Batsman Bhanuka Rajapaksa retires at 30

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka batsman Bhanuka Rajapaksa announced his retirement from international cricket, citing family obligations, according to The Associated Press.

Sri Lanka Cricket said the 30-year-old Rajapaksa wrote that his decision to stop playing will come into effect immediately.

Rajapaksa said in his letter that he made the decision “looking forward to fatherhood and associated familial obligations,” but other reports say there has been speculation that tougher fitness benchmarks for the players could have prompted his early retirement.

Rajapaksa had been previously in conflict with the cricket board and head coach Micky Arthur about fitness demands.

He was omitted from the national team because of his failure to meet fitness and fielding standards and was fined for a media interview criticizing his exclusion.

However, Rajapaksa subsequently worked on his fitness and earned selection to the national team.

Rajapaksa played five one-day internationals and 18 Twenty20 internationals for Sri Lanka.