Don Anurasiri

A steady left-arm orthodox spinner, Don Anurasiri had a static international career. After making his international debut at the age of 20, he remained around the fringes of the team for a number of seasons without ever cementing a permanent position. Whenever called upon he was a wholehearted performer, though at Test level his bowling lacked penetration, highlighted by the fact he never took a five wicket haul in 18 Tests. Capable of extended spells of sustained accurate bowling, willing to flight and turn the ball, Anurasiri was often used to contain the batsman on unresponsive wickets. He enjoyed his most successful series against the touring Australians in 1992-93, taking 10 wickets. Anurasiri's career at the international level appeared over when he fell out with the SL board in 1994. However, four years later he made a surprise comeback against Zimbabwe in the final Test in 1997-98. Spinning the ball away from the bat he provided a solid foil for Muttiah Muralitharan, capturing 3 for 65 and 1 for 41, and in the process helped Sri Lanka to victory. But he played only three more first-class games, and within six weeks of his final Test appearance his career was over.
Johann Jayasekera