Dhananjaya Maduranga de Silva, or simply Dhananjaya de Silva (born September 6, 1991), is a professional cricketer representing Sri Lanka in all forms and for Tamil Union in domestic cricket. He is also the vice-captain of the side in One-Day Internationals and Tests. At the annual awards ceremony for Sri Lanka Cricket in 2017 November, he was honored as the 2016-17 season’s best Test batsman.
- Personal life –
On September 6, 1991, de Silva was born in Hambantota as the middle child of three brothers. Deberawewa National School in Tissamaharama, Hambanthota, is where de Silva began playing cricket. A short time after relocating to Galle, he enrolled in Mahanama College in Colombo before transferring to Richmond College in Galle. In high school, he led the Richmond College, Galle, a first XI cricket team of the 2010–2011 season.
According to headlines cricket, Ranjan de Silva Sr., de Silva’s father, worked in politics. His dad was shot and killed in front of their Ratmalana home on May 25. After de Silva’s father passed away unexpectedly, he decided to leave the Sri Lankan team touring the West Indies. On the other hand, he was a member of the tour starting with the second game.
- Domestic career –
After the 2017-18 Super Four Provincial Tournament, de Silva was promoted to vice-captain of the Colombo team in March 2018.He was also included in the Colombo squad for the 2018 Super Provincial One Day Tournament the following month.
De Silva was included in Galle’s roster for the 2018 SLC T20 League in August of 2018.After being added to Galle’s team for the 2019 Super Provincial One Day Tournament in March, he participated in the tournament.
In the aftermath of the competition, he was recognized as the tournament’s best player.He was selected by the Jaffna Stallions in the first ever Lanka Premier League draught, which took place in October 2020. He was selected as captain of the SLC Blues in August 2021 to lead them in the 2021 SLC Invitational T20 League. In July 2022, he signed with the Jaffna Kings to play in the upcoming third season of the Lanka Premier League.
- International career –
On their tour against Pakistan in July 2015, Sri Lanka’s Twenty20 International (T20I) lineup included de Silva.In T20 Internationals, he first appeared on 30 July 2015. While Sri Lanka ultimately fell short, he still managed to score 31 runs in his first professional outing.
It was against Ireland on June 16th, 2016 when de Silva became the 169th member of the Sri Lankan ODI team, making his debut with the national team.Sri Lanka’s Test team included de Silva in July 2016 for their upcoming series against Australia.He played his first Test match for Sri Lanka on July 26, 2016, against Australia.With his six, he became the fifth player in Sri Lankan history and the first in a Test match to score a run.
- Making permanent slot –
While playing in the third Test of the same Australian series, de Silva scored his first Test century. When de Silva came in for Dinesh Chandimal on 5/26, Sri Lanka was in a bad position. Together, they put up 100 runs, and de Silva hit his first century. To sum up his series performance, de Silva scored 325 runs (including a century and a fifty) at an average of 65. When playing Australia, Sri Lanka recorded a clean sweep for the first time.
Once Tillakaratne Dilshan stopped playing One-Day Internationals, de Silva was moved up to open for Sri Lanka. After batting first for the first time, he went on to score 76 runs. There has never been a higher first-innings score by a Sri Lankan batsman than this one, surpassing Saman Jayantha’s 74 in 2004. He was demoted from opening the batting to batting in the middle of the order after his dismal showing against South Africa.
All during the 2 Tests vs Zimbabwe, de Silva maintained his strong play. He made fifty points in the first game. Even though Zimbabwe scored 411 runs while pursuing, Sri Lanka was able to pull off the victory. Together with Upul Tharanga, de Silva contributed 142 runs to Sri Lanka’s total in the second Test. While Tharanga was out at slip, de Silva kept batting and eventually reached his second Test century in just his fifth Test match ever.
- Ups and downs –
Poor play in South Africa led to de Silva’s dismissal from all teams. Before the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, he was not selected to play in any one-day internationals for Sri Lanka. Kusal Perera was originally supposed to play in the competition, but a hamstring injury forced him to withdraw. After the Champions Trophy, however, he was no longer a part of the Sri Lankan team despite his obvious talent and potential.
- De Silva was brought back to the ODI series against India –
De Silva was selected back into the Test team for the 2017 third Test against India. In the first inning, he scored one run before being thrown out. But in the second innings, de Silva made his third Test century. As soon as it happened, de Silva left the field, limping on his injured thigh. The score ended even. His 119 runs in the fourth inning were the most ever scored by a foreign hitter in India.
- Comeback in the T20I side –
Since making his Twenty20 International debut in 2015 against Pakistan, de Silva’s inclusion in the team has been inconsistent at best. Dhananjaya was left out of the one-off T20I against South Africa on August 14, 2018, but was later recalled due to his stellar performances in Tests and ODIs. South Africa’s 99-run total was their lowest in Twenty20 Internationals, thanks in large part to his all-around effort. His 53-run combination with Dinesh Chandimal throughout the chase was crucial to the team’s success. De Silva was named the game’s most valuable player for his stellar play in all areas.
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