Asia Cup 2023: "He Is Just 26 Years Old But...": Aakash Chopra Stunned With Wanindu Hasaranga's Retirement From Tests

Former India batsman Aakash Chopra has expressed his surprise over Wanindu Hasaranga bidding goodbye to Test cricket. The Sri Lanka leg-spinner left the cricketing world stunned this week by announcing his retirement from the longest format of the game at the age of 26.

As per reports, Wanindu Hasaranga decided to bring down curtains on Test career in order to be more available for franchise cricket tournaments. Wanindu Hasaranga is a sought after player for the T20 franchises and has already played in Bangladesh Premier League, Indian Premier League, ILT20, Pakistan Super League, Lanka Premier League. He has also earned contracts to play in The Hundred as well as Major League Cricket.

A key member of Sri Lanka’s limited-overs teams, Wanindu Hasaranga was not an active member of the Test team. He made his debut in the longest format of the game in 2020 and played the last of his four Tests in 2021. On the other hand, he has played 48 ODIs and 58 T20Is for his country.

Aakash Chopra stunned with Wanindu Hasaranga’s decision:

Reacting to Wanindu Hasaranga’s decision of retiring from Tests at the age of 26, Aakash Chopra could not hide his surprise. He pointed out that in recent times several players such as Trent Boult and Alex Hales have preferred franchise cricket over representing their national teams.

“Wanindu Hasaranga has said he doesn’t want to play Test cricket. He is just 26 years old but has turned his back on Test cricket. What are you doing? Is that right, is that wrong? Trent Boult and Alex Hales have not even taken a contract. What is happening in world cricket?” Aakash Chopra said in a video posted on his YouTube channel.

“There is no doubt that he is an amazing player in T20 cricket. It won’t be wrong to say that he is Sri Lanka’s best player in white-ball cricket but he said he doesn’t want to play Test cricket and instead wants to focus on white-ball cricket,” he added.

At the same, Aakash Chopra showed respect to Wanindu Hasaranga’s decision and said that players should be free to choose the way they want to earn a living and secure their future.