Sri Lankan cricket team paid tribute to Percy Abeysekera, a renowned fan and enthusiastic supporter, by wearing black armbands in his memory during their World Cup match against India at Wankhede Stadium on November 2.
Percy, affectionately known as 'Uncle Percy,' recently passed away at the age of 87 after a long illness. He became well-known for attending Sri Lankan matches starting in 1979, but he became even more famous after the 1996 World Cup, which Sri Lanka co-hosted and ended up winning.
He was known for waving a big Sri Lankan flag, supporting the players, and even walking with them to and from the dressing room.
“Sri Lanka players will wear black armbands during today's game vs India to pay tribute to the late Percy Abeysekera, the legendary cheerleader,” said an official statement from Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).
“Abeysekera was an integral part of the game of cricket in Sri Lanka and did play a pivotal role from beyond the boundary line to support and motivate the players. His towering legacy spans across Sri Lanka’s pre- and post-Test eras, and his name will remain etched forever among cricket lovers,” the statement added.
India's captain Rohit Sharma reminisced about meeting Abeysekera during the recent Asia Cup when he visited his home in Colombo.
“I was lucky to get an opportunity to meet him in Sri Lanka during the Asia Cup and he's been such a great fan of cricket. Of course, (of the) Sri Lankan team but he's probably the first ever fan that I met, who was so genuine and the support from his side towards his team, towards the players was fantastic to see,” Rohit said.
Rohit reminisced about his initial visit to Sri Lanka during the 2006 U-19 World Cup but mentioned that he became acquainted with 'Uncle Percy' during a tour with the Indian senior side two years later.
“When I first went to Sri Lanka in 2006, actually for (the) U19 World Cup, he was there, but I was a little boy, I had no idea about how things work outside (the) cricket field. I was not too much into that,” he added.
“But when I went with the Indian team for the first time in 2008, I saw him for the first time, and I saw how passionate he was.” “I got lucky as well to meet his family, his son, his grandson...their family is very sweet, I went with (a) few of my team members as well,” he recalled.
“It's a sad loss to the cricketing fraternity because in my eyes, he was the number one supporter of cricket at that point in time. Obviously, there have been so many fans now, but the first-ever fan, cricket fan I saw, was him. It's a sad moment for all of us,” the Indian captain concluded.
(Powered by AI, Inputs by PTI)
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