COLOMBO: Sri Lanka all-rounder Thisara Perera has announced his retirement from international cricket with immediate effect.
Perera, 32, submitted a letter to Sri Lanka Cricket on Monday morning, announcing his intention to retire from an international career spanning nearly 12 years.
Perera made his debut for Sri Lanka in an ODI against India in Kolkata in December 2009. Since then, he has been a white-ball regular for Sri Lanka. He scored 2338 runs and picked up 175 wickets in ODIs. In T20Is, he scored 1204 runs and took 51 wickets.
The highlight came in 2014, when he was part of the Sri Lanka side that won the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, beating India in the final in Dhaka.
“I take pride in the fact that I was able to represent Sri Lanka in seven cricket World Cups, and be a contributing member of the 2014 T20 World Cup win against India in Bangladesh,” Perera said in a statement. “Easily the highlight of my life.”
Sri Lanka Cricket thanked the former captain of the limited-overs side, adding they “dearly value the immeasurable services rendered by him to the game.”
“Thisara was a brilliant all-rounder, who has contributed immensely as a player to Sri Lanka Cricket and played a part in some of the glorious cricketing moments of the country,’ said Ashley De Silva, CEO of Sri Lanka Cricket.
