Sri Lanka's Niroshan Dickwella Suspended from Cricket for Anti-Doping Violation in LPL 2024

New Delhi: Sri Lanka National Cricket Team player Niroshan Dickwella has been suspended from all forms of cricket following allegations of anti-doping violations, as reported by NewsWire. The wicketkeeper-batter is said to have violated anti-doping rules during the recently concluded Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024.

As a result, Dickwella has been banned from the sport and any sporting activity that also includes any form of practice until such time that the said investigation has been concluded. It shall be a tremendous loss and a severe setback that the cricketer has had to face.

This comes in just after reports surfaced that he tested positive for cocaine, raising serious questions about continuing playing cricket. The test was conducted by the Sri Lanka Anti-Doping Agency at the end of the LPL. It is understood that the results apparently confirm the violation. An official statement regarding Dickwella’s suspension is, therefore, expected soon.

This incident was just the latest in a number of off-field controversies involving Dickwella. He has earlier been banned for one year in 2021 over breaching COVID-19 protocols while on tour with the team in the UK.

Niroshan Dickwella, recently captaining Galle Marvels in the Lanka Premier League, had a notable but mixed tournament. Despite his aggressive performance at the top, amassing 184 runs in 10 innings with a strike rate of 153.33, Dickwella couldn’t shine in the final, scoring just 5 runs off 8 balls as his team lost to Jaffna Kings. His last international appearance was in a Test match in 2023, with his last white-ball game for Sri Lanka in 2022. Throughout his career, Dickwella has amassed 2,757 runs in Tests, 1,604 runs in ODIs, and 480 runs in T20Is, also having served as captain for the national team.