Picture Credit: Twitter/@OfficialSLC
Sri Lanka's bowling all-rounder Isuru Udana has announced retirement from international cricket. The 33-year-old's decision abrupt call comes after featuring in the limited-overs series against India. The left-arm pacer has played 21 ODIs and 34 T20Is for Sri Lanka and scalped 18 and 27 wickets in them respectively. Moreover, Udana has even enjoyed a 10-match stint at the Indian Premier League till now in which he has as many as 8 wickets to his credit.
His decision comes at the backdrop of conflict between the players and the board in Sri Lanka and their disappointing performances in recent times, except their T20I series win over India. Udana made his international debut in 2009 but was in and out of the national setup throughout his career which lasted over a decade. Although there is no official clarification on his retirement from Sri Lanka Cricket, commentator Roshan Abeysinghe was among the first ones to break the news to the world with his social media post.
"Just heard that Isuru Udana has retired from international cricket. Thank you Isuru for the years of untiring service. You can surely be proud of your achievements. Happy retired life," he tweeted.
In the last few years, Udana had become a reliable option with the ball, especially on slower surfaces owing to his slow ball variations. Moreover, he was also a more than useful lower-order batter and had even stitched half-centuries with the bat at the highest level. In his last match for Sri Lanka, he bowled only one over, conceding seven runs.
Played for RCB in IPL 2020
The left-arm bowler was part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore squad in IPL 2020 and was included for a sum of INR 50 lakhs. In the 10 matches, he took eight wickets at an average of 35.25 and an economy rate of 9.75. His international retirement implies, he could well be looking to play franchise cricket all around the world. With the IPL yet again going back to UAE, where IPL 2020 was staged, and a few players likely to be unavailable for selection, Udana might get a call up from any of the franchises for the remaining fixtures given the nature of the wickets.
