Bandula Warnapura

Bandula Warnapura Biography

Bandula Warnapura opened bowling and sometimes bowled accurately at just above medium-pace. He was not great at batting either, scoring 2,280 runs at 25 from 57 First-Class matches and taking 13 wickets.

However, he deserves a place in history, for he was Sri Lanka’s first Test captain.

Warnapura first grabbed eyeballs at 16, on a tour of India for Ceylon Schools, where he scored 392 runs at 78.40.

He had a miserable 1975 World Cup but he took on Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson to smash a 39-ball 31. And against Pakistan he removed Sadiq and Mushtaq Mohammad and Wasim Raja for 42.

He led Sri Lanka in the 1979 edition. When Sri Lanka famously upset India in the tournament, Warnapura got rid of Sunil Gavaskar.

The win pushed Sri Lanka’s cause for a Test status to a great extent, and Warnapura did further justice to it when Sri Lanka beat Australia in a 45-over match. Up against a target of 189, Warnapura led from the front with 106.

On their tour of Sri Lanka in 1981-82, England won the first ODI by 5 runs and lost the second. Sri Lanka also played their first Test on that tour, where England were restricted to a 5-run lead. Warnapura gave the charge in the second innings with 38, but from 113 for 1 Sri Lanka collapsed to 170.

On a subsequent tour of Pakistan, Warnapura scored a brilliant 77 at Karachi. Sri Lanka even won the ODI at Lahore. They also had India down at 135 for 7 after they set 175 in the first Test between the two countries, at Madras.

Soon afterwards, Warnapura led the rebel AROSA (named after player-manager Anthony Ralph Opatha and South Africa) side to South Africa and earned a 25-year ban. Warnapura later told that there were speculations that he was not wanted in the national side anymore. AROSA was easily the weakest rebel side to tour South Africa.

However, despite getting banned himself, Warnapura had prevented a young Arjuna Ranatunga from
taking the tour.

Warnapura later became a coach. He was also named Director, Cricket Operations for the Sri Lanka cricket board.

His son Madawa played for four domestic sides and even for Sri Lanka A. Another son Madura played club cricket, while his nephew Malinda played for Sri Lanka A as well. Bandula, Madawa, and Madura are the only instance of a father and two sons to have led Nalanda College in the Battle of the Maroons (against Ananda College).

Abhishek Mukherjee

Bandula Warnapura Batting & Fielding Averages

Career	M	In	R	NO	HS	Avg	BF	SR	100s	50s	4s	6s	Ct	St
Test	4	8	96	0	38	12.00	311	30.86	0	0	9	--	2	0
ODIs	12	12	180	0	77	15.00	415	43.37	0	1	19	0	5	0
T20s	0	--	--	--		--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
World Cup	5	5	79	0	31	15.80	217	36.40	0	0	10	0	3	0

Bandula Warnapura Bowling Averages

Career	M	B	R	W	Avg	EC	SR	5WI	10WM	BBI	BBM
Test	4	90	46	0	--	3.066	--	0	0	0/1	0/9
ODIs	12	414	316	8	39.50	4.579	51.75	0	0	3/42	3/42
T20s	0	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
World Cup	5	216	159	4	39.75	4.416	54.00	0	--	3/42	3/42

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