Arjuna Ranatunga facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hon. Deshamanya Arjuna Ranatunga MP
Ranatunga in 2017
Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation
In office 20 December 2018 – 21 November 2019
President	Maithripala Sirisena
Prime Minister	Ranil Wickremesinghe
Preceded by	Nimal Siripala de Silva
Succeeded by	Mahinda Amaraweera
Ministry of Petroleum Resources Development
In office 22 May 2017 – 26 October 2018
President	Maithripala Sirisena
Prime Minister	Ranil Wickremesinghe
Preceded by	Chandima Weerakkody
Succeeded by	Kabir Hashim
Minister of Ports & Shipping
In office 12 January 2015 – 22 May 2017
President	Maithripala Sirisena
Prime Minister	Ranil Wickremesinghe
Preceded by	Mahinda Rajapaksa
Succeeded by	Mahinda Samarasinghe
Deputy Minister of Tourism
In office 2005–2008
President	Mahinda Rajapaksa
Prime Minister	Ratnasiri Wickremanayake
Member of Parliament for Gampaha District
In office 2015–2020
Member of Parliament for Kalutara District
In office 2010–2015
Member of Parliament for Colombo District
In office 2001–2010
President of Sri Lanka Cricket
In office 2008–2009
Incumbent
Assumed office 6 November 2023
Personal details
Born	(1963-12-01) 1 December 1963 (age 61) Gampaha, Ceylon (now in Sri Lanka)
Political party	Democratic National Movement (2015– present) Sri Lanka Freedom Party (2001 - 2010, 2015) Democratic National Alliance (2010 - 2015)
Other political affiliations	United National Front for Good Governance (2015– present) United People's Freedom Alliance (2004–2010,2015) People's Alliance (2001–2004)
Alma mater	Ananda College Colombo
Occupation	Politician, Cricketer
Personal information Nickname Captain Cool Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) Batting Left-handed Bowling Right-arm medium Role Batsman International information National side Sri Lanka (1982–2000) Test debut (cap 9) 17 February 1982 v England Last Test 6 August 2000 v South Africa ODI debut (cap 24) 14 February 1982 v England Last ODI 30 May 1999 v Kenya Domestic team information Years Team 1982–2001 Sinhalese Sports Club Career statistics Competition Test ODI FC LA Matches 93 269 205 307 Runs scored 5,105 7,456 11,641 8,491 Batting average 35.69 35.84 44.26 35.82 100s/50s 4/38 4/49 25/63 4/55 Top score 135* 131* 238* 131* Balls bowled 2,120 4,710 7,096 4,255 Wickets 16 79 94 98 Bowling average 65.00 47.55 32.81 43.41 5 wickets in innings 0 0 2 0 10 wickets in match 0 0 0 0 Best bowling 2/20 4/14 5/45 4/14 Catches/stumpings 47/– 63/– 108/– 78/– Medal record Men's Cricket Representing  Sri Lanka ICC Cricket World Cup Winner 1996 India-Pakistan-Sri Lanka Source: Cricinfo, 8 September 2015

Arjuna Ranatunga (born December 1, 1963) is a famous Sri Lankan politician and former cricket player. He was the captain when Sri Lanka won the 1996 Cricket World Cup. He even scored the winning runs in the final match!

Many people see him as the person who helped the Sri Lankan cricket team become a strong force in the world of cricket. Before him, they were often seen as underdogs.

After he stopped playing cricket, he worked in different roles for Sri Lanka Cricket. He then followed in his father's footsteps and started a career in politics in 2005. He has served as a cabinet minister, including the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation.

He joined the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and became a Member of Parliament in 2001. He was also the president of Sri Lanka Cricket for a while. In 2021, he decided to step away from the United National Party.

Arjuna Ranatunga is also known for helping young cricket players. He was recently appointed as the interim head of Sri Lanka Cricket. This happened after the Sri Lankan government suspended the cricket board.

About Arjuna Ranatunga's Family

Arjuna Ranatunga's father was Reggie Padmasena Ranatunga. He was the third Governor of Sabaragamuwa. His mother, Nandani Ranatunga, was a teacher.

Arjuna has five brothers and sisters. His brother Sanjeeva Ranatunga is also a cricketer. His other brothers are Dammika Ranatunga, Nishantha Ranatunga, Prasanna Ranatunga, and Ruwan Ranatunga. Arjuna was born in Gampaha, near Colombo. His son, Dhyan Ranatunga, also plays cricket.

Arjuna Ranatunga's Cricket Journey

Early Days and School Cricket

Arjuna Ranatunga went to Ananda College. This school has produced many famous Sri Lankan cricketers. Some of them include Marvan Atapattu and Dinesh Chandimal.

Arjuna won the Sri Lankan Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year award twice. He was the first person to achieve this, winning in 1980 and 1982.

Playing for Sri Lanka's Junior Team

In 1980, Ranatunga played for the Sri Lanka under-20 team against India under-20. In his very first game, he scored 128 runs and was not out. That Indian team had future stars like Ravi Shastri.

Starting His International Career

Arjuna Ranatunga played his first Test match on February 17, 1982. He was only 18 years old. This was Sri Lanka's very first Test match ever, played against England. He scored 50 runs in that match, becoming the first Sri Lankan to score a half-century in Test cricket.

