Sanjeewa Duminda Gunasekera fine cricketer and coach

On Sep 30, 2021

Cricketer, left hand opening bat and wicket keeper, under 23 skipper, premier cricketer, coach and curator Sanjeewa Duminda Gunasekera has brought honour and immense glory to his Alma Mater Dharmapala Vidyalaya Kottawa and Saracens Sports Club Colombo with his deeds on the cricketing field.

He was born on 9th September 1978 and initially admitted to Dharmapala Vidyalaya, Kottawa in 1984. He was not much interested in sports but he participated for the team events at the school inter house sports meets from Grade 6 to 8. In the mean time his parents former Sri Lanka Air Force Supplier Mahinda Gunasekera and Hema Gunasekera handed over their son to the then school cricket coach and physical training instructor Upali Somasiri and Master in Charge of cricket A. M. Jayatissa and in his first year itself he was selected to the under 13 division two cricket team as an opening batsman and wicket keeper and he played for the team for two years and later played for the under 15 team for two years.

As there was no under 17 or first eleven cricket teams at his school during that period he was contacted by Mr. Sagara of Saracens Sports Club Colombo and he kept wickets for the division two Donovan Andree Trophy team as an opening bat and wicket keeper and he captained the under 23 team also and played for the Sara Trophy Team for seven successive years and went on to play for Premier Tournament and his coach was Mahesh Weerasinghe.

In the year 2000 he passed the level one cricket coaching examination and joined his alma mater for coaching in the under 13 and 15 teams and coached them for twenty continuous years and in the mean time he passed the level two coaching examination. During his tenure as a cricket coach he has produced test cricketers of fame like Kusal Janith and test player Mohamed

Shiyam Kamalin, Thilakasiri Malshan Sumanasiri and under 15 school cricketer Niman Umesh, Malinga Umesh to mention a few.When he was at Kottawa Dharmapala the Master in Charge of cricket A. M. Jayatissa helped him immensely and at present he is running his own cricket academy called King Fisher Cricket Academy and last year they were the under 13

Nelson Mendis Trophy Champions sponsored by Chands Sports and they were the under 11 Colombo Cricket Academy second runners up conducted by Colombo Premier Cricket Foundation of Sri Lanka. He gave up coaching for about two years back and since then he is the Curator of De Soysa Stadium Moratuwa.