'He made the statement just to stay in the limelight' - Danish Kaneria slams Arjuna Ranatunga for his 'second string' comment on Team India

Former Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria feels Arjuna Ranatunga’s comments on India sending a B team for the limited-overs series against Sri Lanka is said just to be in the limelight. The Sri Lankan southpaw’s controversial comments have not gone down too well with experts and many former cricketers. Kaneria too has jumped into the bandwagon and feels the BCCI has sent a strong team and some players have an immense amount of experience under their belt.

Barring the six uncapped players, the rest of the squad features names such as Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Hardik Pandya who have played a lot for India. The former Pakistan cricketer feels it is not a B team with this bunch of experienced players in it.

While speaking on the same on his YouTube channel, Kaneria lambasted the former Sri Lankan skipper for making such horrible comments about the Indian squad.

“Ranatunga made the statement just to stay in the limelight. India is one such nation that contains 50-60 players and can make two international teams. Many players, including Shikhar Dhawan and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, have been with the Indian team for a while. It is sad to hear such a statement from cricketer of your stature,” Danish Kaneria stated.

Danish Kaneria takes a dig at the current situation of the Sri Lankan team

The 40-year-old spinner took a dig at Ranatunga citing the poor performance by the Sri Lankan team in the recently completed limited-overs series against England. The Lankan Lions lost in the T20I and ODI series 0-3 and 0-2 against England. Kaneria believes the southpaw should be thankful to BCCI for at least sending a team to help bring the Lankan board some funds and sponsors.

“Sri Lankan cricket is on the decline. Look at the way they are playing the series in England. It is as if they have forgotten playing cricket. The Sri Lankan board should feel blessed that India is sending a team to help the board will be out of the financial crisis,” Danish Kaneria signed off.

India’s limited-overs series against Sri Lanka starts on July 13. The Indian team is led by Shikhar Dhawan with Rahul Dravid overseeing things as the head coach for the six white-ball matches.