Deshabandu Sanath Teran Jayasuriya (born 30 June 1969) is a Sri Lankan former cricketer, captain, cricket administrator, coach and politician. A left-handed batter, left-arm orthodox spinner and dynamic fielder, Jayasuriya is widely regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders to have played One Day International (ODI) cricket. He was a key member of the Sri Lankan team that won the 1996 Cricket World Cup, and later led the side as captain between 1999 and 2003.
| Full name | Deshabandu Sanath Teran Jayasuriya |
|---|---|
| Born | 30 June 1969 |
| Nationality | Sri Lankan |
| Batting | Left-handed |
| Bowling | Left-arm orthodox spin |
| Role | All-rounder, opening batter |
| National side | Sri Lanka |
| Captaincy tenure | 1999–2003 |
| Test retirement | December 2007 |
| Limited-overs retirement | June 2011 |
| Constituency (2010) | Matara District |
Jayasuriya hails from the Matara District in southern Sri Lanka. His international career spanned over two decades, during which he played all three formats of the game and became a central figure in Sri Lankan cricket's rise as a major force in world cricket.
Together with his opening partner Romesh Kaluwitharana, Jayasuriya is credited with revolutionising one-day international cricket through explosive batting in the mid-1990s. Their aggressive use of the early overs initiated the hard-hitting modern-day batting strategy that was subsequently adopted by teams across the world.
Jayasuriya played a pivotal role in Sri Lanka's victorious 1996 World Cup campaign and was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament. In 1997, the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack broke an age-old tradition by naming him one of its Five Cricketers of the Year, despite his not having played the previous season in England.
Jayasuriya captained Sri Lanka from 1999 to 2003. Under his leadership, Sri Lanka shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with India after the final was washed out, leaving the two sides as joint champions.
He was part of the Sri Lankan teams that reached the finals of the 2007 Cricket World Cup and the 2009 ICC World Twenty20. Jayasuriya retired from Test cricket in December 2007 and from limited-overs international cricket in June 2011.
Jayasuriya is the only player to have achieved the all-round double of scoring over 10,000 runs and capturing more than 300 wickets in a single format of international cricket. He is regarded as one of the greatest attacking batsmen of his era, known for powerful striking and match-winning all-round performances across formats. He also created several world records during his career.
On 28 January 2013, Sri Lanka Cricket appointed Jayasuriya as the chairman of its cricket selection committee. During his tenure as chief selector, Sri Lanka won the ICC World Twenty20 for the first time in 2014. He has also served as the head coach of the Sri Lanka national cricket team.
Jayasuriya contested the 2010 Sri Lankan general elections and was elected to parliament from his native Matara District. He topped the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) parliamentary election list for Matara district with 74,352 preferential votes.
He served as the Deputy Minister of Postal Services in the UPFA government led by Mahinda Rajapaksa, and subsequently as the Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development under President Maithripala Sirisena. Jayasuriya did not contest the 2015 general election and is not currently active in politics.