Sanath Jayasuriya is poised to make his Test comeback for Sri Lanka against England at Trent Bridge on Friday, just a month after retiring.
Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene told a press conference on the eve of the third and final Test that the left-handed batsman had a "very good chance" of playing as the tourists bid to level the series.
Sri Lanka have axed batsman Tilan Samaraweera, who averaged 4.25 in the first two Tests, and 23-year-old fast bowler Nuwan Kulasekara from the side which lost by six wickets at Edgbaston.
Fast bowler Nuwan Zoysa, as well as Jayasuriya, join a 12-man squad.
Jayasuriya, aged 36 and a veteran of 102 Tests, retired from Test cricket in April to concentrate on one-dayers.
He was added to the current Test squad after pressure from the chairman of selectors Asantha de Mel, even though the team management were committed to selecting younger players.
"If we have Sanath it gives us more depth and experience, as well as another bowling option," Jayawardene said on Thursday.
"I had a word with him and he is quite happy and looking forward to the challenge. It's asking a lot of him and we didn't want to force him.
"Knowing Sanath and what he's capable of, I think he can do a job for us."
England, resisting the temptation to fast-track Michael Vaughan and Steve Harmison back into the side following injuries, are expected to be unchanged.
Jayawardene said Jayasuriya was likely to bat at around six and added he had not been forced on to the team.
"We want to continue with the policy of giving young players a chance," he said.
Sri Lanka's batsmen have struggled at the top of the order, although Michael Vandort came good with a century at Edgbaston. "What Michael did proved what we wanted to do was correct," Jayawardene added.
Jayasuriya, an explosive left-hander and a former Test captain, averages 41.59 in Tests. He has also taken 92 wickets with his left-arm spin.
Jayawardene said he did not believe that the Trent Bridge match would necessarily be Muttiah Muralitharan's last in England.
"We think he has got more cricket in him and enough to come back to England," he said of the mercurial 34-year-old spinner. Sri Lanka are not due to tour again until 2011.
England captain Andrew Flintoff added of Muralitharan, his former Lancashire team mate: "He's improved over the last two years, with more tricks up his sleeve. He seems to be getting better and better."
Flintoff said the England side were eagerly awaiting former captain Vaughan's return. "The sooner he gets back the better," he said.
Squads:
England - Marcus Trescothick, Andrew Strauss, Alastair Cook, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff (captain), Geraint Jones, Liam Plunkett, Matthew Hoggard, Sajid Mahmood, Monty Panesar, Jon Lewis.
Sri Lanka - Michael Vandort, Upul Tharanga, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Farveez Maharoof, Chaminda Vaas, Lasith Malinga, Muttiah Muralithan, Nuwan Zoysa, Charmara Kapugedera.
