SL vs AUS: Due to Covid, Praveen Jayawickrama will not play for Australia in 2nd Test

Jayawickrama was Ruled Out Of the 2nd Australia Test: Due to a positive Covid-19 test, Sri Lanka’s left-arm spinner Praveen Jayawickrama will not play in the second Test against Australia, which will begin on Friday in Galle.

According to a press statement from SLC, the 23-year-old had requested the test after claiming to feel “unwell.” According to the press statement, Jayawickrama was immediately segregated from the rest of the crew and will now spend 5 days in a room by himself.

After Jayawickrama tested positive, the remainder of the Sri Lankan players and support personnel were given Rapid Antigen Tests; SLC confirmed that all of their results were negative.

The information is a setback for Sri Lanka, who would have been counting on Jayawickrama to tie the series. On a Galle track with much spin last week, Sri Lanka suffered a crushing 10-wicket loss.

The visiting spinners’ ability to extract far more help from the surface than the host team’s spinners was, however, one of the most noticeable features. Losing his wicket and bowling only 15 overs, left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya had the worst time in the group.

Embuldeniya, who was out of form, was supposed to be replaced by Jayawickrama in the starting lineup. Because of his absence, Embuldeniya is the sole left-arm spinner in the lineup. However, the 19-year-old uncapped all-rounder Dunith Wellalage, who excelled in the ODI series against Australia and finished it as the leading wicket-taker, is on the list of standby players.

Having lost Angelo Mathews midway through the first Test, Jayawickrama became the second player on the tour to sign a deal with Covid. In spite of the fact that Mathews is still getting well from the sickness, SLC is optimistic that he would be declared fit for the second Test.