Full Name

Marvan Samson Atapattu

Born

November 22, 1970, Kalutara

Age

53y 118d

Batting Style

Right hand Bat

Bowling Style

Legbreak

Playing Role

Batter

RELATIONS

(brother-in-law)

Other

Coach

Marvan Atapattu overcame a torturous start to his international career (which included five ducks in his first six Test innings and six single-digit scores in his first seven ODIs) to become one of Sri Lanka's top batters, making over 14,000 runs in internationals for them over 16 years and scoring six Test double-hundreds.

An elegant, technically correct player, Atapattu was a fine exponent of the high-elbow cover-drive. On a lifeless pitch, he was a master of the percentage game, his caution a useful counterpoint to the risks taken by Sanath Jayasuriya, his opening partner almost throughout his Test career. For three years Atapattu was Jayasuriya's understudy before being appointed to lead the one-day side in April 2003; he took over the Test role the following year.

On the surface a quiet and reserved character, his captaincy skills were not entirely obvious to the outsider, but in the dressing room he was a straight-talking, positive captain, firm and fair in his dealings with the players and aggressive in his approach to the game. Under him Sri Lanka won the Asia Cup and ODI and Test series against South Africa at home in 2004, and meted out whitewashes in home Test series against West Indies and Bangladesh the following year. The high point of his tenure was 13 wins in 14 ODIs in 2004. That year, Atapattu made what would be the last of his 11 ODI hundreds, of which nine came away from home.

Atapattu's career was marked by various run-ins with the selectors - most notoriously when he called them "a set of muppets headed by a joker" while on the 2007-08 tour of Australia, for which he was a late inclusion following government intervention to bring him into the squad. He scored two half-centuries in that series, including 80 in the second innings in Hobart, but Sri Lanka lost 2-0 and Atapattu announced his retirement from international cricket on the last day of that Hobart match.

After retiring, he worked in various coaching roles with Sri Lanka in the 2010s, and also coached Canada and Singapore.

Marvan Atapattu Career Stats

Batting & Fielding

FormatMatInnsNORunsHSAveBFSR100s50s4s6sCtSt
Tests9015615550224939.02--16176854580
ODIs268259328529132*37.571259467.72115973415700
T20Is210555.00862.50000000
FC2283484914591253*48.79--4753--1490
List A3293194510802132*39.42--1871--910
T20s310555.00862.50000010

Bowling

FormatMatInnsBallsRunsWktsBBIBBMAveEconSR4w5w10w
Tests905482411/91/924.003.0048.0000
ODIs268251410---4.82-000
T20Is2------------
FC228-1302692193/19-36.423.1868.5-00
List A329-816411/121/1264.004.7481.0000
T20s3------------
Marvan Samson Atapattu

Explore Statsguru Analysis

Test
ODI
T20I

Photos of Marvan Atapattu

Sean Williams and Marvan Atapattu have a chat
Coach Marvan Atapattu chats with Milinda Siriwardana
Marvan Atapattu and Angelo Mathews have a chat
Suranga Lakmal bowls under the supervision of Marvan Atapattu
Brains trust: Angelo Mathews watches Sri Lanka's practice session with head coach Marvan  Atapattu and bowling coach Champaka Ramanayake
Angelo Mathews is locked in discussion with Kumar Sangakkara, Marvan Atapattu and Champaka Ramanayake