3 moments Nuwan Kulasekara's career should be remembered for, apart from the MS Dhoni six
Former Sri Lankan fast bowler Nuwan Kulasekara celebrated his 41st birthday earlier this month on July 22. The right-arm pacer is best remembered by fans for bowling the last ball of the Cricket World Cup 2011 final between India and Sri Lanka.
MS Dhoni, the-then Indian skipper was on strike, when Nuwan Kulasekara came in to bowl the second ball of the 49th over. India needed four runs for a win. Dhoni went for a big shot and cleared the boundary off Kulasekara's bowling as India became the new world champions.
Whenever fans watch the closing moments of the 2011 World Cup, it starts with Nuwan Kulasekara coming in to bowl that delivery. However, fans should note that Kulasekara achieved a lot in his career as a bowler for Sri Lanka. He represented the island nation in 21 Tests, 184 ODIs and 58 T20I matches.
Overall, he picked up a total of 313 wickets across all three formats of international cricket. In this listicle, we will look at the top three moments of Kulasekara's career.
#1 Nuwan Kulasekara's best ODI bowling spell
In the third ODI of the Australia vs Sri Lanka series in 2013, Nuwan Kulasekara recorded his best ODI bowling figures of 5/22 in Brisbane. Kulasekara destroyed the home team's batting lineup in the first innings, helping Sri Lanka bowl their opponents out for just 74 runs in 26.4 overs.
The right-arm pacer opened his account by dismissing opener Phil Hughes caught out. His next four victims were Michael Clarke, David Hussey, George Bailey, and Moises Henriques. Australia slumped to 40/9, but a 34-run 10th-wicket stand between Mitchell Starc and Xavier Doherty helped them cross the 70-run mark.
Kulasekara bowled 10 overs, conceded 22 runs and bagged five wickets. Sri Lanka won that match by four wickets.
#2 Nuwan Kulasekara's all-round show against Australia in Geelong
The GMHBA Stadium in Geelong played host to the second T20I of the Australia vs Sri Lanka series on February 19, 2017. Kulasekara bowled the best T20I spell of his career in that game, returning with figures of 4/31 in four overs.
His four wickets were Travis Head, Pat Cummins, Andrew Tye, and Jhye Richardson. That haul helped Sri Lanka keep Australia down to 173 in 20 overs.
Chasing 174, Australia reduced Sri Lanka to 119/7. Kulasekara walked out to bat at number nine, joining Asela Gunaratne in the middle.
The two batters stitched up a brilliant 41-run partnership for the eighth wicket, with Kulasekara contributing 12 runs off eight deliveries. Sri Lanka ended up winning the match by two wickets, scripting a memorable comeback.
#3 Nuwan Kulasekara troubles Australia Legends in Road Safety World Series
Looking at Kulasekara's career, one can say that he enjoyed the most while playing against Australia. Even after retiring from international cricket, the pacer troubled the Aussies in the Road Safety World Series last year.
Playing at the Green Park in Kanpur, Sri Lanka Legends set a 219-run target for Australia Legends. The Aussies were 151/5 after 15 overs when Kulasekara came in for a new spell. The right-arm pacer wrecked the Australian lineup, scalping the wickets of John Hastings, Chadd Sayers, Brett Lee, and Dirk Nannes in quick succession.
Australia Legends were all out for 180. Nuwan Kulasekara ended the match with figures of 4/36.