Sri Lankan cricket
Tillakaratne Dilshan's five best innings
100 v England at Asgiriya, 2003
Tillakaratne Dilshan's second Test ton came four years after his first. After having moved in and out of the team since his debut 1999, Dilshan finally established himself in the Test side with a sparkling 100 from 129 balls against England. He had been left out for the first Test in Galle, but upon being recalled, top-scored for his team with 63 in the first innings, before hitting 13 fours and a hooked six in an aggressive century that set up Sri Lanka's declaration late on the fourth day. He followed this with an 83 in the series-clinching innings victory at SSC in the next match. •Getty Images
92 v New Zealand in Galle, 2009
Dilshan hit six Test hundreds in his transformative year, but his brutal 92 from 72 balls best showcased his ability to define the outlook of a match inside a session. After a late start on day one, Dilshan walloped New Zealand's attack from the outset, and hooked and pulled disdainfully when they attempted to counter with a series of short deliveries. He hit a hundred in the second dig as well, but New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori later admitted it was his first-innings that had sapped the visiting attack and set the tone for the match, and the series, which Sri Lanka won 2-0. •AFP
Dilshan hit six Test hundreds in his transformative year, but his brutal 92 from 72 balls best showcased his ability to define the outlook of a match inside a session. After a late start on day one, Dilshan walloped New Zealand's attack from the outset, and hooked and pulled disdainfully when they attempted to counter with a series of short deliveries. He hit a hundred in the second dig as well, but New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori later admitted it was his first-innings that had sapped the visiting attack and set the tone for the match, and the series, which Sri Lanka won 2-0. •AFP
104 v Australia in Galle, 2004
The Test will be remembered for Australia's remarkable comeback, engineered by an irresistible Shane Warne, but Sri Lanka had dominated the first innings, thanks in part to another attractive Dilshan ton. Arriving at No.5, Dilshan used his feet to the dual legspin threat of Warne and Stuart MacGill to compile a more measured innings than he was accustomed to at the time. His 104 from 188 balls featured 12 fours and a six, and had helped establish a 161-run lead which Sri Lanka would go on to squander in the second innings. •Getty Images
The Test will be remembered for Australia's remarkable comeback, engineered by an irresistible Shane Warne, but Sri Lanka had dominated the first innings, thanks in part to another attractive Dilshan ton. Arriving at No.5, Dilshan used his feet to the dual legspin threat of Warne and Stuart MacGill to compile a more measured innings than he was accustomed to at the time. His 104 from 188 balls featured 12 fours and a six, and had helped establish a 161-run lead which Sri Lanka would go on to squander in the second innings. •Getty Images
193 v England at Lord's, 2011
Sri Lanka's batsmen collapsed abysmally to surrender Dilshan's first Test at the helm in Cardiff, but at Lord's Dilshan responded with his best-ever knock to ensure the series would not slip further. Driving with abandon and hooking and pulling to good effect when tested, Dilshan hit 20 fours and 2 sixes off an attack featuring Graeme Swann, Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett. Remarkably, he had made most of his runs with a fractured thumb, which he suffered on 55.•AFP
Sri Lanka's batsmen collapsed abysmally to surrender Dilshan's first Test at the helm in Cardiff, but at Lord's Dilshan responded with his best-ever knock to ensure the series would not slip further. Driving with abandon and hooking and pulling to good effect when tested, Dilshan hit 20 fours and 2 sixes off an attack featuring Graeme Swann, Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett. Remarkably, he had made most of his runs with a fractured thumb, which he suffered on 55.•AFP
147 v Australia in Hobart, 2012
On a dismal tour of Australia that ended in a whitewash, Dilshan's charge on the third morning was the only session in which Sri Lanka had the better of their opponents. Severe on anything short, Dilshan made his fifteenth trip to triple figures in 148 balls, before slowing down when he lost partner Angelo Mathews, who had helped him rescue the Sri Lanka innings from 87 for 4. His knock was the top score of the series for batsmen of either side. •Getty Images
On a dismal tour of Australia that ended in a whitewash, Dilshan's charge on the third morning was the only session in which Sri Lanka had the better of their opponents. Severe on anything short, Dilshan made his fifteenth trip to triple figures in 148 balls, before slowing down when he lost partner Angelo Mathews, who had helped him rescue the Sri Lanka innings from 87 for 4. His knock was the top score of the series for batsmen of either side. •Getty Images