Mahela Jayawardene

1) Mahela Jayawardene was born on the 27th of May 1976 in Colombo, Sri Lanka
2) Mahela is fondly known as ‘Maiya’ to his teammates
3) Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka has the most runs scored in World T20 with a tally of 1016 over the 5 editions
4) While Jayawardene is one of the most technically perfect batsmen, his record overseas is in a way forgettable. The major drawback in his career is his relative lack of success in overseas conditions. His averages in Australia, England, South Africa and New Zealand are all less than 35, but at home, he averages more than 60
5) Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene of Sri Lanka joined Jehan Mubarak of Pakistan (2009) and Joginder Sharma of India (2007) by featuring in their last T20 match in World T20 finals victory
6) Mahela Jayawardene is the only batsman to have scored centuries in both the semi final and final of a World Cup. He scored century in 2007 World Cup semi-final against New Zealand and in 2011 World Cup final against India
7) Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara may be best friends. However, they are also business partners. They own a restaurant in Colombo called the ‘Ministry of Crab’
8) Mahela Jayawardene became the first Sri Lankan captain to score a triple century in Tests. He did so against South Africa in 2006, putting up a record-breaking 624-run stand with Kumar Sangakkara
9) An excellent reader of the game, Jayawardene was bestowed with the burden of the captaincy of the Lankan team. Under him, the Lankans became a force to reckon with as he instilled a winning mentality in the players. He wasn’t afraid to take risks as a skipper, as Sri Lanka went on to enjoy success overseas with wins over New Zealand and England
10) Honours - ICC Captain of the Year 2006, Wisden Cricketer of the Year 2007, ICC Spirit of Cricket Award 2013
11) As mentioned earlier, watching Mahela Jayawardene batting was an experience in itself. One of his most gritty and excellent knocks came against India in the 2011 World Cup final in Mumbai. Batting first, the Indians snapped up the wickets of Sangakkara, Dilshan, and Tharanga. However, they didn’t count on the brilliance of Jayawardene. The latter smashed the ball to all parts, scoring a magnificent century. Despite losing the title to India, Jayawardene’s century stands out as one of the best World Cup final innings ever
12) Mahela Jayawardene is married to Christina Mallika Sirisena
13) In August 2015, the England Cricket Board signed Jayawardene as batting consultant for the England team
14) Jayawardene has 34 test, 19 ODI and 1 T20I centuries. Mahela is the first Sri Lankan and third overall to score hundreds in all forms of the game
15) Jayawardene has been part of most wins by a Sri Lankan in ODIs with 241 wins and is second in the world after Ricky Ponting(262 wins)
16) Major teams - Sri Lanka, Asia XI, Sri Lankan Board XI, North Central Province, Sri Lanka A, Sri Lankan Invitation XI, Sinhalese Sports Club, Young Sri Lanka, Punjab, Delhi, Wayamba, Sri Lanka Under-19, Somerset, Sussex, Kochi, Adelaide Strikers, Wayamba United, Central Districts, Trinbago Knight Riders, Jamaica Tallawahs, Uthura Yellows, Sachins Blasters, Dhaka Dynamites.