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Sri Lanka’s Dickwella, Perera not ‘too keen’ to visit Pakistan: report

SLC is expected to discuss the matter with its players in a bid to convince them.

By Web Desk

August 28, 2019

Thisara Perera and Niroshan Dickwella are requesting for permission to take part in the Caribbean Premier League which coincides with the series being held in Pakistan. Photos: AFP

Sri Lanka stars Thisara Perera and Niroshan Dickwella are some of the cricketers who are not “too keen” to visit Pakistan for their team’s upcoming limited-overs series, BDcrictime reported on Wednesday.

Both Perera and Dickwella have asked Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) for permission to take part in the Caribbean Premier League that starts September 4 and concludes on October 12. The Caribbean league overlaps with the Pakistan series, slated to kick off on September 27.

The Sri Lankan board, according to BDcrictime, is leaning towards granting the duo the permission to play the T20 league but with the condition that they rejoin the national team when needed.

The Sri Lankan team is currently hosting New Zealand, and the two teams’ T20I series is set to begin on September 1.

Once the series concludes on September 6, the Sri Lankan board is expected to hold discussions with its playing staff in a bid to convince them to tour Pakistan.

It is further reported that the SLC’s task would get a lot easier if it appoints former Pakistan coaches Mickey Arthur and Grant Flower, with whom discussions are underway.

The publication mentions that the Sri Lankan team may have to leave behind their Computer Analyst Panish Shetty on account of his Indian nationality and the tensions between the two countries.