| Ashen Bandara Quick Info | |
|---|---|
| Height | 5 ft 10 in |
| Weight | 72 kg |
| Date of Birth | November 23, 1998 |
| Zodiac Sign | Sagittarius |
| Eye Color | Dark Brown |
Ashen Bandara is a Sri Lankan professional cricketer who has represented his country in the shorter formats of the sport (ODIs and T20Is), as a middle-order batter. Before breaking into the senior national team in March 2021, he represented Sri Lanka at the 2018 Under-19 ICC (International Cricket Council) Cricket World Cup, where the team finished in 9th place in the 16-team competition. In the Sri Lankan domestic circuit, he has played for Saracens Sports Club, Galle Cricket Club (2018-Present), and Police Sports Club across all 3 formats. At the franchise level, Ashen has turned out for Dambulla Viiking (2020), Jaffna Kings (2021), and Kandy Falcons (2022) in the LPL (Lanka Premier League). He was a key member of the Jaffna Kings squad that had won the LPL title in the 2nd edition of the tournament, in December 2021.
Born Name
Koralegedera Nadeeja Ashen Bandara
Nick Name
Ashen
Sun Sign
Sagittarius
Born Place
Galle, Southern Province, Sri Lanka
Residence
Sri Lanka
Nationality
Education
Ashen had attended St. Aloysius’ College, a boys’ high school located in his hometown of Galle.
Occupation
Professional Cricketer
Family
- Siblings – He has 3 sisters.
Batting
Right-Handed
Bowling
Right Arm Leg-Break
Role
Middle-Order Batter
Jersey Number
10 – One Day International (ODI), T20 International (T20I), Jaffna Kings (LPL), Kandy Falcons (LPL)
Build
Athletic
Height
5 ft 10 in or 178 cm
Weight
72 kg or 158.5 lbs
Race / Ethnicity
Asian
He is of Sri Lankan descent.
Hair Color
Black
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Toned physique
- Side-cropped, side-parted, wavy hair
- Sports a goatee
- Has his left hand covered in tattoos
Ashen Bandara Facts
- In November 2019, Ashen top-scored (62 runs) for Sri Lanka in the team’s opening group-stage match, against Oman, of the ACC (Asian Cricket Council) Emerging Teams Asia Cup, the 4th edition of the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup, a List-A cricket tournament that was started in 2013 to exhibit the talents of the most prominent young cricketers of Asia. Quite surprisingly, minnows Oman overhauled Sri Lanka’s total of 268 runs and won the match by 4 wickets. Sri Lanka could not quite recover from this upset and lost its next 2 matches as well, against Pakistan and Afghanistan, to be eliminated from the tournament at the group stage itself.
- In December 2019, Ashen was a part of the Sri Lankan squad that won the ‘Silver’ medal at the South Asian Games. The tournament featured under-23 squads from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and senior squads from Bhutan, Maldives, and Nepal. Bangladesh had beaten Sri Lanka by 7 wickets in the final of the tournament. Sri Lanka had won the ‘Silver’ medal in the previous (2010) edition of the tournament as well.
- On March 10, 2021, on his ODI debut for Sri Lanka, in the 1st match of a 3-match bilateral away series against the West Indies, he scored a half-century. West Indies went on to win the match by 8 wickets but the affair was marred by controversy after Danushka Gunathilaka became the first Sri Lankan cricketer to have been dismissed in an ODI match via the very rarely utilized’ obstructing the field’ method.
- In the last match of that series, Ashen scored his 2nd ODI half-century and shared an unbroken 123-run partnership for the 7th wicket with Wanindu Hasaranga. As of December 2022, it was the 11th-highest such partnership in the history of ODI cricket. The effort went in vain though as the West Indies went on to win the match by 5 wickets and the series by a 3-0 margin.
- In September 2022, he was a part of the Sri Lankan squad that won the ACC Asia Cup for the 6th time. The tournament was started in 1984 as a measure to promote goodwill between Asian countries. As of December 2022, the tournament had maintained its status as the only continental championship in international cricket.
- In December 2022, Ashen was one of the stars of the Kandy Falcons squad that finished in pole position in the group stage of the 3rd edition of the LPL (Lanka Premier League). He top-scored for the team in 3 of the 8 group-stage matches. He ended the season with 244 runs overall and was included in the ‘Team of the Tournament’ by ESPN Cricinfo, arguably the leading cricket portal in the world. The team eventually finished in 3rd position after the end of the playoff stage of the tournament.
Featured Image by Ashen Bandara / Instagram
