Tillakaratne Dilshan
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Tillakaratne Mudiyanselage Dilshan ( si, තිලකරත්න මුදියන්සේලාගේ ඩිල්ෂාන්; born 14 October 1976), commonly known as TM Dilshan () is a former Sri Lankan
cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...
er and former captain of the
Sri Lanka national cricket team The Sri Lanka men's national cricket team, ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා ජාතික ක්‍රිකට් කණ්ඩායම, ta, இலங்கை தேசிய கிரிக்கெட் அணி) nicknamed The Lions ...
. He is often regarded as the best rated Sri Lankan player in run-chases in ODI history and one of the most innovative players of all time. Dilshan is considered to be a rare example of a cricketer with notable skills in all aspects of the game, who can bat, bowl, field and keep wicket. He is an aggressive right-hand batsman who invented the scoop, which has come to be known as the Dilscoop, a shot that hits the ball over the keeper. Apart from being an opening batsman, he is also a capable
off-break Off spin is a type of finger spin bowling in cricket. A bowler who uses this technique is called an off spinner. Off spinners are right-handed spin bowlers who use their fingers to spin the ball. Their normal delivery is an off break, which sp ...
bowler. Energetic in the field, he usually fielded at the point region. Dilshan made his Test and ODI debut during the Sri Lankan cricket team's tour to Zimbabwe in 1999. He is also the second cap for Sri Lanka in Twenty20 Internationals. He is the first cricketer in the history of the game to score hundreds in all formats as a captain. Dilshan won the Twenty20 International Performance of the Year award at the
2009 ICC Awards The 2009 ICC Awards were held on 1 October 2009 in Johannesburg, South Africa before the semi-finals of 2009 ICC Champions Trophy. Nominations were announced in Mumbai in early September while short lists were announced on 15 September. These a ...
for his 96 off 57 ball shots against West Indies in the semi-final of the
2009 ICC World Twenty20 The 2009 ICC World Twenty20 was an international Twenty20 cricket tournament organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) that took place in England in June 2009. It was the second ICC World Twenty20 tournament, following the inaugural ...
in England. He also won the man of the series trophy for his individual batting performances in the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 tournament. He was also a key member of the team that won the 2014 ICC World Twenty20 and was part of the team that made the finals of 2007 Cricket World Cup,
2011 Cricket World Cup The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka, and for the first time in Bangladesh. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in the final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai ...
,
2009 ICC World Twenty20 The 2009 ICC World Twenty20 was an international Twenty20 cricket tournament organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) that took place in England in June 2009. It was the second ICC World Twenty20 tournament, following the inaugural ...
and
2012 ICC World Twenty20 The 2012 ICC World Twenty20 was the fourth ICC World Twenty20 competition, an international Twenty20 cricket tournament that took place in Sri Lanka from 18 September to 7 October 2012 which was won by the West Indies. The schedule has been pos ...
. He is the fourth Sri Lankan, and eleventh player overall to score 10,000 ODI runs. Being the third overall and first Sri Lankan to score 1,500 runs in
Twenty20 International A Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of cricket, played between two of the international members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in which each team faces a maximum of twenty overs. The matches have top-class status and are th ...
s, he is also the first player to hit 200 fours in T20Is. Dilshan scored 1000 or more ODI runs in a calendar year four times and never failed to amass fewer than 800 runs in any calendar year between 2009 and 2015. Dilshan was under-estimated in the cricket world as an ordinary player when he batted at number 6 and 7, unlike his revered teammates Mahela Jayawardene and
Kumar Sangakkara Kumara Chokshananda Sangakkara ( si, කුමාර් චොක්ශනාද සංගක්කාර; born 27 October 1977) is a Sri Lankan cricket commentator, former professional cricketer, businessman, ICC Hall of Fame inductee and ...
. When he gained the opening batting position, Dilshan became one of the finest cricketers in the world and a legend in modern cricketing history. His quick progression can be seen in his stats: after he moved to the opening position, he scored 21 ODI centuries and all his Test and T20I centuries. In August 2016, Dilshan announced that he would retire from both ODI and T20I cricket at the end of the series against Australia. He retired from ODI cricket on 28 August 2016 and from T20I cricket on 9 September 2016.


