Chaminda Vaas
From Free net encyclopedia
Warnakulasuriya Patabendige Ushantha Joseph Chaminda Vaas, (born January 27, 1974 in Mattumagala) usually known by his last two names, is a Sri Lankan cricketer (fast bowler).
A past student of the prestigious St. Joseph's College in Colombo, he made his debut for the Sri Lankan cricket team in 1994 and is their most successful fast bowler ever, having taken 300 Test wickets (achieved the feat on 12 December, 2005). Vaas has also taken over three hunded one-day international wickets including two hat tricks, against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh; the first of which was in the middle of a devastating spell of eight for 19, the best bowling figures in one-day internationals and the latter of this being the infamous hat-trick of wickets in the first three balls of the game.
Chaminda is also a useful batsman down the order, and has reached 2000 Test runs including 8 Test half-centuries. As a fieldsman, he is noted for his strong arm.
In 2004 he gained recognition for his talent when he was selected for the World Test and one-day XI at the inaugural ICC Awards. He was once again selected for the World Test XI at the 2005 awards.