Indian Cricket Players: May 2011

Tuesday 31 May 2011

Upul Tharanga

Upul Tharanga Biography
Upul Tharanga is a tall, soft spoken Sri Lankan batsman who is an absolute delight to watch once he gets going. A fine left hander, Tharanga has however not been able to cement his place in the Sri Lankan squad even after playing over 100 ODI’s.
Tharanga debuted for his club side Nondescripts and was part of Sri Lanka’s Under-15, Under-17 and Under-19 teams. After a successful Under-19 WC and a good Under-19 series in Pakistan, he was selected to make his ODI debut against West Indies in 2005. In only his fifth match, he slammed his maiden century against Bangladesh. He made his test debut against India the same year falling just short of a half century in the 2nd innings. However he could not continue on his good start and after being granted numerous opportunities was dropped from the test team. However the selectors persisted with him in ODI’s and he repaid their faith with an excellent series in England where he scored over 300 runs in five games. Tharanga was selected ahead of the struggling ex-captain Marvan Atapattu for the 2007 WC but failed miserably notching a solitary fifty in his five games and a poor home series against England at home led to his being dropped from the ODI squad. His lean patch continued even after his comeback in 2008 but he was Sri Lanka’s most consistent batsman on their away tour to India in 2009.
Tharanga, when in form is one of the games most flowing batsman. His cover drive and down the wicket shots are on par with the best in the world. He is also capable of clearing the field at ease. But his footwork is suspect and he also has a tendency to throw away his wicket when well set. With the opening spot still up for grabs, Tharanga could still well be the juggernaut for Sri Lanka in the top order in the 2011 WC.

Fast Facts

He currently holds the 1st wicket world record partnership with Sanath Jayasuriya (286) against England in 2006.
He scored more than 1000 runs in the calendar year 2006.
He is one among thirteen Sri Lankan batsman to score more than 3000 runs in ODI’s.
He holds the 10th highest score by a Sri Lankan in ODI’s.
He has scored back to back centuries against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.
To date, he has scored one century in Test cricket.
He is only one of two Sri Lankans to have scored an ODI century by the age of 20

Upul Tharanga

A Tsunami success story | Upul Tharanga

Thisara Perera

Thisara Perera Biography
Thissara Perera is a young Sri Lankan right arm fast bowler who bats left handed and is being touted as a genuine allrounder. Thissara earned his callup to the national squad as an emergency backup to an injured Angelo Matthews and has since then impressed with both his bat and ball and consequently has been usurped by Chennai Super Kings in the IPL.
Opening the bowling for his Under-19 squad, Thissara performed well on their England tour and was brilliant in a tri-nation tournament involving India and Bangladesh picking up 8 wickets in four matches. His performances earned him a ticket to Sri Lanka’s Under 19 WC in Malaysia in 2008.
Injuries paved the way for him to make his ODI debut against India in 2009 where he scored 31 on debut. He also took 6 wickets in the tri-series involving India and Bangladesh in Dhaka and was involved in a match winning partnership with Samaraweera against India.
Since then he has featured in ODI’s and T20’s for Sri Lanka but still has some way to go before to becomes a regular in the Sri Lankan setup.

Fast Facts

He took his first five wicket haul against India in 2010 in only his 11th ODI.
He is only one of three Sri Lankan to take 5 wickets by the age of 21.
He has scored a century and also taken a five wicket haul in domestic cricket.

Thisara Perera

Thisara Perera Finishing The Game Off vs Australia October 31 2010

Thisara Perera Clean Bowls Cameron White With a Beauty! GOLDEN DUCK!

Thilina Kandamby

Thilina Kandamby Biography
Earmarked as a batsman who in years would become the crux of Sri Lanka’s middle order, somewhere along the way something seems to have gone seriously wrong with Kandamby’s career.
The left hander’s whose sojourn began with successful stints for Sri Lanka’s Under-19 and A sides also made his domestic debut for Bloomsfield in the 2001. Just three years later, five half centuries on Sri Lanka A’s tour of New Zealand saw him selected for the tour of Zimbabwe but after appearing for Sri Lanka in just four ODIs in 2004, Kandamby didn’t play for the Islanders up again until 2008. He went on to score a fine unbeaten 93 against the Indians in an ODI as wickets fell around but lack of tall scores thereafter have meant that he continues to remain a fringe player in the side.
A tall batsman with a good reach, Kandamby has often been criticised for getting bogged down and not being a great mover in the field. Sri Lanka’s strong batting lineup has also meant that he hasn’t had far greater opportunities at the top of the order, one of the many reasons why he has underperformed over the years.

Fast Facts

Kandamb’y 52 for Sri Lanka against Zimbabwe A consisted of 10 fours and 2 sixes, the first time a first class score of 50 or more has consisted entirely of boundaries.
He was the 'Man of the Tournament' in Sri Lanka's 2005-06 Premier Limited Overs Tournament.
He has also led Sri Lanka's Under-19 side and his club side Bloomfield.

Thilina Kandamby

Angelo Mathews: "Why You Do That, Yaar!?"

