COLOMBO, July 17: Mahela Jayawardene will continue to lead Sri Lanka in the home season as regular captain Marvan Atapattu is still nursing a back injury, chief selector Asantha De Mel said on Monday.

Atapattu, who has been out of action since March following surgery to repair a disk problem in his lower back, is not expected to return till the Champions Trophy in India in October.

Jayawardene, Sri Lanka's captain on the recent tour of England, will lead in two home Tests against South Africa starting later this month and a tri-series also featuring India in August, De Mel said.

“Marvan needs time to rehabilitate and strengthen his back,” the chief selector told reporters.

“He was very eager to get back on the field but we do not want to rush him into the team until he is 100 percent fit. He should be back for the Champions Trophy.”

Jayawardene earned praise for his leadership on the England tour where his team fought back to draw the Test series 1-1 and blanked the hosts 5-0 in the one-dayers.—AFP