Yorkshire have signed Sri Lanka quick Vishwa Fernando for their next three County Championship matches.
The left-arm seamer, who has 64 Test wickets at 33.09 in 23 caps, is due to be available for fixtures against Northamptonshire, Gloucestershire and Derbyshire. Fernando played two matches for Durham last season, taking seven wickets at 22.42 for the eventual Division Two champions.
Fernando’s acquisition will bolster Yorkshire’s bowling resources, with Matthew Fisher, Mickey Edwards and Matt Milnes all missing through injury. The club went into the latest round without a win in five matches since the start of the season – including a defeat against Middlesex – which has them sixth out of eight in Division Two.
The hope is Fernando will help kickstart a much-needed tilt at promotion. He put in strong performances in Sri Lanka’s 2-0 Test series win in Bangladesh which concluded at the start of April. He finished second in the wicket-taking charts with 10 dismissals at 16.10, and will be in the mix for Sri Lanka’s tour of England later this summer, with the first of three Tests beginning on August 21 at Emirates Old Trafford.
The 32-year-old has already met up with his county teammates, who are currently in action against Sussex down at Hove, and will turn out for Yorkshire next week against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road. Signed solely on a red ball deal, Fernando will be back in action when the County Championship returns on June 23 as the Vitality Blast takes over the calendar. Yorkshire host Gloucestershire at Scarborough for that round before Fernando’s final appearance at Chesterfield against Derbyshire, which begins on June 30.
He will take Yorkshire’s second overseas in the Championship, alongside skipper Shan Masood. South African Donovan Ferreira has already been confirmed as the county’s overseas for the Blast.
