Wanindu Hasaranga Retires From Tests To Prolong Limited-Overs Career

Sri Lanka allrounder Wanindu Hasaranga has reportedly decided to bring down the curtains on his Test career in order to prolong his career in white-ball cricket.

In recent years, several players have given up red-ball cricket to focus fully on white-ball cricket. One of the biggest names to take such a step is England star, Moeen Ali. The allrounder retired from the longest format of the game in 2021 in order to focus fully on white-ball cricket.

He did come out of retirement to help England in the Ashes this year but decided against playing any more Test after the conclusion of the five-Test series against Australia. And now Wanindu Hasaranga is also set to join the growing list of players who have decided to give up on red-ball cricket to focus on white-ball cricket.

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According to Sri Lankan news outlet NewsWire, the leg-spinner allrounder has already written a letter to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to inform them of his decision. The report stated that the star player has ‘cited his desire to focus on limited overs cricket and contribute his best to the national team’ in the letter. He has also highlighted that he wants to retire from Tests in order to prolong his career as a specialist in limited-over formats.

Wanindu Hasaranga’s Test career so far:

While Wanindu Hasaranga has been an indispensable part of the Sri Lankan limited-overs teams, he has hardly played any Test for them. He made his debut in the longest format of the game in 2020 and has played only 4 Tests so far.

The 26-year-old has not played a Test for Sri Lanka since 2021 and his last appearance came against Bangladesh in April 2021. In 4 Tests, he has scored 196 runs in addition to picking up four wickets. On the other hand, Wanindu Hasaranga has already played 48 ODIs and 58 T20Is for the island nation. He will be seen in action soon in the upcoming Asia Cup 2023.

Wanindu Hasaranga was a key member of the Sri Lankan team that won the Asia Cup against all the odds last year and will be looking to help his team defend its title. Asia Cup 2023 is scheduled to be played from August 30 to September 17 in Sri Lanka and Pakistan.