{"id":6491,"date":"2025-05-15T14:31:07","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T14:31:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/?p=6491"},"modified":"2025-05-15T14:31:07","modified_gmt":"2025-05-15T14:31:07","slug":"sri-lankas-bhanuka-rajapaksa-joins-lahore-qalandars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/2025\/05\/15\/sri-lankas-bhanuka-rajapaksa-joins-lahore-qalandars\/","title":{"rendered":"Sri Lanka\u2019s Bhanuka Rajapaksa joins Lahore Qalandars"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Lahore (Syed Javed Hassan Shah): Lahore Qalandars have confirmed the addition of Sri Lankan power-hitter Bhanuka Rajapaksa, who replaces the injured Tom Curran for the remainder of HBL Pakistan Super League Season 10.<br><br>Rajapaksa, known for his aggressive batting style, has maintained a strike rate of 142.45 in the middle order over the past two years, adding valuable firepower to the lineup.<br><br>\u201cIt\u2019s an honour to step in and represent Lahore Qalandars at such a key stage of the tournament,\u201d Rajapaksa said. \u201cI\u2019ve followed the PSL closely and know how competitive and intense it can be. I\u2019m ready to give it everything for the team and hopefully help push for a strong finish. The Qalandars have a proud, passionate fan base, and I\u2019m thrilled to be part of their journey.\u201d<br><br>\u201cBhanuka is a proven match-winner with the kind of fearless intent we value at Lahore Qalandars,\u201d said Sameen Rana, Team Director. \u201cAlong with his explosive batting in the middle order, his wicketkeeping skills give us added depth and flexibility. His experience brings the balance we need at this stage of the tournament. We\u2019re excited to have him on board and confident he\u2019ll make a strong impact.\u201d<br><br>Curran was earlier ruled out of the tournament due to an ankle injury and returned home on May 7. He was released following a medical evaluation and consultation with specialists. He now requires a period of rest and rehabilitation, ruling him out of any further participation in the ongoing tournament. The franchise extends its full support to Tom during his recovery and wishes him a speedy return to competitive cricket.<br><br>\u201cIt\u2019s disappointing to be withdrawn from the tournament and to leave the team at this stage,\u201d said Tom Curran. \u201cA big thank you to everyone at Lahore Qalandars for having me. It\u2019s been a pleasure being part of the squad. Wishing the boys all the very best down the home stretch. I\u2019ll be watching and cheering from afar!\u201d<br><br>On Tom\u2019s exit, Rana added: \u201cTom has been a key part of our setup, both on and off the field. His energy, commitment, and all-round skills made a strong impact. It\u2019s unfortunate to lose him at this stage, but his long-term fitness is the priority.\u201d<br><br>Meanwhile, Zimbabwean all-rounder Sikandar Raza joined the squad last night.<br>More updates regarding Lahore Qalandars roster, if required, will be communicated\u00a0in\u00a0due\u00a0course.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lahore (Syed Javed Hassan Shah): Lahore Qalandars have confirmed the addition of Sri Lankan power-hitter Bhanuka Rajapaksa, who replaces the injured Tom Curran for the remainder of HBL Pakistan Super League Season 10. Rajapaksa, known for his aggressive batting style, has maintained a strike rate of 142.45 in the middle order over the past two<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6496,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32,31,6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-6491","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-international","8":"category-national","9":"category-example-3"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6491","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6491"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6491\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6497,"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6491\/revisions\/6497"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6491"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6491"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capitalnewspk.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6491"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}