Early life and family

Dilshan was born on 14 October 1976 in Kalutara, to a Malay father and a Sinhalese mother in a family with five siblings. He was educated at Jaffna Sinhala Madya Maha Vidyalaya in Jaffna for primary education, and then at the
Kalutara Vidyalaya Kalutara Vidyalaya ( si, කළුතර විද්‍යාලය) is a Buddhist boys' school in Kalutara, Sri Lanka. The college was founded in 1941 by Sir Cyril De Zoysa. It is a national school providing primary and secondary education. ...
, where he started his cricket career as a teenager. However, his family did not want him to play cricket, so his only goal was to get ahead in sports. Dilshan converted from
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...
to
Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
at the age of 16, and was known as ''Tuwan Mohammad Dilshan'' before his conversion. His childhood coach Ranjan Paranavitana stated that even though Dilshan had a Muslim name, he and his siblings followed their mother's religion during their childhood and officially changed his religion and name after his parents separated. Dilshan was married to Nilanka Vithanage, with whom he has a son called Resadu Tillakaratne. After divorcing Dilshan, Nilanka filed a lawsuit over child alimony. He was issued with a notice to appear in court after the 2011 Cricket World Cup, but he refused some of these notices. The case was later settled with Dilshan to pay about 200,000 LKR each month for his ex-wife and his son. The court case was opened again in 2017, after Dilshan had failed to pay some of the monthly fees. On 24 April 2017, Colombo Magistrate Courts issued an arrest warrant to Dilshan due to his absence in the Court. However, Dilshan finally appeared on court on 25 April 2017. Dilshan is now married to Sri Lankan actress Manjula Thilini. Their marriage was celebrated in India during the
2008 IPL The 2008 Indian Premier League season was the inaugural season of the Indian Premier League, established by the BCCI in 2007. The season commenced on 18 April 2008 with the final match was held on 1 June 2008. The competition started with a dou ...
series. Dilshan has two daughters and two sons from this marriage. Their eldest daughter is Resandi Linama Tillakaratne, and second is Lasadi Dihasansa Tillakaratne. Their elder son is Dihela Dinhath Tillakaratne, and younger son was born in 2017. Dilshan's brother, Tillakaratne Sampath, is a
first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...
er in Sri Lanka. Dilshan is a popular icon at home, and participated in many local events and television programs. He was also appointed as a special judge in
Sirasa Superstar ''Sirasa Superstar'' was a musical reality show conducted in Sri Lanka by the TV channel Sirasa TV. The first four seasons were inspired by the program called American Idol an American singing competition series, the fifth and sixth seasons are sim ...
, Generation 4. He also participated in a number of entertainment shows, due to his wife's status as a popular Sri Lankan actress. With the invention of his masterstroke play-Dilscoop, Dilshan models his fashion line with the name 'Dil Scoop'. On 23 October 2014, Dilshan opened a small-scale luxury hotel, named as "Hotel 'D Pavilion Inn'", situated at Stafford Lane in
Kirulapana Kirulapone (Kirulapana) is a suburb in Colombo, Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and offic ...
. The hotel was opened in the presence of the former president of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapakse. After retiring from international cricket, Dilshan and his wife released a video song titled ''Hema Sansaraye''. In February 2021, he released the music video ''Hitha Hadana Kena''. Dilshan made his television debut in an episode of
Kopi Kade Kopi Kade (''Coffee Shop'') (Sinhala language, Sinhala:කෝපි කඩේ) is a popular Sri Lankan comedy-drama television series broadcast on the Independent Television Network. One of Sri Lanka's iconic television series in history, Kopi Kad ...
drama on 5 April 2017. He also acts alongside his wife in the teleplay ''Mithuu'' which is currently broadcast by Independent Television Network. and was one of the three judges of Sri Lanka's Got Talent reality program conducted by
Sirasa TV Sirasa TV is a digital, terrestrial television network in Sri Lanka. It is the sister channel of ' TV One' (Previously MTV Channel and MTV Sports) which was established in 1992. Sirasa TV was started in 1998 as a sister to its radio network Sir ...
.


