Mathews replaces Malinga as Sri Lanka captain for WT20

Lasith Malinga was asked by the management to resign as captain after a spate of injuries which relegated him to a non-playing captain.

Angelo Mathews replaces Lasith Malinga as the captain of the Sri Lanka World T20 team.

All-rounder >Angelo Mathews today replaced >Lasith Malinga as captain of the Sri Lankan cricket team for the ICC World Twenty20 in India but the injury-ravaged pacer managed to retain his place in the side.

The team was picked by the new selection committee - headed by former skipper Aravinda de Silva which also includes Kumar Sangakkara. > Read: Sangakkara named selector in Sri Lanka shakeup

Malinga was asked by the management to resign as captain after a spate of injuries which relegated him to a non-playing captain. The pacer eventually stepped down yesterday owing to slow recovery from a knee injury, which forced him to miss most of the recent Asia Cup.

Ironically, it was Malinga who was captain when Sri Lanka won the last World T20 held in Bangladesh in 2014.

Fast bowler Suranga Lakmal returned to the side along with left-handed batsman Lahiru Thirimanne. Both were not part of the recent Asia Cup when Sri Lanka was beaten by India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, their only win coming against associate team the UAE.

> Sri Lanka squad: Angelo Mathews (Captain), Dinesh Chandimal (Vice Captain), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Lahiru Thirimanne, Shehan Jayasuriya, Milinda Siriwardena, Chamara Kapugedara, Dasun Shanaka, Thisara Perera, Nuwan Kulasekera, Dushmantha Chameera, Rangana Herath, Suranga Lakmal, Sachithra Senanayake and Lasith Malinga.