Gujarat Titans (GT) have named Dasun Shanaka as a replacement for Kane Williamson for the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2023).
Williamson suffered an on-field injury to his right leg while attempting a catch at the boundary in the tournament opener against Chennai Super Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium on March 31, 2023 in IPL 2023.
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In his debut appearance for Gujarat Titans, Williamson had landed awkwardly in his knee while attempting to take a catch at the deep square leg boundary during Chennai Super Kings’ innings. Williamson had actually grabbed the ball to stop the six from Ruturaj Gaikwad and then threw the ball in. And while it landed on the ground and then rolled towards the boundary rope for a four, Williamson was seen clutching his knee in pain. He was immediately carried off the field with B Sai Sudharsan replacing him via the Impact Player rule. A day later, following the scan reports, he was ruled out of the entire IPL 2023 tournament and he soon left for home for further assessment.
“It is sad to lose Kane to injury so early in the tournament. We wish him a speedy recovery, with the hope of seeing him in action very soon,” said GT director of cricket Vikram Solanki in a press release.
Earlier, there were rumours that GT might opt for Smith, with the Aussie being a like-for-like replacement for Williamson, but the top-order batter wasn’t part of the IPL auction which nullified his qualification chances.
“I don’t know if I’ll qualify, I didn’t even put myself in the auction. So I don’t think there’s even a possibility. So, maybe next year, we will see where we go,” Smith had said on Star Sports.
Shanaka, Sri Lanka’s white-ball captain is an explosive middle-order batter who also bowls right-arm seam. Shanaka was on fire in the recent T20I in India, smashing 124 runs in three innings at an S/R of 187 while averaging 62.00. He was also Sri Lanka’s leading run-scorer in the subsequent ODI series, scoring 121 runs in three innings.
Signed for his base price of Rs 50 lakh, this will be Shanaka’s maiden season in IPL.
