Injured Chandimal out of second Test against India - coach Kirsten

Sowetan · 🇿🇦 public South Africa · Aug 20, 2026 · 192 words

headphones Listen to the eFinder podcast briefing

Generate a natural audio summary of this story

Daily briefing

What to know about Injured Chandimal out of second Test against India - coach Kirsten

Key Sri Lanka batter Kusal Mendis will not recover from his hamstring injury in time for the second Test against India starting on Sunday, adding to the hosts’ injury woes with fellow batter Dinesh Chandimal also out after suffering a concussion.

Claims checked 7

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center83%

Right17%

6 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

Sri Lanka lost the first of the three-Test series by 165 runs in Galle on Wednesday, a day after Chandimal suffered a concussion while fielding, and had to be replaced by Pasindu Sooriyabandara.

Common ground

International Cricket Council (ICC) rules automatically rule out a player who has been substituted due to a concussion for seven days.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Injured Chandimal out of second Test against India - coach Kirsten?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Chandimal suffered a concussion while fielding, and had to be replaced by Pasindu Sooriyabandara?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.sowetan.co.za/sport/more-sport/2026-08-20-injured-chandimal-out-of-s…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 7 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 5

verified Verified By Reference 1

cancel Disputed 1

check_circle

Claim 1: “Chandimal suffered a concussion while fielding, and had to be replaced by Pasindu Sooriyabandara”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources explicitly state that Dinesh Chandimal suffered a concussion while fielding and was replaced by Pasindu Sooriyabandara as a concussion substitute.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2024 National Super League 4-Day Tournament was the third edition of the National Super League 4-Day Tournament, a first-class cricket competition that was played in Sri Lanka. The tournament star…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_National_Super_League_4-D…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Indian cricket team toured Sri Lanka in August 2026 to play two Test matches against the Sri Lanka cricket team. In July 2026, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) confirmed the fixtures for the tour. The Test…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_cricket_team_in_Sri_Lan…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Sri Lankan cricket team toured West Indies in June and July 2026 to play the West Indies cricket team. The tour consisted of three One Day International matches, three T20I matches and two Test ma…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_Lankan_cricket_team_in_Wes…

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 2: “Wicketkeeper-batter Mendis suffered a hamstring injury during the Lanka Premier League last month”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm Kusal Mendis suffered a hamstring injury during the Lanka Premier League (LPL) in July 2026, which led to him being ruled out of the tournament and subsequent matches.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 Lanka Premier League, also known as LPL 6, was the sixth edition of the Lanka Premier League, a professional Twenty20 cricket league. The tournament featured 5 teams competing in 24 matches f…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_Lanka_Premier_League

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Balapuwaduge Kusal Gimhan Mendis (born 2 February 1995) is a professional Sri Lankan cricketer who plays in all forms of the game and a current limited overs captain of the national team. He only play…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kusal_Mendis

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mathurage Don Kusal Janith Perera (commonly known as Kusal Perera or Kusal Janith Perera; Sinhala: කුසල් පෙරේරා) (born 17 August 1990), also referred to by his common initials KJP, is a professional S…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kusal_Perera

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 3: “Sri Lanka lost the first of the three-Test series by 165 runs in Galle on Wednesday”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While evidence confirms a series between India and Sri Lanka in 2026, the provided search results do not contain the specific result of the first Test (165 runs loss in Galle on Wednesday). The search results for this claim were largely irrelevant (medical info on tumors).

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Galle (Sinhala: ගාල්ල, romanized: Gālla; Tamil: காலி, romanized: Kāli ) is a major city on the southwestern tip of Sri Lanka, 119 km (74 mi) south of Colombo. Galle is the provincial capital and large…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galle

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Galle International Stadium (Sinhala: ගාල්ල ජාත්‍යන්තර ක්‍රිකට් ක්‍රීඩාංගණය, Tamil: காலி பன்னாட்டு அரங்கம்) is a cricket stadium in Galle, Sri Lanka, situated near Galle Fort and fringed on two sides …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galle_International_Stadium

menu_book

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 4: “Key Sri Lanka batter Kusal Mendis will not recover from his hamstring injury in time for the second Test against India starting on Sunday”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web search results confirm that Kusal Mendis is ruled out of the second Test against India due to a hamstring injury, with specific confirmation from coach Gary Kirsten.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Pasqual Handi Kamindu Dilanka Mendis (Sinhala: පැස්කුවල් හන්දි කමිඳු දිලංක මෙන්ඩිස්, [ˈkamiⁿd̪u Menɖis]; born 30 September 1998), popularly known as Kamindu Mendis, is a professional Sri Lankan cricke…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamindu_Mendis

menu_book

+ 3 more evidence sources

cancel

Claim 5: “International Cricket Council (ICC) rules automatically rule out a player who has been substituted due to a concussion for seven days”

DISPUTED

The claim states a mandatory seven-day absence. However, evidence from a search regarding ISL rules mentions a 'no-contact, no training, no matches' period of 48-72 hours for concussion subs. There is no evidence provided confirming a strict 7-day ICC rule for all cases.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The International Cricket Council (ICC) mandates that replacements for concussions must be like-for-like. But in this instance, it was surprising that Rana, a specialised fast bowler, took Dube’s plac…
https://www.newzdaddy.com/jos-buttler-slams-controversial-co…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Concussions can come in various sports but do you know the cognitive warning signs? A speech pathologist shares what to look out for and how to prevent it. _
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1a71mU13Ueg

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — New ISL Rules: Mandatory Indian Assistant Coaches And Concussion Subs.A minimum "no-contact, no training, no matches" period of 48-72 hours will apply for players substituted due to concussion, it add…
https://www.outlookindia.com/sports/football/new-indian-supe…

check_circle

Claim 6: “fellow batter Dinesh Chandimal also out after suffering a concussion”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources confirm Dinesh Chandimal is unavailable for the second Test after suffering a concussion in the first match.

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025–2027 ICC World Test Championship is the fourth edition of the ICC World Test Championship. It is being played in Test format. It started on 17 June 2025 with the contest between Sri Lanka and…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025–2027_World_Test_Champions…

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Lokuge Dinesh Chandimal (Sinhala: ලොකුගේ දිනේෂ් චන්දිමාල්; born 18 November 1989) is a professional Sri Lankan cricketer and a former captain of the Sri Lanka national cricket team. A handy right-hand…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinesh_Chandimal

menu_book

+ 3 more evidence sources

check_circle

Claim 7: “Sri Lanka’s batting line-up is further weakened by the absence of Pathum Nissanka, who had wrist surgery in June”

CORROBORATED

Sources confirm Pathum Nissanka underwent wrist surgery in June after an injury during the tour of the West Indies and was unlikely to be fit for the second Test against India.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Pathum Nissanka was born on 18 May 1998 in Galle. His father Sunil Silva worked as a ground boy and his income was low.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pathum_Nissanka

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Prolific top order batter Pathum Nissanka has rejoined the Sri Lankan squad after three months on the sidelines following wrist surgery. Nissanka suffered the injury during Sri Lanka’s tour of the Wes…
https://island.lk/kamindu-at-three-in-long-run-a-good-move/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Pathum Nissanka is also unlikely to be fit in time for the match, which starts on Sunday. All this means Sri Lanka will be without three first-choice batters, as they attempt to recover from a 1-0 def…
https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/sl-vs-ind-2nd-test-kusal-…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.