Mathews, who has played 221 ODIs had earlier been replaced by Pathiurana during the ICC World Cup Qualifiers tournament held in Zimbabwe. It is now almost a role reversal four months later.
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Sri Lanka, after losing three matches in a row to South Africa, Pakistan, and South Africa, earned their first win as they beat the Netherlands at Lucknow. They will next play England at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday, October 26, 2023.
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Mathews, 36, has scored 5865 ODI runs at an average of 41. He has three hundred and 40 fifties to his name. With the ball, the former Sri Lanka skipper has taken 120 wickets in ODIs. But off late, Mathews has only batted and played in Tests as a specialist batter. He last played an ODI in June against Afghanistan.