Wanindu Hasaranga will miss the entire T20I series against India as he has returned yet another positive test and will remain in isolation in Melbourne.
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Sri Lanka’s hopes of putting up a competitive show in the series against India have suffered a massive jolt. Wanindu Hasaranga, the legspinner who went to Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 10.75 crore, will miss the T20I series against India. Hasaranga, who missed the Canberra and Melbourne matches in Australia after testing positive for the coronavirus, had yet another RT-PCR Test. In that second test, Hasaranga once again tested positive for the coronavirus. Thus, his isolation period has been extended in Melbourne. In the two matches that he played in Sydney, Hasaranga took five wickets. But, he had an expensive economy rate of 8.87.
This is a major blow for Sri Lanka as Hasaranga has been impressive for them. He has taken 57 wickets in 35 T20I matches at a stunning average of 13. During the ICC World T20 2021, Hasaranga took 10 wickets. This included a haul of 3/21 against England in Sharjah and 3/20 vs South Africa at the same venue. In the previous T20I series against India, Hasaranga took seven wickets. He won the Man of the Series Award as Sri Lanka won the series 2-1.
In a press release issued by the Sri Lanka Cricket Team, they confirmed the development. “Wanindu Hasaranga, who was in isolation after contracting COVID-19, has once again returned a positive result when a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) was conducted on the player yesterday,” the release stated.
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The three-matchTwenty20 International series will begin on February 24 at Lucknow. After that, the series will move to Dharamshala on February 26 and 27. With Hasaranga’s absence, Sri Lanka’s chances of winning a Twenty20 International series in India have taken a big hit. Recently, Hasaranga had climbed to No.2 in the ICC rankings among bowlers in the Twenty20 International format. Apart from the ball, Hasaranga is a valuable lower-order player who can contribute in a big way.
Hasaranga might be available for the two Tests that follow the Twenty20 Internationals against India. But, in the longest format of the game, Hasaranga has had limited success. In four Tests, he has taken only four wickets. After taking 4/171 in the Centurion Test against South Africa, he has not taken any wickets. Sri Lanka will play two Tests in Mohali and Bangalore. The match at the M Chinnaswamy stadium will be a Day-Night affair.
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