Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne ruled out of first Test against England with broken thumb

Dinesh Chandimal leads the Sri Lankan side in the skipper's absence

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Sri Lanka were dealt a major blow ahead of the Test series against England after captain Dimuth Karunaratne was ruled out of the first match in Galle through injury.

Karunaratne has been suffering from a hairline fracture of the left thumb after being struck on the hand by Anrich Nortje on his team's recent tour of South Africa, and did not recover in time to take his place at the top of the order. 

Dinesh Chandimal leads the Sri Lankan side in the skipper's absence.

On Wednesday afternoon, Karunaratne addressed the international media for the traditional captain's pre-match press conference.

^{Dimuth Karunaratne has been ruled out of the first Test against England}

“We learned a lot of things in the past series and we’re not going to make those mistakes again,” he said.

“We are looking to play our normal, fearless game. I think their spinners are just as dangerous this time. Leach is still there and he’s the man who did a lot of of work in the last series here.

“It is unfortunate that Moeen Ali, who did a good job, can’t play the series, but Dom Bess has done a good job for England as well, so we never underestimate their bowlers.

“We always knew what they are capable of in their bowling line-up, but we know what the conditions are, so we have a few plans against them.”