Matheesha Pathirana, the right-arm medium bowler from Sri Lanka, signed as a replacement for an injured Adam Milne by Chennai Super Kings, made his debut in the Indian Premier League on Sunday against Gujarat Titans.
Slinga Yelloading…⚡️#CSKvGT #WhistlePodu for the #SuperDebut 🦁💛 pic.twitter.com/7XS2nNEati
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) May 15, 2022
Matheesha Pathirana was born in Kandy, Sri Lanka, on December 18, 2002. He was part of the Sri Lankan under-19 team, which played in the West Indies at the under-19 World Cup 2022. He played four matches at the tournament ad dismissed seven batters. His economy was on a brighter side as he leaked runs only at 6.16 per over. His bowling average was also good, considering he only got limited chances at the tournament. He bowled with an average of 27.28 in the World Cup.
Matheesha Pathirana has low slinging bowling action, which is quite similar to the Sri Lankan legend Lasith Malinga. He has an uncanny ability to bowl late-tailing yorkers, which makes him a threatening bowler for the batters. He was on CSK’s radar for quite some time as the franchise signed him as a reserve player alongside Maheesh Theekhshana in 2021. Adam Milne’s hamstring injury proved to be a blessing for him as he got picked up in the CSK squad as a replacement.
Imagine how long this action would have lasted in the more regimented world of cricket coaching in this country … 17-year-old Matheesha Pathirana on his way to 6 for 7 on his debut for @TrinityColKandy in Sri Lanka … pic.twitter.com/VO4gBPtmY0
— Martin Williamson (@mogodonman) September 27, 2019
If reports are to be believed, the four-time champions have secured the services of Matheesha Pathirana at his base price of ₹20 lakh in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League. CSK has only two games remaining to be played, including the one against Gujarat Titans this season, and that’s why they are looking to try out the players in the squad to gauge their ability and prepare for the following season.
Pathirana has played only one List A game and 2 T20 matches so far in his career. It would be interesting to know how he would fare against the world-class players in IPL.
Also Read: Simarjeet Singh makes debut for CSK: Know all about him