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.
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
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera
Thilan Samaraweera showing his class
Sri Lanka v India - 1st Test - Thilan Samaraweera 111*
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