COLOMBO, July 10: The Sri Lankan cricket team suffered a major blow on the eve of the Pepsi Asia Cup with coach Bruce Yardley deciding to return to Australia to undergo a `medical check-up'.

A terse one line press release from the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) today said ``Bruce Yardley, the Sri Lankan coach will be leaving for Australia on 15th July for an overdue medical check-up as ordered by his doctors.''

While the board officials say they were not willing to say more than what has been said in the press release, cricket writers, however, said Yardley was not happy with recent overtures made by the BCCSL to Gary Sobers for coaching the team's top-order batsmen.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.