Full name Dandeniyage Somachandra De Silva
Born June 11, 1942, Galle
Current age 75 years 317 days
Major teams Sri Lanka, Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club, Shropshire
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Legbreak googly
Other Coach
Relation Brother - DH de Silva
Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100 | 50 | 6s | Ct | St | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests ![]() |
12 | 22 | 3 | 406 | 61 | 21.36 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
ODIs ![]() |
41 | 29 | 10 | 371 | 37* | 19.52 | 691 | 53.69 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
First-class | 66 | 97 | 17 | 1764 | 97 | 22.05 | 0 | 6 | 35 | 0 | |||
List A | 57 | 42 | 14 | 551 | 37* | 19.67 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4w | 5w | 10 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests ![]() |
12 | 19 | 3031 | 1347 | 37 | 5/59 | 9/162 | 36.40 | 2.66 | 81.9 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
ODIs ![]() |
41 | 40 | 2076 | 1557 | 32 | 3/29 | 3/29 | 48.65 | 4.50 | 64.8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 66 | 15670 | 6846 | 241 | 8/46 | 28.40 | 2.62 | 65.0 | 15 | 5 | |||
List A | 57 | 2849 | 2005 | 48 | 4/28 | 4/28 | 41.77 | 4.22 | 59.3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Test debut | Sri Lanka v England at Colombo (PSS), Feb 17-21, 1982 scorecard |
Last Test | England v Sri Lanka at Lord's, Aug 23-28, 1984 scorecard |
Test statistics | |
ODI debut | Sri Lanka v West Indies at Manchester, Jun 7, 1975 scorecard |
Last ODI | Sri Lanka v West Indies at Melbourne, Feb 27, 1985 scorecard |
ODI statistics | |
First-class span | 1966/67 - 1994/95 |
List A span | 1973/74 - 1984/85 |
One of Sri Lanka's finest legspinners, Somachandra De Silva was unfortunate that when Sri Lanka was granted full Test status he was at a stage when most players are well into retirement. He had been a fixture in the Sri Lanka team, and well
respected throughout cricketing circles around the world, having played minor county cricket for Linconshire and Shropshire. With his flighted legbreaks and well disguised wrong 'uns, de Silva was a consistent wicket-taker throughout the 70s. In Sri Lanka's inaugural Test he captured 3 for 54 and 0 for 38, his first Test wicket being that of David Gower caught at the wicket by Mahes Goonatilleke. de Silva distinguished himself on the following tour to Pakistan, taking seventeen wickets in three Tests, including the first five-wicket haul by a Sri Lankan when he took 5 for 59 at Faisalabad. When Duleep Mendis was injured early on the 1982-83 tour of New Zealand, de Silva was handed the honour of
leading Sri Lanka in two Tests. With the bat, he was more than useful making two half centuries, both as captain. He maintained his prominence within the game, later coaching Sri Lanka. He was later appointed cricket advisor by the Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa in December 2007 to promote the game in the country's war-hit northern areas. In 2009 De Silva was appointed chairman of a seven-member interim committee to run Sri Lanka Cricket by sports minister Gamini Lokuge.
Johann P Jayasekera (March 2009)