Shai Hope ruled out of 1st Test vs Sri Lanka with shoulder strain

The West Indies have gone into the first Test against Sri Lanka without their white-ball captain, Shai Hope, who has been ruled out with a shoulder strain. The wicketkeeper-batter sustained the injury during a training session ahead of the game, which got underway on Thursday, June 25, at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua.

Missing Hope’s services is a huge setback for the Caribbean side, who are playing their first Test match in 2026. Last year, the 32-year-old made his comeback to the longest format after a four-year break and played eight matches, where he scored 534 runs at an average of 33.37, which included two centuries and one fifty.

Roston Chase won the toss on Thursday and opted to field first. Joshua Da Silva returned to the side for the first time since November 2024 and is donning the wicketkeeping gloves. Amir Jangoo, who is also a wicketkeeper, is playing as a specialist batter. Apart from Hope, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Anderson Phillip, and Jomel Warrican have been left out. The hosts have gone seamer-heavy, with Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Kemar Roach, and Jayden Seales in the line-up. Seam-bowling all-rounder Justin Greaves will also roll his arm over. Chase is the only spin-bowling option in the playing XI.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka have also fielded a pacer-dominated XI. Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, and Kasun Rajitha are the three specialist seamers in the line-up. Milan Rathnayake has been picked as the seam-bowling all-rounder ahead of the experienced left-arm spinner Prabath Jayasuriya. Sonal Dinusha, who has only played two Tests so far, has been picked as the spin-bowling all-rounder. Vishwa Fernando, Ramesh Mendis, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Lahiru Udara, and Isitha Wijesundera have been kept on the bench alongside Jayasuriya.

This is a very important series, especially for Sri Lanka. They are placed third in the World Test Championship standings. If they win both Tests, it will propel them towards a top-two placing on the WTC table. The West Indies, meanwhile, are languishing at the bottom and would be desperate to move up from there.

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