Sri Lankan Squad

Marvan Samson Atapattu

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Marvan Atapattu, born in the southern town of Kalutara but schooled in Colombo, has come a mainstay of Sri Lanka's Test and ODI side despite a disastrous start to international cricket in 1990-01, when he started with a run of five ducks in his first six innings. However, after a return to international cricket in 1997 his career blossomed as a right-handed opener. A patient accumulator of runs, regarded as one of Sri Lanka's most technically accomplished batsman, he's proved the perfect foil for Sri Lanka's notoriously cavalier top order. Although a nervous starter, with a high percentage of ducks (18 ducks in 103 Test innings), he rarely throws away his wicket once settled at the crease, gaining a reputation for making big hundreds. Indeed, he has converted five out of his eight Test hundreds into double tons, a feat surpassed only by Sir Don Bradman (12), Wally Hammond (7) and Javed Miandad (6). Is currently vice-captain.