Hasaranga Receives Two-Test Suspension Following Return From Retirement

The Srilankan all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga return in Test cricket seems to be a rough patch as he is being suspended for two-Test series against Bangladesh announced by ICC on Tuesday. He took a call for retirement last year from the test format.

Less than a day had passed since Sri Lanka said that Hasaranga, who is 26 years old, will be joining the Test team after retiring. Notably, the third and final One-Day International (ODI) against Bangladesh was played at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram on March 18. It was discovered by the International Cricket Council (ICC) that he had violated article 2.8 of the player’s code of conduct, which deals with expressing disagreement with the umpire’s decision.

Reason behind the Suspension of Hasaranga

The strange occurrence happened in the 37th over of the third ODI, according to an ICC press release issued on Tuesday, March 19. “He snatched his cap from one of the umpires and ridiculed the umpiring in the match,” the report reads. 

The 26-year-old received three demerit points and a punishment equal to 50% of his match expenses.  This will bring his total demerits to eight. Should it reach eight, he will be required to miss two Test matches, four One-Day Internationals, or four Twenty20 Internationals, depending on which happened first. It is noteworthy that he would not have been eligible for Sri Lanka’s first four matches in the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup, which is set to begin on June 2, if he had not announced his retirement from Test cricket.

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On the other side, when the third ODI ended, Kusal Mendis, the captain of Sri Lanka’s ODI team. He was also fined 50% of his match costs and three demerit points for “abusing the umpires while shaking hands with them.” Mendis and Hasaranga both accepted responsibility for their actions and the sanctions that match referee Andy Pycroft had placed on them. Moreover, Hasaranga’s ban has changed Sri Lanka’s spin attack. For the next series, Sri Lanka is anticipated to include the uncapped Nishan Peiris and Kamindu Mendis, who has only played in one Test.