Asanka Gurusinha

Wisden overview
A technically accomplished No. 3, Asanka Gurusinha was the rock on which the Sri Lankan batting was founded for 11 years. His gutsy lone battles earned the respect of opponents around the world: a Sri Lankan total of 82 in Chandigarh in 1990-91 contained an unbeaten Gurusinha half-century; at Melbourne in 1995-96, he scored 143 to his team-mates' 144; and with Aravinda de Silva's help, he turned the tables on Australia in the 1996 World Cup final with another half-century. He started Test cricket as a teenager as a wicketkeeper-batsman, but retired prematurely a year after the World Cup triumph after refusing to return home for training from a season of club cricket in Melbourne, where he now lives. He was badly missed. Simon Wilde