Early career

Dilshan first played against
Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
on 18 November 1999 at Bulawayo. He scored 9 runs on his debut and was out LBW to a delivery off Henry Olonga. However, Dilshan managed to score his maiden test century at the Harare Sports Club in the second test between Sri Lanka and
Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
. He scored an unbeaten 163 runs in the first innings and was awarded the player of the match award for his role in the Sri Lankan victory. Dilshan achieved his highest test score in
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, where he scored 193 runs in the second test at the
Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England ...
cricket ground, against
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
. Dilshan's One-Day International debut also came during Sri Lanka's tour of Zimbabwe in 1999, where he scored 31 runs against
Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...
. His maiden ODI century came against
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
on 4 July 2006, where he smashed an unbeaten 117 runs along with
Sanath Jayasuriya Deshabandu Sanath Teran Jayasuriya ( si, සනත් ජයසූරිය, ta, சனத் ஜெயசூர்யா; born 30 June 1969), is a former Sri Lankan cricketer and a captain. He is credited for having revolutionized one-day in ...
's 157 to help Sri Lanka post then highest ODI score of 443 runs, which stood for 10 years until England scored 444 runs. Dilshan real talent came through in their
match A match is a tool for starting a fire. Typically, matches are made of small wooden sticks or stiff paper. One end is coated with a material that can be ignited by friction generated by striking the match against a suitable surface. Wooden mat ...
against India on 15 December 2009, where Sri Lanka nearly chased a mammoth target of 414 posted by India. The pitch at Rajkot was perfect to bat on, Dilshan started the run chase with Tharanga, instead of Jayasuriya. In a blistering knock he reached fifty off 38 balls and then scored hundred off 73 balls. His 150 runs came off 115 balls with Sri Lanka on the brink of a sensational win. His score of 160 was full of hooks, pulls and many scoops of his variety, leading the way to victory. But after Dilshan fell when bowled by
Harbhajan Singh Harbhajan Singh (born 3 July 1980) is a member of parliament in Rajya Sabha and an Indian retired cricketer and cricket commentator, who played for the Indian national cricket team from 1998 - 2016. Singh was a right-arm spin bowler. In India ...
, the match opened for the Indian team. They took all the advantages and Sri Lanka were bowled out for 411 runs, losing by only 3 runs. This was Dilshan's third century in ODIs, the commentators described it as one of the best chases in the World Cricket. His knock was later nominated to be one of the Best ODI Batting Performance of the year by
ESPN Cricinfo ESPN cricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including liveblogs and scorecards), and ''StatsGuru'', a d ...
. He was named in the 'Team of the Tournament' by
ESPN Cricinfo ESPN cricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including liveblogs and scorecards), and ''StatsGuru'', a d ...
for the 2009 T20I World Cup. His knock of 96* against West Indies was later nominated to be one of the Best T20I Batting Performance of the year by
ESPN Cricinfo ESPN cricinfo (formerly known as Cricinfo or CricInfo) is a sports news website exclusively for the game of cricket. The site features news, articles, live coverage of cricket matches (including liveblogs and scorecards), and ''StatsGuru'', a d ...
. For his performances in 2009, he was named in the World ODI XI by the ICC.


Later career

Dilshan played almost all his international matches as a middle-order all-round batsman during his early years. However, by 2007, he was selected to open the batting with
Sanath Jayasuriya Deshabandu Sanath Teran Jayasuriya ( si, සනත් ජයසූරිය, ta, சனத் ஜெயசூர்யா; born 30 June 1969), is a former Sri Lankan cricketer and a captain. He is credited for having revolutionized one-day in ...
in
ODI ODI may refer to: * Object Design, Incorporated, a defunct database software company * One Day International, cricket match * Open Data Institute, a UK not-for-profit company promoting open data * Open Data-Link Interface, an implementation of ...
game against
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
, where he started to showcase himself as an attacking and threatening opening batsman. Since 2007, his strokeplay has included a host of aggressive strokes which has allowed him to dominate the
ODI ODI may refer to: * Object Design, Incorporated, a defunct database software company * One Day International, cricket match * Open Data Institute, a UK not-for-profit company promoting open data * Open Data-Link Interface, an implementation of ...
arena on many occasions. Until retirement, he slotted as the permanent opening batsman for Sri Lanka, as well as operating as a handy right-arm off-break bowler in both
ODI ODI may refer to: * Object Design, Incorporated, a defunct database software company * One Day International, cricket match * Open Data Institute, a UK not-for-profit company promoting open data * Open Data-Link Interface, an implementation of ...
and T20I matches. Dilshan is credited for the creation of the Dilscoop, which he stumbled upon and then perfected, during the Indian Premier League 2009 tournament. His innovative stroke play is acknowledged by many commentators and pundits thereby earning the recognition of being known as one of the most aggressive batsmen of all time. Apart from his Dilscoop, Dilshan is a prolific player of width possessing the ability to hit nearly any delivery pitched outside the off-stump for runs, and has perfected a lethal cover drive against pace bowlers.


2011 Cricket World Cup

Dilshan was the top run scorer in the
2011 Cricket World Cup The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka, and for the first time in Bangladesh. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in the final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai ...
. He scored 500 runs from nine One Day international innings with the best score of 144 runs against Zimbabwe. In the quarter-final against England, Dilshan along with Upul Tharanga, stood double hundred partnerships for the first wicket. This stands as the best ever chasing in a quarterfinal in a World Cup game. He scored two centuries, two half-centuries, 61 boundaries, and four sixes during the tournament which ended at the Wankhede Stadium in
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...
, India, in April 2011. He was named in the 'Team of the Tournament' for the 2011 World Cup by the ICC and Cricinfo.


