I AM VERY MUCH SATISFIED AND DELIGHTED TO SERVE SRI LANKAN CRICKET FOR YEARS: TILAKARATNE DILSHAN.

Though the farewell bidding match for Dilshan didn’t go his way, but the player has done more than enough for his team and also contributed a lot for the cricketing world, after Australia won the match yesterday the spectators of Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium got off their seats and cheered for their hero, to bid him a warm good bye.

Yesterday was the final ODI for the legend as we all were waiting to see a commendable innings from him, the star scored 42 runs falling short of 8 runs for his 47 fifty in International cricket.

“I took the decision a few days back. (I’m) really happy with the way I finished, really happy with what I did for Sri Lanka cricket. Just like my Test retirement, one morning I woke up, on the 25th, and realised this was the time to go. I think it’s the right decision, the way I finished my career,” Dilshan during the presentation ceremony. 

It was a long 17 years old career for Dishan and the milestone he achieved during this feat is just out of the box, the legend scored over 10,000 plus runs in ODI and mind it that’s not the end he also took 106 wickets in 330 matches he played.

“I’m really happy I contributed in all three departments. I discussed it (retirement) with my wife and other people,” he said.

“There is also no cricket for almost six months after this and it’s a good time for giving youngsters a chance. If a youngster can take Sri Lankan cricket forward and score some runs, I’ll watch it at home and be happy,”

Ups and downs is a part in everybody’s life but we must learn to get through the situations and so did Dilshan to come out of it as a true warrior.

“Around 2008 the selectors dropped me, not taking me to the Australia tour. Then I thought I could do more in the side. I called Mahela, the captain at that time, and said don’t pick me as middle-order batsman and pick me as an opener. He said, ‘okay, so go and open in domestic competition’. In the first game I scored 190 and finished 30 or 40 overs in most matches. Then I went to Pakistan and scored well. Since then I have continued to bat at the top,”