If we talk about playing aggressive cricket in the 90s era, then surely Sanath Jayasuriya’s name emerges in our mind. The southpaw from Sri Lanka changed the course of batting in ODI cricket with his explosive approach in a time when players used to take time to be in momentum by leaving overs after overs. As an opener of Sri Lanka, Jayasuriya would make the most of the powerplay in starting overs and bash the bowlers grimly. Having represented Sri Lanka in 586 matches across all three formats, he is definitely one of the best batsmen Sri Lanka has ever produced. Let’s take a gaze at the interesting facts about Sanath Jayasuriya.
21 Interesting Facts About Sanath Jayasuriya
- Jayasuriya was born on 30th June 1969 in the southern city of Sri Lanka called “Matara” to Dunstan and Breeda Jayasuriya. His sibling’s name is Chandana Jayasuriya.
- Sanath Jayasuriya used to go to St.Servatius College in Matara. It was his college’s principal GL Galappathy and coach Lionel Wagasinghe who acknowledged his talent and groomed him to be a great cricketer.
- Jayasuriya’s nicknames are “Matara Mauler”, & “Matara Hurricane”.
- Sanath Jayasuriya played for Srilanka in the maiden U-19 World Cup in 1988 in Australia and after the world cup, he traveled with Sri Lanka B to Pakistan. Sanath smashed 2 unbeaten double centuries there.
- The pro-Lankan batsman made his ODI debut against Australia in 1989. Started his career with 3 runs, Jayasuriya went on to become the 4th highest run-getter in ODIs with 13430 runs in 445 games.
- The Sri Lankan all-rounder assisted Lanka to win the 1996 World Cup by being the player of the tournament. With the bat, he amassed 221 runs and took 6 wickets with the ball. He put massive pressure on opponents throughout the tournament.
- Not everyone knows that Sanath Jayasuriya holds the record of grabbing the most wickets as a left-arm spinner, 323 wickets in 445 matches. Even spin wizard Shane Warne has 293 wickets in ODIs but his average is better than Sanath.
- The Southpaw has set another record in his name by being the only player to score more than 12000 runs and take 300 wickets in 50 over cricket.
- In One Day Internationals, Jayasuriya has smacked the third-most number of sixes, 270 sixes in 445 matches.
- Sri Lanka had always gotten Jaysuriya’s service in the World Cups. He played five World Cups from 1989 to 2007 and is the only player to notch up more than 1000 runs and take above 25 wickets in World Cup history.
- Matara Mauler’s test career was also phenomenal. Sanath Jayasuriya is the first Lankan player to score a triple century in Tests, he achieved the feat in 1997 against India playing for 799 minutes in two and half days.
- Sanath Jayasuriya has always destroyed his counterparts, hitting the most number of centuries for Sri Lanka in ODIs (38).
- With his outstanding batting performance throughout his career, he has won 58 Man of the Match awards. Only Sachin Tendulkar has got more MoM than him.
- In the inaugural edition of IPL, Sanath Jayasuriya played for Mumbai Indians. He ended up as the third-highest run-getter in the tournament, 472 runs in 15 matches with a decent average of 43.16.
- The best ever domestic cricket in the world has also seen the game of the deadly Lankan opener. He played for multiple teams in County Cricket like Somerset, Lancashire, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire.
- Jayasuire tied the knot with Sandra Tania Rosemary De Silva in 2000. The couple has been blessed with three kids.
- The Srilankan Cricket Board elected him as the chief selector in 2013 and during his tenure, Srilanka wore the crown of the World T20 in 2014.
- His good deed for confining HIV among the young Srilankan people helped him to become the 1st cricketer to be appointed as Goodwill Ambassador by the UN.
- In 2010, Sanath Jayasuriya fought the election for United People’s Freedom Alliance from Matara District. He obtained 74532 votes, which was most by any candidate. He became deputy minister of Postal services in 2013.
- Sanath’s jersey number was 07.
- His estimated net worth is $16 million.
Sanath Jayasuriya’s Career Stats
| Format | Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | Best | Strike Rate | 50s | 100s |
| ODI | 445 | 433 | 13430 | 32.36 | 189 | 91.20 | 68 | 28 |
| Test | 110 | 188 | 6973 | 40.07 | 340 | 65.18 | 31 | 14 |
| T20I | 31 | 30 | 629 | 23.29 | 88 | 129.15 | 4 | – |
How many runs has Sanath Jayasuriya scored in ODIs?
Jayasuriya has scored 13430 runs in 433 ODI matches.
How many wickets has Jayasuriya taken in One Day Internationals?
Jayasuriya has taken 323 wickets in One Day Internationals.
What’s Jayasuriya’s career-best in Test?
340 runs against India is Jayasuriya’s career-best score in Test.
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