Captaincy

Immediately after the end of the
ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka, and for the first time in Bangladesh. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in the final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, thus ...
, with
Kumar Sangakkara Kumara Chokshananda Sangakkara ( si, කුමාර් චොක්ශනාද සංගක්කාර; born 27 October 1977) is a Sri Lankan cricket commentator, former professional cricketer, businessman, ICC Hall of Fame inductee and ...
stepping down as captain, Dilshan was appointed the captain of Sri Lanka in all formats of the game. Dilshan said after his retirement in ODIs that, he did not want to take the captaincy, but Sri Lanka Cricket asked him to take the captaincy for six months until they found someone suitable. He accepted the task, but the many troubles in the team such as retirements and injuries led him to reduce performances. However, his appointment as captain was questioned by cricket fans and pundits alike. Many wondered if he was the right man to lead
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
. Dilshan scored 193 runs against England at
Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England ...
, breaking the record for the highest individual score made by a Sri Lankan at the venue, and lead Sri Lanka to their maiden test win in
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
. Losses to England, Australia, Pakistan and South Africa put strain on his captaincy, however, which he relinquished in January 2012. He also said that he had a lack of support during captaincy tenure and help from former captains and coaches for the team. During Dilshan's captaincy, four coaches were introduced, but none succeeded. Dilshan became the 5th player in international cricket to score centuries in all forms of the game. During the Australian tour of Sri Lanka in 2011, Dilshan scored an unbeaten century of 104* from just 54 balls in the first Twenty20 match of the series, becoming the 5th player to achieve the milestone after West Indian Chris Gayle, New Zealander
Brendon McCullum Brendon Barrie McCullum (born 27 September 1981) is a cricket coach, commentator and former cricketer representing New Zealand, who played all formats, including as captain. McCullum was renowned for his quick scoring, notably recording the f ...
, Indian Suresh Raina and fellow Sri Lankan
Mahela Jayawardena Denagamage Praboth Mahela de Silva Jayawardene ( si, දෙනගමගේ ප්‍රබෝත් මහේල ද සිල්වා ජයවර්ධන; born 27 May 1977) is a former Sri Lankan cricketer who is the current consultant coach ...
and it is also the highest individual twenty20 international score by a Sri Lankan in the history. He scored the century from just 57 balls with 12 fours and 5 sixes. He achieved his century with a dilscoop hitting behind the wicket-keeper. For his performances in 2011, he was named in the World ODI XI by the ICC. For his performances in 2013, he was named in the World ODI XI by the ICC. In December 2011, Sri Lanka registered their first ever Test win in South Africa. This also became their first Test win under Dilshan's captaincy. However, after losing the Test series 2–1 and the subsequent ODI series 3–2, Dilshan resigned and was replaced by Mahela Jayawardene. In 2012, he was ranked the second-highest ODI run scorer, with 1119 runs, behind his teammate
Kumar Sangakkara Kumara Chokshananda Sangakkara ( si, කුමාර් චොක්ශනාද සංගක්කාර; born 27 October 1977) is a Sri Lankan cricket commentator, former professional cricketer, businessman, ICC Hall of Fame inductee and ...
. For his performances in 2012, he was named in the ODI XI of the year by Cricinfo.


Test retirement

Dilshan announced his retirement from Test cricket on 9 October 2013. Dilshan retired from test cricket in 2013 with his last match being played against
Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
at the R. Premadasa Stadium. Dilshan played 87 test matches amassing 5,492 runs, along with 16 centuries and 39 wickets.


Dilshan-Shehzad incident

On 4 September 2014, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) issued Pakistani cricketer
Ahmed Shehzad Ahmed Shehzad ( Punjabi:احمد شہزاد; born 23 November 1991) is a Pakistani international cricketer. He is an opening batsman who made his One Day International and Twenty20 International debut for Pakistan in April 2009 against Austral ...
an official reprimand after his frequent quarrels with Dilshan about Dilshan's past and current religions. Shehzad was caught on camera telling Dilshan:


Through the ranks

On 16 December 2014, in his 300th One-Day International, Dilshan scored his 18th ODI century and also passed 9,000 runs in ODIs. He became the fourth Sri Lankan cricketer and 15th overall to achieve this landmark. He also took 3 crucial wickets in the match against
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
and aided Sri Lanka's title claim as the winners of the tournament. He won both man of the match award and man of the series award. On 23 January 2015, Dilshan scored his 20th One-Day International century against New Zealand, becoming the 10th batsmen to score 20 ODI centuries.


