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Jeffrey Vandersay: Sri Lankan Star (46) | When New Talent Starts to Explore Itself

Jeffrey Dexter Francis Vandersay (Jeffrey Vandersay) (born 5 February 1990) is a professional Sri Lankan cricketer who currently plays limited-overs cricket for the national team. He is an alumnus of Wesley College, Colombo.

Jeffrey Vandersay Photos | Image Gallery and Match Pictures

Domestic Career

  • In March 2018, Vandersay was named in Dambulla’s squad for the 2017–18 Super Four Provincial Tournament. The following month, he was also included in Dambulla’s squad for the 2018 Super Provincial One Day Tournament.
  • By August 2018, Vandersay was named in Galle’s squad for the 2018 SLC T20 League. In March 2019, he joined Kandy’s squad for the 2019 Super Provincial One Day Tournament.
  • In October 2020, Vandersay was drafted by the Colombo Kings for the inaugural edition of the Lanka Premier League.
  • In March 2021, he was part of the Sinhalese Sports Club team that won the 2020–21 SLC Twenty20 Tournament, marking the club’s first victory in the tournament since 2005.
  • In July 2022, Vandersay was signed by the Colombo Stars for the third edition of the Lanka Premier League.

Jeffrey Vandersay : A Sri Lankan Star

In June 2015, Jeffrey Vandersay played in the tour match between SLCB President’s XI and Pakistanis. He made his Twenty20 International (T20I) debut for Sri Lanka against Pakistan on 30 July 2015, where he finished with figures of 25 runs from 4 overs without taking a wicket.

Jeffrey Vandersay his One Day International (ODI) debut for Sri Lanka against New Zealand on 28 December 2015, becoming the 168th ODI player for Sri Lanka. In his first ODI innings, he scored 7 runs not out, but struggled in bowling, conceding 34 runs in 2 overs, with Sri Lanka losing the match by 10 wickets.

However, he claimed his first ODI wicket during the 3rd ODI at Saxton Oval, dismissing Tom Latham for 42 runs. He also took his first T20I wicket by dismissing Corey Anderson in the first T20I against New Zealand at Bay Oval. Although originally included in Sri Lanka’s squad for the 2016 ICC World Twenty20, Vandersay was dropped due to poor performances on the New Zealand and Pakistan tours. However, he was later re-added to the squad after Lasith Malinga was ruled out due to injury.

A Sri Lankan Star

In January 2017, Vandersay was added to Sri Lanka’s ODI squad for their series against South Africa. In November 2017, he was included in Sri Lanka’s Test squad, replacing Rangana Herath, ahead of the third Test against India, but did not play. In May 2018, he was named in Sri Lanka’s Test squad for their series against the West Indies but did not feature in any matches. He was sent home ahead of the third and final Test of the series due to conduct issues.

In May 2018, Vandersay was among 33 cricketers awarded a national contract by Sri Lanka Cricket ahead of the 2018–19 season. In December 2018, he was named in Sri Lanka’s team for the 2018 ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup. However, on 23 June 2018, he was sent home by Sri Lanka Cricket after breaching his player contract regarding disciplinary issues during the Caribbean tour. Following this, Vandersay was handed a one-year suspended sentence and a 20% fine of his annual contract.

In April 2019, Vandersay was named in Sri Lanka’s squad for the 2019 Cricket World Cup. In February 2022, he was included in Sri Lanka’s Test squad for their series against India. In June 2022, he was named in the Sri Lanka A squad for their matches against Australia A during Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka and later in the month was also named in Sri Lanka’s Test squad for the home series against Australia. Vandersay made his Test debut on 29 June 2022, against Australia, but was subsequently dropped from the squad after testing positive for COVID-19.

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