Age throws 'Freaky' Tillakaratne Dilshan at the wrong side

Tillakaratne Dilshan’s decision to call it time on his illustrious international career formally marks the end of an era in Sri Lankan cricket. The 3rd ODI against Australia was the last of his career which began way back in 1999.

There is no doubt over the fact that he will be counted as one of the most influential cricketers to have emerged from the country. Dilshan will be an inspiration to people and budding cricketers. He sort of showed that one can be successful even without being naturally gifted. And, that in the end hard work and persistence are the best ingredients to cook the perfect success story.

His road to becoming the sort of legend he is today wasn’t easy, it was a very jerky ride. It was only until the later stages of his career that he could settle in the team as a permanent member and earn the kind of reputation he will be retiring with.

Dilshan was never the one rated as high as his peers Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara who were touted as the next big thing during the early days at the international level. Making his debut in 1999 against Zimbabwe, he struck an unbeaten 163 batting in the middle order at Harare. It was hard work and only hard work that helped him climb the ladder of success.

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But, that was never going to be enough for him to seal his place in the team. It took him close to five years thereafter to hit his next century – 104 against Australia at Galle, whilst trying to earn the trust of the selectors. Meanwhile, his ODI career also progressed in a similar manner.

This continued close to a decade before he made the transition from a lower order batsman to a top order batsman who could bowl part-time off-breaks. This shift saw him transform into a batting stalwart.

Dilshan scored 1000 or more ODI runs in a calendar year four times since being sent permanently up the order and never failed to amass fewer than 800 runs between 2009 and 2015. He was the fourth Sri Lanka batsman, after Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara, and Mahela Jayawardene, to cross 10,000 ODI runs.

His unique attribute was his ability to keep working like a bee and improve his standards. He was pretty much like Ravi Shastri, trying to improve his game in all the three aspects of the game every time he took the field.

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His ability to fine-tune his skills has been so smooth that at even at the age of 39 he is one of the swiftest fielders in his team while holding a spot in the side as a highly important batsman. Not to forget his ability to innovate. His freaky ‘Dilscoop’ had become an instant fad among T20 cricketers.

His decision to retire was not foreseen and met with mixed response. Few were surprised while others felt it was to come sooner or later.

With an average of 49.18 in ODIs since the start of 2013, Dilshan’s performance has been outstanding over the past few years. He also enjoyed his most successful ODI year in 2015 scoring over 1200 runs.

Unfortunately, it was his age that threw him at the wrong side of Sri Lanka’s future scheme of things. The Lankans have been steadily seeking to build a team for the future, especially keeping in mind the 2019 World Cup.

The positive side to his departure is that his exit sows the seed for the future. He leaves a vacuum in the top order. But, there are young names ready to step into his shoes. With young guns like Dhanushka Silva and Asitha Fernando, the Lankans seem to be prepared for life without him.

However, the question whether fans are prepared to miss the ‘freaky Tillakaratne Dilshan’ on the cricket field remains unanswered. He was the ‘Dil’ (heart) and ‘Shan’ (pride) of Sri Lankan cricket to the core.

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