Kulasekara Mudiyanselage Dinesh Nuwan Kulasekara is a former Sri Lankan cricketer who played all formats of the game.
52 Facts About Nuwan Kulasekara
2.
Nuwan Kulasekara was a key member of the team that won the 2014 ICC World Twenty20 and was part of the team that made the finals of 2007 Cricket World Cup, 2011 Cricket World Cup, 2009 ICC World Twenty20 and 2012 ICC World Twenty20.
3.
In June 2016, Kulasekara retired from test cricket to play limited overs cricket.
4.
Nuwan Kulasekara made his One Day International debut against England in Dambulla on 18 November 2003.
5.
Nuwan Kulasekara made his test-cricket debut against New Zealand in Napier, New Zealand on 4 April 2005 as Sri Lanka's 100th test cap.
6.
Nuwan Kulasekara made his Twenty20 International debut on 11 October 2008 against Pakistan.
7.
Nuwan Kulasekara secured 36 runs in 3.5 overs, although Pakistan won the match by three wickets.
8.
On 25 January 2009, Nuwan Kulasekara was number two in the ICC rankings for ODI bowlers.
9.
Nuwan Kulasekara took 45 wickets for an average of 20.97, which included five wickets in the last two ODIs of the series against Pakistan.
10.
Nuwan Kulasekara topped the 2008 ICC ODI rankings for bowlers with 724 points.
11.
Nuwan Kulasekara took 47 wickets at 20.97 in 29 matches, with a strike rate of 28.00 and an economy rate of 4.45.
12.
Nuwan Kulasekara was ranked number one among ODI bowlers on 11 March 2009, remaining in that position until 26 September of that year.
13.
Nuwan Kulasekara's spell of 4 for 41 at Colombo was nominated as one of the best ODI bowling performances of the year by ESPNCricinfo.
14.
Nuwan Kulasekara received the man-of-the-match award for his bowling performance in the second test.
15.
Nuwan Kulasekara took 17 wickets, for an average of 15.05 and an economy of 2.67.
16.
Nuwan Kulasekara was on the 2009 World ODI team, which was announced during the ICC Awards.
17.
Sri Lanka won the match by seven wickets, and Nuwan Kulasekara was man of the match.
18.
Nuwan Kulasekara was named to the test squad for the West Indies series in 2010.
19.
Nuwan Kulasekara made a comeback with two for 37 in seven overs for Colts Cricket Club against Nondescripts, and was recalled for the test and ODI series against South Africa.
20.
Nuwan Kulasekara did not play in the test series, but played all five ODIs without distinction; he took two wickets in the series, at an average of 107.00.
21.
In July 2012, Nuwan Kulasekara was ruled out of the five-ODI series against India after a first-match injury while attempting a catch to dismiss Virender Sehwag in the eleventh over.
22.
On 18 January 2013, Nuwan Kulasekara had his first five-wicket match with inswing bowling in the third ODI against Australia at Brisbane.
23.
Nuwan Kulasekara's performance was nominated as one of the best ODI bowling performances of 2013 by ESPNCricinfo.
24.
Nuwan Kulasekara was the second-highest wicket-taker for Sri Lanka with 12 wickets, behind Malinga's 18.
25.
On 13 June 2013, against England in 2013 ICC Champions Trophy, Nuwan Kulasekara helped skipper Kumar Sangakkara score a century and guided Sri Lanka to victory.
26.
Sangakkara and Nuwan Kulasekara added an unbeaten 110 runs for the fourth wicket.
27.
Nuwan Kulasekara's form was off and he missed part of the Bangladesh tour and the 2014 Asia Cup with a groin injury.
28.
Nuwan Kulasekara took 3 for 15 runs, and Sri Lanka finally won the match by 157 runs.
29.
Nuwan Kulasekara bowled two overs without conceding a run; the Netherlands were bowled out for 43, the lowest T20I total.
30.
Nuwan Kulasekara holds the world record for most T20I maiden overs bowled.
31.
Nuwan Kulasekara was named to CricBuzz's 2014 T20I XI of the year for his limited-overs performance.
32.
Nuwan Kulasekara forged a bowling partnership with Malinga, helping Sri Lanka to win 2014 ICC World Twenty20 by bowling four overs against strong Indian batters.
33.
Rohit Sharma scored the highest individual ODI total ; Nuwan Kulasekara took 1 for 89 in nine overs, and missed the England series.
34.
Nuwan Kulasekara was the T20 Bowler of the Year at the 2015 Sri Lanka Cricket Awards.
35.
On 18 December 2015, Nuwan Kulasekara replaced the injured Dhammika Prasad on Sri Lanka's ODI squad against New Zealand.
36.
Nuwan Kulasekara was dismissed for 58 runs, and Sri Lanka scored a total of 188; New Zealand won the match by seven wickets.
37.
Nuwan Kulasekara played in 2016 Asia Cup and then 2016 ICC World Twenty20 in India,.
38.
On 5 November 2016, Nuwan Kulasekara was recalled for the tri-series with Zimbabwe and the West Indies; he picked up two wickets against West Indies to go with his two in the first match against Zimbabwe.
39.
Sri Lanka won the series by defeating Zimbabwe in the final, and Nuwan Kulasekara took one wicket in that final.
40.
Nuwan Kulasekara was the third-highest wicket-taker in the series, with eight wickets and an average of 22.50.
41.
On 1 June 2016, Nuwan Kulasekara announced his retirement from test cricket to focus on limited-over internationals.
42.
Nuwan Kulasekara played 21 tests, picked up 48 wickets, and played his last test in June 2014 at Lord's.
43.
Nuwan Kulasekara sent a letter to Sri Lanka Cricket asking them to consider Malinga's request to play a farewell match together; after receiving no reply, he announced his retirement from international cricket on 24 July 2019.
44.
On 29 April 2009, Nuwan Kulasekara was called to the Kings XI Punjab squad as an emergency replacement for injured Australian batsman Shaun Marsh.
45.
Nuwan Kulasekara joined the Chennai Super Kings for the 2011 Indian Premier League season.
46.
Nuwan Kulasekara played in the domestic T20I series for Kandurata Maroons.
47.
Nuwan Kulasekara played for Comilla Victorians in the Bangladesh Premier League in 2015.
48.
In 2016, Nuwan Kulasekara signed a short-term NatWest T20 Blast contract with the Sussex Sharks.
49.
Nuwan Kulasekara was appointed as the bowling coach of the Kandy Tuskers franchise for the 2020 Lanka Premier League which marks his maiden coaching stint in his career.
50.
Nuwan Kulasekara was detained by Kadawatha police on 19 September 2016 after he was involved in a road accident which killed a 28-year-old motorcyclist.
51.
Nuwan Kulasekara appeared before the Mahara magistrate, and was released on SLR 500,000 bail.
52.
The accident occurred near the Kirillawala junction in Kadawatha during the afternoon; the rider was approaching Nuwan Kulasekara's vehicle, passed a bus, struck an embankment in the centre of the road, and was thrown into the path of Nuwan Kulasekara's vehicle.