Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) board has denied claims of exploitation of International Cricket Council (ICC) rules' loopholes to keep Wanindu Hasaranga availabile for the upcoming T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA.

In an announcement made by the board on Wednesday (Mar 20), the SLC claimed that they had no role in bringing back Hasaranga in the Test format and it was the player who contacted them for the same.

Hasaranga's comeback into the Test squad immediately triggered a two-match Test ban and will see him available for further international matches including the T20 World Cup. "It was about two weeks ago that he told us he was open to playing Tests again," Mendis told ESPNcricinfo. "We know how it looks, but this decision was taken well before the final ODI." What is the Wanindu Hasaranga ban issue? During Sri Lanka's defeat to Bangladesh on Monday (March 18) Hasaranga was handed demerit points for showing dissent against an umpiring decision. According to the ICC ruling, a player with eight demerit points could be handed a ban for two Tests, four ODIs or four T20Is, depending on which came first. In this case, Hasaranga was entitled to serve his band during the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA and could have missed up to four matches during the tournament. However, the player and the board decided to name Hasaranga in the Test squad, despite him having announced his retirement from the red-ball format. As soon as he was registered for the Test series against Bangladesh, a two-match ban was triggered, clearing the slate of eight demerit points. CSK vs RCB- IPL 2024: Head-to-head, stats, playing XIs, pitch report, live streaming details & more This loophole exploitation has seen Hasaranga stay away from the series but will feature in all of Sri Lanka's T20 World Cup matches which were the next international fixtures on the calendar. According to SLC, Hasaranga had informed them in an email on March 16 of his desire to be considered for Test cricket selection going forward, citing his improved fitness levels. Ajantha Mendis, a member of Sri Lanka's selection committee, meanwhile stated that Hasaranga had in fact intimated his desire to play Test cricket even earlier.