Bhanuka Rajapaksa created panic in IPL, questions raised on selectors of Sri Lankan team

Hard-hitting 30-year-old batsman Bhanuka Rajapakse looked in fine form. Chasing the target of 206 runs, he batted at a strike rate of 195 for Punjab Kings and led the team to victory. The former Royal College batsman came out to bat when Mayank Agarwal was dismissed by his country’s Vanindu Hasaranga. Hasranga is one of the most expensive buyers in the IPL and Rajapaksa blew his senses with the help of two sixes and a four.

In the match presentation, Bhanuka Rajapakse had said, “I knew how Hasranga bowled. It was about knowing him and being with him for the last four to five years. I applied my local knowledge and it worked. We did. What I thought was that we would just get one free hit. Shikhar (Dhawan) wanted me to be aggressive. However, I had just come into the field. This win is a huge confidence booster. We have 14 games to play. And every match is a batsman’s match.”

Bhanuka Rajapaksa was bought by Punjab Kings for a base price of Rs 50 lakh. Rajapaksa had a conflict with members of the national selection panel. He was ignored for Sri Lanka’s recent T20I series in Australia and India on the pretext that he had failed the fitness test. He has not represented Sri Lanka in any form of international cricket since the World Cup in the United Arab Emirates last year, where he did a decent job.