2015 Cricket World Cup

On 26 February 2015, he scored an unbeaten 161 runs during the group stage match of 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup against
Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
. This was his highest individual score in an ODI and was the highest score by a Sri Lankan in
Cricket World Cup The Cricket World Cup (officially known as ICC Men's Cricket World Cup) is the international championship of One Day International (ODI) cricket. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), ...
history, a title previously held by Aravinda de Silva, who scored 145 runs against Kenya in 1996. It was also the highest individual score without a six in ODI history and Dilshan's third score greater than 150. During his innings, he shared a 206* run second wicket partnership with
Kumar Sangakkara Kumara Chokshananda Sangakkara ( si, කුමාර් චොක්ශනාද සංගක්කාර; born 27 October 1977) is a Sri Lankan cricket commentator, former professional cricketer, businessman, ICC Hall of Fame inductee and ...
. This was the highest second wicket partnership for Sri Lanka in ODIs, but was surpassed in the following match between Sri Lanka and England by a 212* run stand between Sangakkara and
Lahiru Thirimanne Hettige Don Rumesh Lahiru Thirimanne, known as Lahiru Thirimanne ( si, හෙට්ටිගේ දොන් රුමේෂ් ළහිරු තිරිමාන්න; born 9 August 1989) is a Sri Lankan international cricketer, and a for ...
. On 1 March 2015, during a group match against England, Dilshan took his 100th ODI wicket by dismissing
Gary Ballance Gary Simon Ballance (born 22 November 1989) is a Zimbabwean cricketer who also represented England internationally until 2017, and represents Zimbabwe from 2022 onwards. He is a left-handed batsman and a leg break bowler, who last played for Yo ...
off his own bowling, thus becoming the third Sri Lankan to score 3000 runs and take 100 wickets after Jayasuriya and Aravinda. During a group match against Australia, Dilshan scored 24 runs off a
Mitchell Johnson Mitchell Guy Johnson (born 2 November 1981) is a former Australian cricketer, who played all forms of the game for his national side. He is a left-arm fast bowler and left-handed batsman. He made his Test debut for Australia in November 2007 ...
over by hitting six consecutive 4s, a first in World Cup history. Dilshan's teammates, Sangakkara and Mahela, retired from ODI cricket following Sri Lanka's loss to South Africa in the quarterfinals. When asked about retirement, Dilshan stated that until Sri Lanka found a good opening batsman he would continue to feature in the shorter forms of the game for about 2 years or so. Dilshan got out without scoring in the quarterfinals and Sri Lanka exited the World Cup without making the semifinals for the first time since 2003.


