Hasaranga ruled out of Bangladesh T20Is with hamstring injury

Sri Lanka legspinner Wanindu Hasaranga has been ruled out of the upcoming T20I series against Bangladesh, scheduled to begin on Thursday (July 10), with a hamstring injury.

Hasaranga sustained the hamstring injury on his right leg while batting during the final ODI against the visitors in the just concluded three-match series that the hosts won by a 2-1 margin.

Captain Charith Asalanka confirmed that Jeffrey Vandersay will replace Hasaranga in the squad for the three-match series. “He( Hasaranga) will be a huge loss for us. He is our superstar in white-ball cricket,” Asalanka said on Wednesday.

Asalanka added that Sri Lanka will be boosted by the return of Dasun Shanaka and Chamika Karunaratne to the T20I setup. Shanaka is set to take on the role of a flexible batting all-rounder, likely slotting in at number six, while Chamika could play at number seven as a bowling all-rounder.

“We expect Dasun and Chamika to handle the all-round responsibilities. Dasun’s role could be a floating one depending on the situation, while Chamika will add depth to our lower-middle order,” Asalanka explained.

The captain outlined the team’s long-term goal of breaking into the top five in the T20I rankings, stressing that consistency and team balance remain a work in progress.

“When we started, we had set a target to move up to number five in T20 rankings. It’s a process, and consistency is the key. We are still working on finalising our best combination and identifying players for those crucial spots,” he said.

Asalanka also recognised Bangladesh as a competitive side with similar gaps in experience and expected a closely fought series.

“Bangladesh are a good T20 side, but like us, they lack experience in some areas. It’s going to be a tough series. The pitch looks good for batting, and I believe we can post scores of 180-plus if we execute our plans.”

Litton shifts focus to T20s after ODI setback

Meanwhile, Bangladesh T20I captain Litton Das downplayed concerns over the recent 1-2 loss in the ODIs, saying each format is different and his focus is now on T20 cricket. “T20 is a different format. Tests are different. ODIs are different. We all know how to play T20 cricket, and that’s what I will focus on,” said Litton.

Litton acknowledged that his ODI performances didn’t meet expectations, which led to time on the bench. But he stressed that he used that period to prepare for the T20 games and now hopes to put that to good use in the upcoming matches.

“Look, I didn’t play good ODI cricket, and that’s why I was on the bench. During that time, I tried to practice for T20s, and I will try to use that preparation in the games,” Litton said.