Sri Lanka Cricket suspends Niroshan Dickwella indefinitely for doping violation

Colombo, Aug 16 : The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Friday announced that wicketkeeper-batter Niroshan Dickwella has been suspended indefinitely because of a doping violation. Dickwella is understood to have failed a dope test held in line with World Anti-Doping guidelines, during the recently concluded Lanka Premier League, and will be suspended from all forms of cricket while further investigations take place, the Sri Lanka Cricket informed in a release on Friday.

"The suspension is effective immediately and will remain in place until further notice. The test, which was conducted by the Sri Lanka Anti-Doping Agency (SLADA) during the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024, is part of SLC's ongoing commitment to maintaining the integrity of the sport," the SLC said in a release.

"This initiative, undertaken in collaboration with the Ministry of Sports and in accordance with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) guidelines, is aimed at ensuring that cricket remains free from the influence of prohibited substances," the release said.

"SLC, together with the Ministry of Sports and SLADA, conducts these tests during domestic tournaments randomly to safeguard the sport against anti-doping violations," it added.

Dickwella, who last featured for Sri Lanka in March 2023, had captained Galle Marvels in LPL 2024. Although he had received a call-up for Sri Lanka's T20I series against Bangladesh earlier this year but didn't play a single match.

After his selection, the selectors indicated that they had addressed Dickwella's poor disciplinary record with him. The left-handed batter has often found himself at the centre of controversy throughout his career, with his off-field behaviour frequently drawing criticism due to his inconsistent performance. He was notably one of the three players banned in 2021 for violating bio-bubble protocols, alongside Kusal Mendis and Danushka Gunathilake.

The 31-year-old Dickwella had played for Sri Lanka across formats and scored 2757 runs in Tests, 1604 in ODIs and 480 in T20Is.