Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lankan Cricketer) Biography

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Real Name	Denagamage Praboth Mahela de Silva Jayawardene
Nickname	Maiya
Zodiac sign/Sun sign	Gemini

Marital Status	Married
Affairs/Girlfriends	Christina Mallika Sirisena
Wife/Spouse	Christina Mallika Sirisena, a travel consultant (m.2005)
Children	Sanasa Araya Jayawardene

Father	Senerath Jayawardene
Mother	Sunila Jayawardene
Siblings	Late Dhishal Jayawardene (Died of brain tumour)

International Debut

Test	2 August 1997 vs India in Colombo
ODI	24 January 1998 vs Zimbabwe in Colombo
T20	15 June 2006 vs England in Southampton

International Retirement

Test	14 July 2014 vs Pakistan in Colombo
ODI	13 December 2014 vs England in Colombo
T20	6 April 2014 vs India in Mirpur

Coach/ Mentor

Mumbai Indians (Head Coach since 2017); Head of Global Performance (since 2022)

Jersey Number

27 (Sri Lanka)

Batting Style

Right Handed Bat

Bowling Style

Right-arm Medium

Records/ Achievements

Jayawardene's highest test score of 374 against South Africa is the highest by a right-hand batsman in the history.
He is the first Sri Lankan cricketer to score 10,000 Test runs.
While playing against South Africa in 2006, he shared a world record partnership of 624 alongside Kumar Sangakkara.
During the ICC World T20, he became first Sri Lankan and fourth overall cricketer to hit a century in T20I.
With 218 catches in 448 matches, Jayawardene holds the record for most number of catches in ODIs.
In 2014, he became only the second player worldwide after Sachin Tendulkar to have played more than 600 international matches.
Scored an unbeaten 103 in the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup final against India.
Scored a match-winning century as captain against New Zealand in the 2007 World Cup semi-final.
Key contributor to Sri Lanka's victory in the 2014 ICC World Twenty20.

Career Turning Point

His consistent performance with the bat in domestic cricket got him the chance to play for the national team.

Favourite Food	Coconut Date Balls, Rinderbraten
Favourite Sports outside Cricket	Lawn Tennis, Golf
Favourite Sportsperson	Roger Federer

1. Mahela Jayawardena's smoking habit is unknown.
2. His alcohol consumption is also unknown.
3. Jayawardene is renowned for his exceptional fielding skills within the 30-yard circle.
4. A Cricinfo report in 2005 highlighted that since the 1999 World Cup, Jayawardene has affected the most run-outs in ODIs.
5. Statistics indicate that the combination 'c Jayawardene b Muralitharan' is the most frequent bowler-fielder combination in Test cricket history.
6. In 2006, the International Cricket Council honored Jayawardene as the best International captain of the year.
7. He was recognized as the best test cricket player in 2007.
8. Derbyshire signed Jayawardene as an overseas player for the first half of the 2008 English cricket season, but his IPL commitments kept him from participating in the county season.
9. Jayawardene is admired for his philanthropic work, especially his contributions to the HOPE cancer project in memory of his brother.
10. In May 2016, Jayawardene served as a TV Commentator for the first test match between Sri Lanka.
11. The England Cricket Board appointed Jayawardene as a batting consultant for the England team in 2015.
12. In 2017, Mumbai Indians named Jayawardene as the team’s coach, taking over from veteran Ricky Ponting.
13. Inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame in 2021.
14. ICC Spirit of Cricket Award in 2013.
15. Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2007.