Sri Lanka sacks Mathews as captain, gives charge to Chandimal for England tour

Mathews was asked to step down as captain of the ODI and T20 teams to clear the way for Chandimal to lead Sri Lanka during the tour.

The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has taken a harsh decision following the country’s humiliating exit from the Asia Cup. On Sunday, the board axed skipper Angelo Mathews for the upcoming England tour. Test skipper Dinesh Chandimal has been handed the responsibility of leading the side in the limited-overs format.

Mathews was removed 10 months after he was asked to resume captaincy duties. According to the reports, he was asked to step down as captain of the ODI and T20 teams to clear the way for Chandimal to lead Sri Lanka during the tour.

Confirming the development, the board released a statement which said, “The national selectors have requested Mathews to relinquish his duties as captain with immediate effect.”

The National Selectors decided to appoint Dinesh Chandimal @chandi_17 as the ODI captain to lead the team in the upcoming England series. READ: https://t.co/TVVtg6o1YR #SLC #LKA

— Sri Lanka Cricket (@OfficialSLC) September 24, 2018

.@OfficialSLC has decided to appoint Dinesh Chandimal @chandi_17 as the ODI captain to lead the team in the upcoming England series. pic.twitter.com/6qtfbu0zQN

— Baahubali (@bahubalikabadla) September 24, 2018

Mathews has come in for severe criticism for his leadership at the Asia Cup, with the Sri Lankan side forced out of the tournament after losing to lower ranked Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

Mathews led the Lankan side from 2013 to mid-2017 but had resigned last year, following the home series defeat to Zimbabwe.

In last 18 months, Lankan cricketers with the likes of Upul Tharanga, Lasith Malinga, Chamara Kapugedara and Thisara Perera have also captained the ODI team. Sri Lanka's ODI record since the start of 2017 is 30 losses out of 40 completed matches.

Chandimal was already captain of the Sri Lankan Test team and will now lead the country in all three formats of the game.

England will play five ODI matches, a one-off T20 and three Tests against the visitors from October 10.

Sri Lanka were thumped by 137 runs against Bangladesh in their opening match of the Asia Cup tournament and have now lost 30 of their 40 matches since January 2017.