Jeffrey Vandersay

A left-field World Cup pick he may be, but with Rangana Herath’s retirement opening the door for a new generation of Sri Lankan spinners, Vandersay has an opportunity to prove his worth

The Cricketer | 04/05/2019 at 14:45

Born: February 5, 1990

Role: Right-hand bat, right-arm legspin

Prior to his World Cup call-up, Jeffrey Vandersay’s previous ODI appearance came in October 2017 – 18 months previously.

Until a trio of appearances during March’s T20 series against South Africa, the legspinner hadn’t represented Sri Lanka in the game’s shortest format since 2016.

Yet suddenly, the 29-year-old is back in the fold – one of four spin options in a 15-man squad full of shocks, though, arguably, the sole specialist of the quartet.

Vandersay does, however, come with some pedigree. Of his ten ODI wickets, he can count Tom Latham, Ross Taylor and AB de Villiers among his victims.

That said, his inclusion comes as some surprise. In July 2018, after being sent home from a tour of the West Indies for a disciplinary breach, he was given a one-year suspended ban and fined 20 percent of his annual contract after admitting a misconduct charge.

It was reported that he had failed to return to the team hotel after a night out.

Those in charge, however, know Vandersay well. The squad’s captain, Dimuth Karunaratne, plays his domestic cricket with him at Sinhalese.

A left-field World Cup pick he may be, but with Rangana Herath’s retirement opening the door for a new generation of Sri Lankan spinners, Vandersay has an opportunity to prove his worth.

SRI LANKA PLAYER PROFILES

Dhananjaya de Silva

Vishwa Fernando

Dimuth Karunaratne