Rangana Herath to retire after first Test against England
Herath, No.7 on the MRF Tyres ICC Test Rankings for bowlers, has picked up 430 Test wickets at an average of 27.95 and a strike rate of 59.7 over the years, topped with 34 five-wicket hauls and nine 10-wicket hauls in 92 Tests.
The veteran bowler is just one wicket away from claiming 100 dismissals in Galle – a record he will share with Muttiah Muralitharan. Retiring at the ground will have high sentimental value for Herath, who made his debut at the same venue back in 1999.
SLC wishes to inform that Mr. Rangana Herath following a discussion he had with the SLC CEO and the selectors, notified his retirement from test cricket, after the 1st test match, in Galle against England. #ThankYouHerath https://t.co/4V6f6LjTpp pic.twitter.com/Cu12JQXZrv
— Sri Lanka Cricket 🇱🇰 (@OfficialSLC) October 22, 2018
"We respect and support Rangana’s decision. Even though his retirement will be a big loss for Sri Lanka Cricket. We wish to thank him for the invaluable contribution he has made to Sri Lanka Cricket," said Ashley de Silva, the CEO of Sri Lanka Cricket.
Herath, the most prolific left-arm spinner in Test history, struggled with knee injuries in the last lap of his career and has been unable to compete in a full three-match Test series since January 2017.
The 40-year-old is tenth on the list of all-time leading wicket-takers in Test cricket and only the second bowler from Sri Lanka to cross 400 wickets in whites, after Muralitharan. Since retiring from limited-overs cricket after the ICC World T20 2016, the spinner has focussed entirely on Test cricket and has been one of the main reasons for the team's success in the format.
His best performance came against Pakistan in 2014, when he returned figures of 9/127 in the first innings – the best by a left-arm bowler in Test cricket, pacer or spinner. He then clinched a five-wicket haul in the second innings, taking his match tally to a career-best 14/184.
Known for his accuracy and ability to bowl long spells, Herath spent the first half of his career playing in Muralitharan's shadow. However, he gradually brought his own unique skill-set to the fore, becoming the most reliable component of Sri Lanka's bowling attack in the last nine years.
He was in and out of the Sri Lankan unit before he made a comeback to Test cricket with 10 wickets against Pakistan as a 31-year-old in 2009.
His returns of 9/128 against the South Africans in Durban in 2011 saw Sri Lanka clinch their first Test victory in the country. He finished with 60 scalps in 2012, the leading wicket-taker for the year.
Herath will now draw the curtains on a 19-year-long international career after claiming 522 wickets across all formats of the game.
The first Test between Sri Lanka and England in Galle begins on November 6.