Post-World Cup

On 26 July 2015, Dilshan passed 10,000 ODI runs during the fifth ODI against Pakistan at Hambantota. With this, he became the fourth Sri Lankan and eleventh overall to achieve the milestone. Dilshan was the second person after Sanath Jayasuriya to score more than 4000 ODI runs after the age of 35 and surpassed Jayasuriya's record of 4,142 runs in 2015. Until retirement, Dilshan has scored 4,674 ODI runs after the age of 35, most by a player. On 9 November 2015, Dilshan became the highest run scorer for Sri Lanka in Twenty20 Internationals passing 1,493 runs of
Mahela Jayawardena Denagamage Praboth Mahela de Silva Jayawardene ( si, දෙනගමගේ ප්‍රබෝත් මහේල ද සිල්වා ජයවර්ධන; born 27 May 1977) is a former Sri Lankan cricketer who is the current consultant coach ...
. With this feat, Dilshan also became the first Sri Lankan and third overall to pass 1,500 T20I runs, milestone achieved after Brendan McCullum, and JP Duminy. Until his retirement, he was only behind McCullum by runs in T20Is. During the third ODI against New Zealand on 31 December 2015, Dilshan smashed 91 runs to reach another milestone in his career. Dilshan surpassed 1202 runs by Jayasuriya as most runs by an opening batsman for Sri Lanka in a calendar year. Dilshan scored 1207 runs in the year 2015 with 4 hundreds and 6 fifties. Dilshan finished 2015 ODI arena as the highest ODI run scorer for Sri Lanka and third highest of all-time list. During 25 ODIs played in 2015, Dilshan scored 1,207 runs with the average of 52.47 and strike rate of 90.75. The veteran of 39 years of age, Dilshan showcased incredible all-around ability and had no mercy for the bowlers for all nations, got 4 hundreds and 6 fifties. Until retirement in August, Dilshan has surpassed more than 800 runs each in four consecutive years from 2012 to 2015. For his performances in 2015, he was named in the World ODI XI by ICC. Dilshan was not totally successful in
2016 Asia Cup The 2016 Asia Cup (also called the Micromax Asia Cup T20) was a Twenty20 International (T20I) cricket tournament that was held in Bangladesh from 24 February to 6 March 2016. It was the 13th edition of the Asia Cup, the fifth to be held in Bangl ...
, where Sri Lanka lost to Bangladesh and India lost the way to the finals. On 4 March 2016, against Pakistan, Dilshan reached another milestone by hitting 200 fours in all twenty20 internationals and the first player to break 200 fours in T20Is. Dilshan's consistency as the leading run scorer for Sri Lanka in Twenty20 cricket proved in the
2016 ICC World Twenty20 The 2016 ICC World Twenty20 was the sixth edition of the ICC World Twenty20, the world championship of Twenty20 International cricket. It was held in India from 8 March to 3 April 2016, and was the first edition to be hosted by India. Seven ...
, when he scored unbeaten 83 runs against Afghanistan in a pool match. The innings reached by Afghanistan was 153 and, Dilshan started the innings with showers of four and sixes in a consecutive manner in first six overs. Sri Lanka reached the winning moment in the 19th over with 6 wickets in hand, courtesy of man of the match performance by Dilshan. After that innings, in rest of the pool matches against West Indies and England, Dilshan got out by poor umpire decisions and Sri Lanka eliminated from the first round. Dilshan finished his last international major event as the highest scorer for Sri Lanka with 133 runs at an average of 44.33.


Limited over retirement

Dilshan was not included in the England tour in 2016; which was due to his personal reasons. But, some local media stated that, the conflict between Dilshan and Sri Lanka Cricket board for his retirement consideration was the actual cause for the refuse for England tour. However, Dilshan denied these rumors. On 25 August 2016, Dilshan announced his retirement from the international arena after the Australian tour. The news stated that, due to immense pressure exerted by the selection committee to reform the limited over squad for upcoming World Cup, the team should have many immediate challenges to do. This forced Dilshan to announce and speed up his intentions to retire from limited overs. Many Sri Lankan cricketers wished Dilshan and spoke about him as: He played his last ODI at Rangiri Dambulla Stadium on 28 August 2016. He scored 42 runs in his last ODI innings. As said by skipper Angelo Mathews, the match was dedicated to Dilshan, and a win could give him a good farewell. The ground was covered by many tributes to Dilshan highlighting that ''"A member of 10,000 run club, A legacy of the Dilscoop"'', ''"What a Run"'', ''"Dilshan You Have Made Us Proud"'', and ''"Thank You Dilshan"''. However, Sri Lanka lost the match by 2 wickets at the end. Until his retirement from ODIs, Dilshan is the 11th highest ODI scorer of all time and 7th highest century maker of all time. He played his last Twenty20 International at R Premadasa Stadium on 9 September 2016. He got out for a just single run in the match, but his fielding and bowling came back to the highest level. He took 2 crucial wickets at the end of the Australian innings, by ending 17 years of cricketing career. He ended his international career with a wicket off his last ball. At the time of his retirement, Dilshan was the second highest T20I run scorer of all time. Commentators summarized his career with the quote "Legends Never Retires".


Road Safety World Series

In 2020, Dilshan was announced as the captain of Sri Lanka Legends for the charity T20 cricket tournament titled
2020–21 Road Safety World Series The 2020–21 Road Safety World Series was the inaugural season, an international T20 cricket league, which featured former international cricketers and was organized by the Road Safety World Series (RSWS) organization to raise awareness about ...
. In the first match against Australia Legends, Dilshan scored 14 runs took 3 wickets, where Sri Lanka Legends won the match by 6 runs. Dilshan won the man of the match award. In the second match, Indian Legends beat Sri Lankan Legends by 5 wickets. However, Sri Lanka Legends later won all the league matches against West Indies, Bangladesh, England and South Africa and became the first team to reach semi finals. Dilshan became the anchor man in every game, where he scored fifties against South Africa and England Legends. In the semi final against South African Legends, Sri Lanka won the match comfortably and reached the finals. In the final against Indian Legends, Sri Lanka had the momentum to chase the total of 181 posted by Indians, but later fell 14 runs short. However, Dilshan became the Player of the Series due to his allround match winning performances. Dishan is the highest run scorer of the tournament with 271 runs and highest wicket taker with 12 wickets. He also hit the most boundaries (47) in the tournament.