He also played in Sri Lanka's first Test match at Lord's in England in 1984. In 1986, he and Asanka Gurusinha batted together for a whole day in a Test match against Pakistan. They scored 240 runs without losing their wickets. Ranatunga scored 135 runs, and Gurusinha scored 116.

He was a key player when Sri Lanka won its first Asia Cup title in 1986. He was the top scorer in the final match, helping Sri Lanka win easily. He was also named the player of the series.

Becoming a Captain

Ranatunga became the captain of the Sri Lanka national cricket team in 1988. He led the team for eleven years. During this time, he changed the team from a weaker side into a strong and successful one.

At the 1992 Cricket World Cup, he helped Sri Lanka chase a big target of 313 runs against Zimbabwe. He scored 88 runs and was not out. This was the first time a team successfully chased over 300 runs in a One Day International (ODI) match.

Winning the 1996 World Cup

Arjuna Ranatunga led Sri Lanka to win the 1996 Cricket World Cup. He scored the winning runs in the final and remained unbeaten with 47 runs. His new ideas for captaincy helped Sri Lanka win this big prize, even though many people didn't expect them to.

He was known for his smart strategies. For example, he believed in scoring many runs in the first 15 overs of an ODI match. This strategy is still used today in the "Powerplays." He was also famous for always defending his players.

Under his leadership, Sri Lanka also won the 1997 Asia Cup at home. They beat India in the final. Ranatunga was the top run-scorer in that tournament.

In 1998, Sri Lanka achieved its first-ever Test win in England under his captaincy. They won by 10 wickets. This was a historic moment for Sri Lankan cricket.

His younger brothers, Dammika and Sanjeewa Ranatunga, both made their Test debuts when Arjuna was the captain. This was a unique situation in Sri Lankan cricket.

Ranatunga's Performance in the 1996 World Cup

Arjuna Ranatunga is considered one of Sri Lanka's best captains. He played in 93 Test matches and 269 One-Day Internationals (ODIs). In the 1996 World Cup, he scored 241 runs. He had the highest batting average in the tournament, which was 120.50.

Retirement from Cricket

Ranatunga stopped being the national team captain in 1999 after Sri Lanka did not perform well at the 1999 Cricket World Cup. However, he was still named one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year for that year.

In June 2000, Ranatunga played in Sri Lanka's 100th Test match. He was the only player to have played in both Sri Lanka's first and 100th Test matches. He retired from playing cricket in 2001. After that, he worked as a television commentator.

In 2005, he joined the International Cricket Council's cricket committee. He was then appointed as the chairman of Sri Lanka Cricket in January 2008. He left this position in December 2008.

Arjuna Ranatunga's Political Career

Arjuna Ranatunga started his political career by joining the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. He was elected to Parliament in 2001. After his party won the elections in 2004, he became the Deputy Minister of Industry, Tourism, and Investment Promotion. In 2006, he resigned from his tourism role to focus on cricket administration.

In 2010, Ranatunga joined the Democratic National Alliance. He became the deputy leader of the Democratic Party. In 2012, he resigned from the Democratic Party but remained with the Democratic National Alliance.

He supported Maithripala Sirisena in the 2015 Presidential election. After Sirisena won, Ranatunga was appointed Minister of Highways, Ports & Shipping. In 2020, he resigned from his role as Gampaha District Leader.

On November 30, 2021, he resigned from the United National Party. He stated he was not happy with the party's future plans and leadership.

Career Highlights in Cricket

Test Match Highlights

• Ranatunga's highest score in a Test match was 135 not out against Pakistan in Colombo in 1986.
• His best bowling figures in a Test match were 2 wickets for 17 runs against New Zealand in Kandy in 1984.
• As captain, he led Sri Lanka in 56 Test matches, winning 12, losing 19, and drawing 25.

One-Day International (ODI) Highlights

• He holds the record for the most runs scored by any batsman batting at number 5 in ODI history, with 4675 runs. He was also the first to score over 4500 ODI runs from this position.

International Centuries

Test Centuries

Test centuries of Arjuna Ranatunga

No.	Score	Against	City	Ground	Date	Result	Ref
[1]	111	India	Colombo, Sri Lanka	Sinhalese Sports Club Ground	30 August 1985	Draw
[2]	135*	Pakistan	Colombo, Sri Lanka	P Sara Oval	22 March 1986	Draw
[3]	127	Australia	Colombo, Sri Lanka	Sinhalese Sports Club Ground	17 August 1992	Lost
[4]	131	South Africa	Moratuwa, Sri Lanka	Tyronne Fernando Stadium	25 August 1995	Draw

ODI Centuries

ODI centuries of Arjuna Ranatunga

No.	Score	Against	City	Ground	Date	Result	Ref
[1]	101*	Pakistan	Durban, South Africa	Kingsmead Cricket Ground	2 December 1994	Lost
[2]	102*	Pakistan	Gujranwala, Pakistan	Jinnah Stadium, Sialkot	29 September 1995	Lost
[3]	131*	India	Colombo, Sri Lanka	R.Premadasa Stadium	18 July 1997	Won
[4]	102	New Zealand	Colombo, Sri Lanka	Sinhalese Sports Club Ground	5 July 1998	Won

See also

In Spanish: Arjuna Ranatunga para niños