by any hoodoo, voodoo or horoscopes or whatever. It is won or lost by what you do out in the middle,” Sri Lanka coach Dav Whatmore said.
“We have to acknowledge that our record in Kandy hasn’t been good for a number of reasons,” he said.
Sri Lanka are likely to recall lanky, left-arm fast-medium bowler Zoysa.
Zoysa has been out of international cricket for seven months after fracturing his right ankle. He made his return to first-class cricket only a fortnight back when he appeared in the premier trophy match for his club Sinhalese SC.
He bowled twenty overs and took two wickets, and was named in the squad of 15 picked for the first Test against West Indies.
Although he was not in the final eleven, he bowled with pace and accuracy at the nets to earn a recall for the second Test. Zoysa is expected to replace newcomer Charitha Buddhika in the final eleven.—Reuters
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