Beyond cricket

On 1 August 2015, Dilshan and fellow Sri Lankan cricketer
Muttiah Muralitharan Deshabandu Muttiah Muralitharan ( si, මුත්තයියා මුරලිදරන්, ta, முத்தையா முரளிதரன், also spelt Muralidaran; born 1972) is a Sri Lankan cricket coach, former professional c ...
were appointed as the brand ambassadors for the Presidential Task Force to combat kidney disease by the President
Maithripala Sirisena Maithripala Yapa Sirisena ( si, පල්ලෙවත්‍ත ගමරාළලාගේ මෛත්‍රීපාල යාපා සිරිසේන; ta, பல்லேவத்த கமராளலாகே மைத்திரி ...
.


Politics

Dilshan publicly displayed his support to
Mahinda Rajapaksa Mahinda Rajapaksa ( si, මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ, ta, மஹிந்த ராஜபக்ஷ; born Percy Mahendra Rajapaksa; 18 November 1945) is a Sri Lankan politician. He served as the President of Sri Lanka from 2005 to ...
at the 2015 Presidential Election. He did so by welcoming Mahinda Rajapakse to Maharagama for an election rally. In 2018, Dilshan announced that he had joined Mahinda Rajapaksa's
Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna The Sri Lanka People's Front ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා පොදුජන පෙරමුණ, translit=Śrī Laṃkā Podujana Peramuna; ta, இலங்கை பொதுஜன முன்னணி, translit=Ilaṅkai Potujaṉa Mu ...
party. In 2018, Dilshan praised the president,
Maithripala Sirisena Maithripala Yapa Sirisena ( si, පල්ලෙවත්‍ත ගමරාළලාගේ මෛත්‍රීපාල යාපා සිරිසේන; ta, பல்லேவத்த கமராளலாகே மைத்திரி ...
for deciding to implement the
Death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...
for drug traffickers. "Not only for drugs, it should be implemented for child abuse and rape cases", he said, adding that the decision should have been made a long time ago.


International records and achievements


Tests

* He has the highest score scored in
Lord's Cricket Ground Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket List of Test cricket grounds, venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County ...
by a Sri Lankan, where he scored 193 runs in 2013. * Highest partnership for the fifth wicket – 280 by Tillakaratne Dilshan and
Thilan Samaraweera Thilan Thusara Samaraweera ( si, තිලාන් සමරවීර; born 22 September 1976) is a former Sri Lankan international cricketer. Samaraweera played international cricket for Sri Lanka. Known as Sri Lanka's crisis man and for his sl ...
against Bangladesh in 2005. * Only Sri Lankan to scored centuries in both innings in his 50th Test. * First successful challenger of an umpiring decision.


One-Day Internationals

* Second Sri Lankan to have 3 ODI centuries above 150, after
Sanath Jayasuriya Deshabandu Sanath Teran Jayasuriya ( si, සනත් ජයසූරිය, ta, சனத் ஜெயசூர்யா; born 30 June 1969), is a former Sri Lankan cricketer and a captain. He is credited for having revolutionized one-day in ...
, where he has 4 scores above 150 in ODIs. * Highest individual score for Sri Lanka without hitting a six – Dilshan scored 161* with only 22 fours against Bangladesh. This was a world record set in 2015 and was eventually surpassed by David Warner in 2016 which included 24 fours. But Dilshan's innings of 161* still remains the longest World Cup innings without hitting a six. * Most runs by a subcontinent batsman in an ODI Tri-series away from home. Dilshan achieved this feat during CB Series in Australia 2011/12, where he scored 513 runs. * Most ODI runs by any batsman since the age of 35. – He has scored 4,674 ODI runs after 35 years of age. * Most runs as an opener for Sri Lanka in a calendar year – 1207 runs by Dilshan in the year 2015.


