Former Sri Lankan spinner and cricket administrator Jayananda Warnaweera passed away at the age of 64. The veteran cricketer represented Sri Lanka in 10 Tests and six ODIs between 1986 and 1994 before transitioning into administrative and curatorial roles in Sri Lankan cricket.
Sri Lanka Cricket Pays Tribute
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) expressed deep sorrow over the loss of Warnaweera, extending condolences to his family, friends, and loved ones. As a mark of respect, the Sri Lanka Women’s team wore black armbands during their Women’s World Cup 2025 match against South Africa at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. The team also observed a minute’s silence before the start of the game.
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒓𝒆 𝑺𝒓𝒊 𝑳𝒂𝒏𝒌𝒂𝒏 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒇𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝑱𝒂𝒚𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒂 𝑾𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒓𝒂. 𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒃𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒃𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅,” 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝑳𝑪 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒏 𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆.
Warnaweera’s Impact on and off the Field
Warnaweera played a pivotal role in the development of the Galle International Stadium, serving as its curator after his retirement. His connection to the venue was special, as he was instrumental in preparing the pitch for its first international fixture — a Test match between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in 1992.
As a right-arm off-spinner, Warnaweera delivered several memorable performances, including a 4/25 spell in that match, which helped Sri Lanka clinch the series 1-0. His best Test figures came against England, where he claimed 8/188 (4/90 and 4/98) in a single match.
“𝑮𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏. 𝑯𝒆 𝒑𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒕 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕 𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅,” 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒂 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑾𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒘𝒆𝒆𝒓𝒂’𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏.
Legacy Beyond Cricket
Although his international career was brief due to concerns over his bowling action, Warnaweera made a significant mark in domestic cricket, taking 287 wickets in 68 matches at an average of 19.96, with 22 five-wicket hauls and six ten-wicket hauls.
Beyond playing, he continued serving the sport as a Member of the Executive Committee of Sri Lanka Cricket, Secretary of the Southern Provincial Cricket Association, and Secretary of the Galle District Cricket Association.
Warnaweera’s passing marks the end of an era for Sri Lankan cricket — a player, curator, and administrator whose devotion to the game left an indelible legacy.
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