Kumara Dharmasena a strict disciplinarian
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I interviewed Kumar Dharmasena at his residence in Wijerama Junction, Nugegoda and the first thing he wanted me to take down was that he owed his Alma Mater, Nalanda College, for what he is today. He has played in the 1996 World Cup winning team and also umpired in the finals of the 2015 World Cup in Melbourne. He states that Nalanda has made him to be a good Buddhist with a well balanced life style, which makes life easy for him to withstand the rigours that comes as part and parcel of being a world class umpire, and a celebrity who is focused by the society. Kumar has a big family with one son and three daughters and I could see that he is the perfect family man, because when I asked for his photograph he offered me to give his family photograph instead.
Beneath his soft exterior, Kumar was a fiercely determined cricketer and now as a top class umpire. This trait was inborn in him. He won the Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year award in 1989. In comparison to Aravinda de Silva, et al he was not naturally gifted but made up for it with his dogged determination. He points out that as a youngster wearing shorts, the a, b and c of cricket was taught to him by the late C.H. Gunasekera Jr. and then by Jayantha Seneviratne, another cricketer of no mean repute.
He played for Nalanda from 1987 to 1990. After a distinguished school career Kumar played for NCC, Moratuwa SC and then settled down at Bloomfield the famous watering hole for many Nalandian cricketers. Kumar being a strict disciplinarian, unlike the talented late great Anura Ranasinghe and Anura de Silva, he steered clear of the temptations that was easily available.
Kumar’s performance in the Tests and ODIs are impressive. In 31 Tests he made 868 runs, at an average of 19.72 with three half centuries and the best score of 62 not out, delivered 6,939 deliveries to claim 69 wickets, at an average of 42.31. His best bowling figure is 6 for 72 and also held 14 catches.
In the ODIs he played 141 matches, scored 1222 runs at an average of 22.62 with four half centuries with the best being 69 not out. He bowled 7009 deliveries, captured 138 wickets at an average of 36.21 with 4 for 37 being the best figures and held 34 catches.
He was always playing under the shadow of the great Muttiah Muralidharan and he was forced to contain the batsman and hold one end up and in ODIs it was normal to see his bowling figure as 10-1-35-1. He was so accurate and spot on, though he varied his flight cleverly. The biggest moment of his cricketing life was to be a member of the 1996 Cricket World Cup. He says that Arjuna Ranatunga was a superb captain who always stood by his players and Aravinda de Silva’s century played a major part in winning the coveted title.
In the umpiring arena, Kumar was the youngest to be picked to the Elite Panel and in his first year itself he was picked as the Best Umpire by the ICC. He is very firm in his decision making and most of the time he is spot on. His success as an umpire lies in the fact that he can switch on and switch off his concentration, when the situation demands he says, meditation has helped him to improve his concentration which is a valuable asset in umpiring. Since fitness also plays a vital part in this job, he does a lot of walking.
In conclusion I asked him about the best batsmen he has bowled to, and he was quick to point out Brian Lara for his brilliant footwork, Aravinda de Silva for seeing the ball so early and Salim Malik for his canny placements. Kumar says that Dinesh Chandimal is the outstanding talent that Sri Lanka has but he should be able to play on all kinds of wickets as the situation demands. Last but not the least when inquired about the outstanding umpires, Kumar says that Srinivasan Venkateraghavan, David Shepard and Steve Bucknor are his picks.
Thilak de Silva, Nugegoda