Steve Smith, Virat Kohli, Babar Azam, David Warner, Rohit Sharma, Glenn Maxwell.
Sri Lankan all-rounder Dunith Wellalage hasn’t even celebrated his 21st birthday, but his list of ODI victims is already the envy of the cricket world.
“Christmas has come early for him,” Indian cricket legend and Fox Cricket ambassador Ravi Shastri laughed.
“Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul; you can only dream of picking up those players.”
No spinner has taken more wickets during the ongoing Asia Cup, and Wellalage looms as one of Sri Lanka’s most important players ahead of Sunday evening’s final against India.
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Wellalage claimed career-best figures of 5-40, his maiden five-wicket haul at international level, during Tuesday’s Super 4 contest at Colombo’s R.Premadasa Stadium, ripping the heart out of India’s top-order. He was named player of the match after scoring an unbeaten 42 (46) during the unsuccessful run chase, with chants of “Wella, Wella” echoing around the venue.
He’s the only cricketer in history to have taken five wickets, scored 40 runs and held onto two catches in an ODI against India.
“I really appreciated the guts and the composure he showed when he came out to bat,” Shastri continued.
“He’s no mug with the bat. He showed he’s got a wise head on his shoulders.
“He’s played extremely well. He’s having a ball, he’s very talented.”
Less than 48 hours later, Wellalage knocked over Pakistan captain Babar Azam, the world’s No. 1 ODI batter, by ripping a delivery past his outside edge, with wicketkeeper Kusal Media completing the stumping. It helped Sri Lanka secure a thrilling two-wicket victory over the Pakistanis and book their spot in the final, which can be streamed with no ad breaks on Kayo Sports.
Wellalage’s bowling is uncomplicated. He bowls wicket-to-wicket, varying his speed and rarely straying from a good length to ensure batters are never comfortable at the crease.
Some deliveries go on with the arm, while others turn sharply past the outside edge. He’s a constant threat against right-handed batters, of which there are many in India’s top order.
“I can see he’s got great control,” Shastri said.
“With exposure, he’s going to learn to use the crease a little bit more.
“(India) will work on the angles, probably get closer to middle and off stump and try and smash him down the ground.”
Wellalage, who hails from Moratuwa, led Sri Lanka at last year’s Under-19 World Cup in the West Indies, finishing as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 17 scalps at 13.58, including five-wicket hauls against Australia and Scotland.
He was also the team’s leading run-scorer with 264 runs at 44.00, including a century against South Africa, becoming the first Sri Lankan captain to reach triple figures at an Under-19 World Cup.
Wellalage made his ODI debut against Australia a few months later, claiming the prized scalp of Steve Smith as his maiden international wicket. He picked up nine wickets throughout the five-match series, including David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh (twice) and Marnus Labuschagne (twice).
But after a wicketless Test debut against Pakistan, Wellalage didn’t truly underline his credentials until this month’s Asia Cup, which serves as a precursor for the highly-anticipated World Cup in India, every ball of which will be shown live without ad-breaks on Foxtel and Kayo Sports.
The Asia Cup final between India and Sri Lanka gets underway at R.Premadasa Stadium on Sunday evening at 7.30pm AEST. Hindi commentary is available on Kayo Sports, along with all of India’s matches in the upcoming World Cup, plus the semi-finals and final.