An ankle injury has forced Ajantha Mendis out of Sri Lanka's squad to tour Bangladesh this month, Sri Lanka Cricket said on Thursday.
Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath was picked as a replacement for Mendis in a 15-member squad for the two Tests starting December 26.
However, Mendis will play in a three nation one-day international tournament involving Zimbabwe as the third team, the statement said.
Mendis made his debut for Sri Lanka this year and had quickly established himself as a strike bowler in both tests and limited overs cricket.
In July, he broke a 62-year record for the most number of wickets in a three-match debut series, beating England's Alec Bedser's previous best of 24 wickets.
Herath, who has taken 35 wickets in 13 Tests, played his last Test against the West Indies in March.
The squad: Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Kumar Sangakkara, Malinda Warnapura, Michael Vandort Thilan Samaraweera, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Prasanna Jayawardena, Chaminda Vaas, Muttiah Muralitharan, Rangana Herath, Dammika Prasad, Chamara Kapugedera, Farveez Maharoof, Dilhara Fernando, Thilan Thushara.