Jayasuriya to sign for Somerset

Sanath Jayasuriya will sign a short-term contract to play for Somerset on Thursday, according to The Island newspaper. Jayasuriya, now 35, had previously been approached by Scotland but turned down the offer.

Jayasuriya is expected to depart for Somerset straight after Sri Lanka's postponed tour of New Zealand which finishes in mid-April. The contract is expected to run only until the end of May, when South Africa's Graeme Smith takes over after the completion of his international commitments.

It will be Jayasuriya's first stint with an English county despite a long 15-year career and he'll be joined by Upul Chandana (Gloucestshire), Chaminda Vaas (Worcestshire) and Muttiah Muralitharan (Lancashire), who hopes to be fully fit in time for the season.

A small gap in Sri Lanka's international calendar has provided the opportunity for the largest ever influx of Sri Lanka players into County Cricket. The demand has largely been for bowlers but frontline batsmen Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene are also on the lookout for club or county contracts.