Prior to the start of the 2018 IPL season, he was approached by the Sunrisers Hyderabad team to replace their former captain David Warner who was banned for ball-tampering scandal against South Africa. However, he turned down the offer as he was devoted to play in the domestic league matches in Sri Lanka during the period and wanted to make a Test return into the Sri Lankan cricket team for the then upcoming series against West Indies in June 2018. Later, Alex Hales was called up to replace Warner for the 2018 IPL season following the refusal of Kusal Perera.