Nuwan Kulasekara facts for kids
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name |
Kulasekara Mudiyanselage Dinesh Nuwan Kulasekara
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 22 July 1982 Nittambuwa, Sri Lanka |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm fast-medium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Bowler | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Test debut (cap 100) | 4 April 2005 v New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 16 March 2013 v Bangladesh | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ODI debut (cap 118) | 18 November 2003 v England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last ODI | 10 July 2017 v Zimbabwe | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| T20I debut | 11 October 2008 v Pakistan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last T20I | 6 April 2017 v Bangladesh | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2004 | Galle Cricket Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2011 | Colts Cricket Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | Chennai Super Kings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Comilla Victorians | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | Lahore Qalandars | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Medal record
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Source: ESPNcricinfo, 24 July 2019
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kulasekara Mudiyanselage Dinesh Nuwan Kulasekara (born 22 July 1982), known as Nuwan Kulasekara, is a former Sri Lankan cricket player. He played in all three main types of cricket matches: Test, One Day International (ODI), and Twenty20 International (T20I). He went to Bandaranayake College Gampaha for his education.
Nuwan was a very important player for the Sri Lankan team. He helped them win the 2014 ICC World Twenty20 tournament. He was also part of the teams that reached the finals of the 2007 Cricket World Cup, 2011 Cricket World Cup, 2009 ICC World Twenty20, and 2012 ICC World Twenty20. In 2016, Kulasekara stopped playing Test cricket to focus on shorter games. He officially retired from all international cricket in July 2019. A special ODI match between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh was played on July 31, 2019, to celebrate his career.
After retiring from cricket, Nuwan Kulasekara moved to Colombo, where he lives now.
Contents
Nuwan Kulasekara's Cricket Journey
Starting His International Career
Nuwan Kulasekara played his first One Day International (ODI) match against England on November 18, 2003. This game took place in Dambulla. He bowled very well, taking 2 wickets for only 19 runs. Sri Lanka won that match easily by 10 wickets.
His first Test cricket match was against New Zealand on April 4, 2005, in Napier, New Zealand. He was the 100th player to get a Test cap for Sri Lanka. He took one wicket in that game. Kulasekara also made his Twenty20 International (T20I) debut on October 11, 2008, against Pakistan.
Becoming a Top Bowler
In 2008, Kulasekara showed his talent by taking 4 wickets for 40 runs against India. He also helped Sri Lanka win against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe in a special tournament. By January 25, 2009, Nuwan Kulasekara was ranked number two among all ODI bowlers in the world!
He was known for taking many wickets. In 2008, he took 47 wickets in 29 matches. On March 11, 2009, he became the number one ranked ODI bowler, and he stayed there for several months. When famous bowlers like Chaminda Vaas retired, Kulasekara became Sri Lanka's main bowler.
During a series against Pakistan in 2009, Kulasekara took the most wickets in the Test matches. He even won the "man-of-the-match" award for his great bowling in one game. Sri Lanka won that series, and Kulasekara was named the "player-of-the-series."
In 2009, Nuwan Kulasekara was chosen for the World ODI team, which was led by MS Dhoni. In 2010, he had an amazing game against New Zealand. He took three wickets in his very first over, helping Sri Lanka win easily. He was named "man of the match" for this performance.
Highlights and Challenges
Kulasekara and Lasith Malinga were a strong bowling pair for Sri Lanka. They often worked together to win matches. For example, in a T20I match against England in 2011, they bowled very well, helping Sri Lanka win by nine wickets.
Nuwan also had some challenges, including injuries. However, he always worked hard to come back stronger. In 2013, he had his best ODI bowling performance ever against Australia in Brisbane. He took 5 wickets for only 22 runs! Australia was bowled out for a very low score, and Sri Lanka won the match. This was a fantastic moment in his career.
In 2014, Kulasekara played a big role in Sri Lanka's success. In an ODI against England, he took 3 wickets for 15 runs, helping to bowl England out for a very low score. Sri Lanka won that match by a large margin.
During the 2014 ICC World Twenty20, Kulasekara set a world record! He bowled two overs against the Netherlands without giving away any runs at all. This is called a "maiden over" in cricket. The Netherlands team was bowled out for a very low score, and Sri Lanka won the tournament. Kulasekara holds the world record for the most maiden overs bowled in T20I matches.
Later Years in Cricket
In 2014, Sri Lanka played an ODI series in India. Although the team lost, Kulasekara continued to play for Sri Lanka. He was recognized as the T20 Bowler of the Year at the 2015 Sri Lanka Cricket Awards.
In 2015, he scored his fourth half-century (50 runs) in an ODI match against New Zealand. He also played in the 2016 Asia Cup and the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 tournaments. In 2016, he helped Sri Lanka win a special tournament against Zimbabwe and the West Indies. He took eight wickets in that series. In 2017, he helped Sri Lanka win an ODI match against Bangladesh by taking four wickets.
Retiring from International Cricket
On June 1, 2016, Nuwan Kulasekara announced that he was retiring from Test cricket. He wanted to focus on playing shorter forms of the game. He played 21 Test matches and took 48 wickets in his Test career.
In July 2019, Kulasekara decided to retire from all international cricket. His teammate, Lasith Malinga, had hoped they could retire together. However, Kulasekara was not chosen for the team playing against Bangladesh. After not getting a reply to his request for a farewell match, he announced his retirement on July 24, 2019. Sri Lanka Cricket decided to dedicate the third ODI match against Bangladesh to celebrate Kulasekara's career. Sri Lanka won that match, winning the series 3–0.
Nuwan Kulasekara's Records
- Highest ODI score for Sri Lanka when batting at the number-eight position: 73 runs.
- Most economical bowling spell in a T20I by any bowler: 0.00 runs conceded.
- Only bowler to record an economy of 0.00 in a T20I.
- Most maiden overs in a T20I: five.
Nuwan Kulasekara's Bowling Style
Nuwan Kulasekara was a right-arm fast-medium bowler. He used a long run-up before bowling the ball. He was known for making the ball move both ways, which made it hard for batsmen to hit. He mainly bowled inswing deliveries, which curve towards the batsman. He also developed an outswinger delivery, which curves away from the batsman.
Playing for Professional Teams
Besides playing for Sri Lanka, Kulasekara also played for different professional cricket teams around the world.
- In 2009, he joined the Kings XI Punjab team in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
- He played for the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL in 2011 and 2012.
- He also played for Kandurata Maroons in a domestic T20I series in Sri Lanka. He helped them win the final by taking three wickets.
- In 2015, he played for Comilla Victorians in the Bangladesh Premier League. He took four wickets for only 12 runs in one match.
- In 2016, Kulasekara played for the Sussex Sharks in England for a short time.
Coaching Career
After his playing career, Nuwan Kulasekara started coaching. He was appointed as the bowling coach for the Kandy Tuskers team in the 2020 Lanka Premier League. This was his first coaching job.
