DURHAM have announced the signing of Sri Lankan left-arm seamer Vishwa Fernando.

The international pace bowler will join the county ahead of the LV=Insurance County Championship fixture against Worcestershire that starts on Tuesday, September 19 and will be available for Durham’s final two fixtures.

With Matthew Potts and Brydon Carse on England duty for the final two County Championship fixtures, Durham have acted quickly to secure an international replacement.

Fernando had initially signed to bolster the seam attack for the final three games of the season, however his arrival to Durham was delayed due to not being able to obtain a visa in time for the previous round of matches.

An experienced seamer across all formats for Sri Lanka, Fernando has made 20 Test appearances picking up 50 wickets with a best of 5-101 which came in Johannesburg in 2021.

He made his Test debut in 2016 in a commanding 229-run victory for Sri Lanka over Australia and was most recently in Test action last month against Pakistan in Galle.

The 31-year-old has 264 first-class wickets to his name having made 99 red ball appearances since his debut in 2012 and plays his first-class cricket with Colombo Cricket Club.

Fernando has also played first-class cricket with Bloomfield in Sri Lanka and has played in the Lanka Premier League with Kandy Tuskers and Galle Titans.

Durham director of cricket, Marcus North said: "We are really pleased to welcome Vishwa to Durham for our County Championship run-in.

"With Brydon Carse and Matthew Potts away on England duty for their ODI series against Ireland, we felt the need to recruit a quick overseas bowler, as we look to maintain our strong finish to the season, ending in a positive way.

"He is a vastly experienced player who has succeeded in Test and first-class cricket and we look forward to seeing what he can bring to Durham in September."

Fernando added: "I am really looking forward to joining Durham. I am very much excited to play in the County Championship in England, I look forward to seeing everyone soon."