De Silva leaves back his matches after father shot dead by unknown gunmen

The father of Sri Lankan cricket all-rounder Dhananjaya de Silva was shot dead by unidentified gunmen on the eve of the national team’s departure to the West Indies yesterday, police said. The player’s father, Ranjan, a local politician, was gunned down in Ratmalana, a suburb of the capital Colombo, close to midnight on Thursday, police said. An investigation is underway but no arrests have been made. Cricket officials said 26-year-old De Silva withdrew from the tour that involves three Test matches. However, there was no official word from the cricket board on who will replace De Silva.