T20 Canada - Sri Lanka Tribute

Thilan Thushara

Thilan Thushara Biography
When Thushara made his ODI debut against the West Indies in 2008, many assumed him to be newcomer making his mark in international cricket. However few cease to remember the year 2003 when a teenage Thushara had made his test debut against the same opponents.
The left armer who made his first class debut in the 1998-99 season impressed selectors during his stints at Sri Lanka’s premier fast bowling academy and was consequently selected for the tours of South Africa and West Indies against whom him he made his Test debut but apparently with little success. Left in the wilderness thereafter, in the following years Thushara struggled in the domestic arena but a fine run in the 2007-08 ‘Inter-Provincial Limited Overs Tournament’ where he helped club Kandurata finish as podium winners once again brought him into national reckoning. However this time around, Mirando as he is lovingly called took to the stage with much more self belief and it showed in his performances as he prized a memorable fiver in an ODI against the Indians and also excelled in the Test arena against the likes of Pakistan and New Zealand.
With an enviable height, Thushara is capable of generating disconcerting bounce and is also a handy hitter lower down the order. A fine utility player to have in the side, however Sri Lanka’s problem of plenty has meant that Thushara has to continue performing consistently over a longer period to impress the captain and selectors to grant him a place in the starting eleven on a regular basis.

Fast Facts

He is one of only four Sri Lankan left arm pacers to have taken a five wicket haul in ODIs.
His 6-118 is also the fourth best figures by a Sri Lankan left arm pacer in Tests.
He was the highest wicket taker in Sri Lanka Cricket's 'Inter-Provincial Limited Overs Tournament' in 2007-08.

Thilan Thushara

Thilan Thushara to Paras Dogra

Thilan Thushara to Shikhar Dhawan

Thilan Samaraweera

Thilan Samaraweera Biography
Being a spin bowler in the Muralitharan era was tantamount to foolhardiness because the spin great would bound to overshadow your performances. Samaraweera learnt his lessons quickly and from being an off spinner who could bat a bit, he transformed himself into a genuine frontline batsman.
It wasn’t easy though. Samaraweera debuted for Colts Cricket Club in 1995 and played as their frontline spinner. He got his due when he was called up to Sri Lanka’s ODI team in 1998. He managed to play only six matches between 1998 and 1999 and was consequently dropped. The presence of Kumar Dharmasena and the wily Murali meant that Samaraweera would find it very hard to break into the Sri Lankan team as a spinner. So he went back to domestic cricket and worked on his batting. The move paid dividends as he made his debut against India at his home ground Sinhalese in Colombo. Coming in at number eight, Samaraweera combined with Hashan Tillekaratne to put up a mammoth score of 610 and completed his maiden ton in the process.
He dream start continued as he stroked another century at the same ground five matches later against Zimbabwe. His performances were thereafter consistent and he cemented himself in Sri Lanka’s Test squad. However the selectors ignored him in ODI’s and he was thereafter labelled in the Test mould. He performed exceedingly well in tests and it was not until mid 2006 that cracks started appearing in his batting. Totally at sea against the swinging ball, he failed to notch up to even double figures in the two tests away in England. He was consequently dropped but made a successful comeback slamming consecutive centuries against India and West Indies on the way. His ODI career hasn’t rhymed the same way though. After consequently being ignored in the past decade, Kumar Sangakkara has given the veteran the vote of confidence and since 2009 he has been featuring in ODI’s. However coming lower down the order, he has had limited opportunities and his inability to hit big shots may be his undoing in the shorter format of the game.
He may not be as pretty to watch as a Mahela Jayawardena or a Kumar Sangakkara but his ability to wear down bowlers and accumulate runs is an ideal foil to a batting lineup replete with stroke makers. He is also a very good player of spin bowling and is a decent fielder. Samaraweera may not find himself among Lankan legends when he retires but one thing is for sure, no one can deny him of not trying.

Fast Facts

He is only the 3rd Sri Lankan batsman to score a century on debut, a feat achieved against India in 2001.
He is currently Sri Lanka’s 6th highest run scorer in Tests.
He currently shares the highest Sri Lankan 5th wicket partnership with Tillakaratne Dilshan (280) a feat achieved in 2005 against Bangladesh.
He is the only Sri Lankan after Kumar Sangakkara to score double centuries in consecutive tests which he achieved against Pakistan in 2009.
He holds the world record 4th wicket partnership with Mahela Jayawardena (437) against Pakistan at Karachi in 2009.
It took him 11 years since his debut to score his maiden century in ODI’s, a feat which he achieved against New Zealand in 2009.
He has scored centuries against every test playing country with the exception of Australia and South Africa.
He averages over 80 at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo.
He has scored back to back hundreds in Tests on three different occasions.
He currently averages around 100 in Tests which Sri Lanka wins.
Among Sri Lankan players who have played more than 50 tests, he is only one of three to average more than 50.

Thilan Samaraweera

Thilan Samaraweera showing his class

Sri Lanka v India - 1st Test - Thilan Samaraweera 111*