Twenty20 Internationals

* Highest run scorer for Sri Lanka – Dilshan has scored 1,889 runs in 80 matches with average 28.19. He is second in the list of all time at the retirement. * Highest individual score in T20I by a Sri Lankan – Dilshan scored 104* against Australia in 2011. * He has the most catches in T20Is by a Sri Lankan – 31 in 80 matches. * Highest partnership for the first wicket – 124 by Tillakaratne Dilshan and
Sanath Jayasuriya Deshabandu Sanath Teran Jayasuriya ( si, සනත් ජයසූරිය, ta, சனத் ஜெயசூர்யா; born 30 June 1969), is a former Sri Lankan cricketer and a captain. He is credited for having revolutionized one-day in ...
against West indies in 2009. * Highest partnership for the fourth wicket – 104* by Tillakaratne Dilshan and
Jeevan Mendis Balapuwaduge Manukulasuriya Amith Jeevan Mendis ( si, ජීවන් මෙන්ඩිස්; born 15 January 1983) is a former Sri Lankan professional cricketer, who played limited over internationals. An all-rounder who bowls leg spin, Mend ...
against Australia in 2011. * Most number of 4s – 223 in 80 matches. He is the first player to achieve 200 fours. * Dilshan was the first player to score a T20I century as captain and he is the only captain to score a T20I century in a winning cause. His innings of 104* are the third highest T20I score by a captain and it is the highest ever T20I score made by a captain in a winning cause.


World Cups

* Highest individual score by a Sri Lankan – 161* by Dilshan against Bangladesh in 2015. * Highest opening partnership (runs) – 282 by Upul Tharanga (133) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (144) against Zimbabwe in 2011.


Others

* First captain to score centuries in all formats while captaining. * Highest run scorer in
2009 ICC World Twenty20 The 2009 ICC World Twenty20 was an international Twenty20 cricket tournament organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC) that took place in England in June 2009. It was the second ICC World Twenty20 tournament, following the inaugural ...
held at England, who scored 317 runs in 7 matches with 3 half-centuries. * Highest run-scorer in
2011 Cricket World Cup The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka, and for the first time in Bangladesh. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in the final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai ...
, scored 500 runs in 9 matches with 2 centuries and 2 half-centuries. * Most ducks in T20 Internationals – 10 ducks in 78 matches. * He is the fourth Sri Lankan and eleventh overall to pass 10,000 ODI runs.


Centuries stats

Dilshan has 16 Test centuries, 22 One-Day International centuries, and 1 Twenty20 International century. He is the first cricketer in the history to score centuries in all formats as a captain. He is the second Sri Lankan and fifth overall to achieve international centuries in all forms of the game. Dilshan has scored 39 centuries (100 or more runs) in Test matches,
One Day International A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World C ...
(ODI) matches and
Twenty20 International A Twenty20 International (T20I) is a form of cricket, played between two of the international members of the International Cricket Council (ICC), in which each team faces a maximum of twenty overs. The matches have top-class status and are th ...
(T20I), organized by the
International Cricket Council The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the world governing body of cricket. Headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, its members are 108 national associations, with 12 Full Members and 96 Associate Members. Founded in 1909 as the '' ...
. Dilshan has scored 16 centuries in Test matches and 22 centuries in ODIs, and one in T20Is. Dilshan scored his 16th and last Test century on 18 March 2013 at the Galle International Stadium in Galle against
Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
. His 17th ODI century comes in his favorite ground Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on 28 July 2013 against
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
, where at this ground he scored 5 ODI centuries and also his only Twenty20 International century against
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
on 6 August 2011. In Test matches, Dilshan has scored centuries against all the Test cricket playing nations except
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
and
West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...
, and has scored 150 against four of them. He is seventh on the list of leading Test century makers for
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
. His centuries have been scored at ten cricket grounds, six of which were outside Sri Lanka. He has been dismissed two times in the nineties. In ODIs, Dilshan has scored centuries against all test playing opponents except
West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...
. His maiden century was made against
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
at the VRA Cricket Ground,
Amstelveen Amstelveen () is a municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands with a population of 92.353 as of 2022. It is a suburban part of the Amsterdam metropolitan area. The municipality of Amstelveen consists of the historical villag ...
in 2006. He is third in the list of leading century-makers in ODIs for Sri Lanka. Of these 22 ODI centuries, nine were scored at home grounds and thirteen were at away (opposition's home) or neutral venues. He has been dismissed one time in the ninetynine. Dilshan scored his only T20I century against
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
in 2011, and became the fifth batsmen to score hundreds in all forms of the game. He scored 104 runs from 57 balls. This is the highest individual score by a Sri Lankan in Twenty20 Internationals. ;Key


Test centuries


One Day International centuries


T20I cricket centuries


Acting career


Filmography


Television


Awards and honours

* ICC Twenty20 International Performance of the Year 2009 * ICC ODI Team of the Year – included in four years (2009, 2011, 2013, 2015) * Dialog SLC People's Player of the Year 2015 (with 493,196 votes) * Dialog SLC T20 Batsman of the Year 2015


References


Further reading


The decision that changed my career – Dilshan



External links

*
Dilshan IPL Profile
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