Maheesh Theekshana and Dinuth Wellalage have been drafted into Sri Lanka’s Covid-hit squad for the second Test against Australia.

Left-arm spinner Praveen Jayawickrama on Monday tested positive for Covid-19 after former captain Angelo Mathews had to pull out on the third day of the opening Test with the virus.

Both players are in isolation and the rest of the squad have tested negative, Sri Lanka Cricket said.

The hosts trail 1-0 in the two-match series after going down to Australia by 10 wickets inside three days last week in Galle.

Theekshana and 19-year-old Wellalage are still to make their Test debuts but played a key role in Sri Lanka’s 3-2 ODI series triumph over Australia last month.

Left-arm spinner Wellalage was the leading wicket-taker in the series with nine dismissals, one ahead of Australia’s Pat Cummins.

Uncapped all-rounder Lakshitha Manasinghe is also in the squad for the match which begins at the same Galle venue on Friday, but left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya has been released after he went wicketless in the first Test.

© Agence France-Presse