Sri Lanka batsman Bhanuka Rajapaksa has announced his international retirement with immediate effect. In a letter written to the SLC, the 30-year-old cited familial obligations for his big decision."I have very carefully considered my position as a player, husband and am taking this decision looking forward to fatherhood and associated familial obligations," he wrote. Rajapaksa, who was Sri Lanka's leading scorer in the 2010 Under-19 World Cup, made his T20I debut in the tour of Pakistan in 2019. The ODI bow came last year at home against India.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa has played 5 One Day Internationals and 18 T20 Internationals for Sri Lanka National Cricket Team and has scored 89 and 320 runs at an average of 17.8 and 26.67 respectively. The sources of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) have revealed that Bhanuka Rajapaksa in his retirement letter has stated that he has decided to quit international cricket because he can’t play cricket with the latest fitness standards introduced by the cricket board especially the skinfold levels. The 30-year-old batsman feels if he brings down his skinfold levels he will not be able to do his power-hitting. Notably, the cricket administration has lowered the skin-fold test levels to 70 from 85.In 2021 the Yo-Yo test was replaced by the 2km run test to determine the ‘fitness and endurance levels of the players. Also, the benchmark set for the 2km run was increased from 8.35 minutes to 8.55 minutes after the request made by the Cricket Technical Advisory Committee. However, Sri Lanka National Selectors have set the benchmark of 8.10 minutes and they want players to complete the 2km run within 8.10 minutes.
