Lahiru Kumara

A well-built right-arm fast-bowler from Sri Lanka’s Kandy, Chandradasa Brahammana Ralalage Lahiru Sudesh Kumara, i.e. Lahiru Kumara, knows the art of swing and seam. In addition to that, he is one of the quickest from his country and a well-known exponent of sharp short pitch bowling. 

A young 19-year-old Kumara introduced himself in his third Test in Cape Town when the experienced South African team tumbled in front of the sheer pace and seam of the Kandy-born. 

The pacer has come through the ranks for Sri Lanka cricket. He played a handful of games against England before participating in the U-19 World Cup of 2016. Kumara led his team’s bowling attack alongside Asitha Fernando during the Junior World Cup. After returning back home, he got his national call-up for the Test tour of Zimbabwe. 

Kumara made his international debut even before his domestic debut. He played his first Test at Harare in October 2019 and took three wickets on debut. The Kandy-based cricketer played one more game on that tour. His second assignment was against tougher opposition in the Proteas and the pacer introduced himself in some fashion. He bagged seven wickets in the first Test at Cape Town and his first prey was none other than the great Hashim Amla. The promising pacer ended the tour with 12 wickets to his name. He made his ODI appearance on the same tour of South Africa, but he was too expensive during the limited-overs series. 

After early success, he went to the domestic grind to gain some experience under his belt. Over the years, Kumara has been partially deadly but more than often inconsistent and injury-prone. He surely has all the ingredients to become one of the greatest fast-bowlers from Sri Lanka. Although, for that to happen, Kumara would need to work on his bowling regime. 

(As of March 2021)