Dunith Wellalage is the latest prodigy of Sri Lanka's familial spin bowling production line and, on September 12 (Tuesday), the left-arm spinner proved why he is being touted so highly. The 20-year-old tamed India's star-studded batting line-up at the R Premadasa Stadium on Tuesday with a breathtaking spell of bowling in Colombo. Yes, there was plenty of purchase for spinners and the ball was turning and bouncing like it was a Day 5 Test match pitch, but the accuracy and variation displayed by Wellalage was outright remarkable.
He arrived himself as lightning and finished his 10-over spell like thunder. In the first ball of his spell, the left-arm spinner bamboozled Subhman Gill with a glorious delivery. Next up, the Sri Lankan spinner sent India's best batter Virat Kohli back to the dressing room after continuously testing him.
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma was absolutely stunned when Wellalage's delivery kept a tad bit low and snuck under his bat to castle the stumps. The young spinner was just getting started as he continued to bowl in probing channels, posing immense challenges for the Indian batters.
KL Rahul was Wellalage's next victim before the left-arm spinner dismissed Hardik Pandya on the last ball of his spell with another unplayable nut. It was a fantastic five-wicket haul for Wellalage as he finished with sensational figures of 5/40 in 10 overs, including a maiden.
Talking about Wellalage, the youngster made his ODI debut in 2022, and in his 13-match nascent career thus far, he has made a habit of dismissing the best batters of the opposition teams. The 20-year-old has bagged 18 wickets in 50-over international cricket so far, which includes some of the biggest names of contemporary cricket.
Wellalage has dismissed Steve Smith, David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul and Shubman Gill among others in his 13-match ODI career so far.
Calling Wellalage a giant slayer would be a bit of an aberration as he is still new to international cricket. Having said that, the left-arm spinner has announced his arrival in a resounding fashion.
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