Saman Jayantha      

Saman Jayantha is a late developer, an aggressive opening batsman who came close to missing out on an opportunity to play for his country. He first rose to prominence in 1996 when he captained a Sri Lanka Colts XI against the touring West Indians, and played for Sri Lanka A. He drifted out of the reckoning, though, seemingly for good, until he caught the eye of the selectors with some superb performances for his club, Bloomfield. A prolific year in 2003-03 (731 runs at 43) elevated his first-class average to a healthy 36.31 on Sri Lanka's tricky domestic pitches. Jayantha, who also bowls offspin, was rewarded with a berth in Sri Lanka's squad for the Hong Kong Sixes in November 2003. He produced a superb display over the two-day tournament, winning the Man-of-the-Tournament award for his blazing batting and useful spin. During England's tour to Sri Lanka later in the month he was called up briefly as cover before winning his first cap against Australia in February 2004. The fifth child in a family that hails from Ambalangoda, a small fishing town on the southwest coast, he was a keen student and secured a place in Colombo University. But after just one week he packed his bags to concentrate on cricket. That gamble finally paid off when he scored an unbeaten 74 in only his third ODI, against Zimbabwe at Bulawayo. Since then he has been essentially a back-up batsman, playing the last of his 17 ODIs against Australia in early 2004. The closest he came to selection again was when he was named in the probables for Sri Lanka's ICC Champions Trophy campaign in 2006. At age 34, with his international career behind him, Jayantha signed on with the unofficial Indian Cricket League. A ban on he and four other Sri Lankans was lifted in September 2008, meaning Jayantha was free to play domestic cricket back home.

Charlie Austin September 2008