Sri Lanka T20I skipper Lasith Malinga broke his silence on the arrest of his former teammate Shehan Madushanka and suggested that he should receive help when he is released.
The young Sri Lankan seamer was arrested for the possession of illegal drugs by the Pannala Police on 25th of May and was suspended from all formats of cricket by Sri Lanka Cricket.
Speaking on the young pacer’s career, the Sri Lankan T20I skipper said,
“The law will decide whether he is guilty or not. But Shehan Madushanka is a good 25-year-old seamer, who can bowl fast. He picked up a hat-trick on his debut which is a performance even I couldn’t do. It would be good to have the services of another fast bowler like Lahiru Kumara”
Sri Lankan seamer suspended from all formats of cricket following drug charges
He also pointed out since there is a probability of the T20 World Cup being pushed back to 2022 from October in Australia, that Madushanka could be a valuable addition to Lankan pace battery,
“It will be goodto have an express seamer like him. Sri Lanka probably will need it in Australian conditions if the T20 World Cup is pushed back to 2022”
Always straight to the point, the veteran pointed out the need to rehabilitate the seamer after his release.
SLC to conduct random drug tests on players
“After all the legal procedures are done, we have to keep him like at least 3 years at Khettarama, distancing from others to take what he has to offer for Sri Lanka. Everybody goes through tough times. But we have to help him and his family.”
Following this incident, Sri Lanka Cricket has decided to impose drug tests on national players.
