32-year-old Pramod Bhanuka Bandara Rajapaksa is a Sri Lankan all-rounder who plays limited-overs cricket for the national side.
Born on 24 October 1991 in Colombo, he is a left-handed batsman and a right-arm medium bowler. Despite having a promising first-class career, he had to wait for 10 years to make his International debut from the time he made his first domestic appearance.
| Bhanuka Rajapaksa father's name | No information as of now |
| Bhanuka Rajapaksa mother's name | No information as of now |
| Bhanuka Rajapaksa's siblings | No information as of now |
| Bhanuka Rajapaksa's relative | Mahinda Rajapaksa |
| Bhanuka Rajapaksa's wife | Sandrine Pereira |
| Marriage date | 5 April 2021 |
Who are the Bhanuka Rajapaksa's Parents?
There is no information available about Bhanuka’s parents on the internet.
Is Bhanuka Rajapaksa married?
Bhanuka Rajapaksa married his long-time lady love, Sandrine Pereira on 5th April 2021.
Bhanuka and Sandrine are huge animal lovers and have given a home to a lot of dogs such as Riley, Brandie, Theodore, Abbie, and Mocha.
Does Bhanuka Rajapaksha have kids?
Bhanuka Rjapaskha and his wife Sandrine Pereira are still waiting to welcome their first kid.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Mahinda Rajapaksa
Bhanuka Rajapaksa is related to Mahinda Rajapaksa, the former President of Sri Lanka, who took up the position in the year 2019. He could've gotten into the Sri Lankan side from his familiar bonding with Mahinda Rajapaksa, but Bhanuka had to wait for 10 years before finally making his international debut.
While expressing about the career difficulties, he stated:
"About the challenges, you name it, I've been through the period of 9-10 years. It took me almost 10 years to get into the side. It was really difficult. For nine years, it was not easy. Mentally, I was very low. Sometimes, I was very down. I wouldn't say depressed but there were moments when I didn't want to continue playing cricket."
Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Virat Kohli
In an interview, Bhanuka Rajapaksa revealed that he was eager to gain fitness tips from the former Indian captain, Virat Kohli. He even referred to Kohli as superstar football player, Cristiano Ronaldo.
While talking about his fitness, he stated in an interview:
"The fitness journey has been quite tricky. It's not my fitness out on the field. It's just my skinfolds. I've been on the chubby side from my school days when I got my reputation for having sweets."
Bhanuka Rajapaksa retirement
At the start of 2022, the Sri Lankan all-rounder announced his shocking retirement from international cricket.
The 30-year-old submitted a letter of resignation to Sri Lanka Cricket. "I have very carefully considered my position as a player, and husband and am taking this decision looking forward to fatherhood and associated familial obligations," SLC cited Rajapaksa's resignation letter as stating.
However, he returned to international cricket at the request of the Sports Minister on 13 January 2022.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa controversy
Bhanuka was excluded from the squad for the West Indies and England tour in 2021. He expressed his disappointment for being left out due to lacking fitness in a YouTube video.
In a YouTube interview, Rajapaksa criticized the Sri Lankan selection committee for its changing policies. He emphasized that the criteria for a player's selection should be made on the grounds of their on-field performance instead of their fitness levels.
However, Sri Lanka's head coach, Mickey Arthur called Rajapaksa a "comfort zone cricketer" on the field and stated that he had failed to clear the skin fold tests required to meet the international cricketing fitness standards.
But Bhanuka worked hard on his fitness and earned his spot back in the Sri Lankan playing XI. Both Arthur and Rajapaksa even cleared their differences and got back on good terms.
Bhanuka tweeted a heart-warming message for Arthur on his farewell where he acknowledged the differences the two had. The former Sri Lankan Head Coach tweeted back by saying, "I am so glad that you are delivering on your amazing talent and loved working with you! I just want to see you be the best you can be….keep on this path and the world is your oyster!"
Bhanuka Rajapaksa's unknown facts
Bhanuka Rajapaksa was a skilled swimmer in his childhood. But he had to give up the sport due to a critical medical condition. Thus, he switched to cricket and the rest is history.
Talking about his turn to cricket, Bhanuska said, "I was down with meningitis, a brain-affecting disease, and doctors advised me not to dive. So I took up cricket."
Bhanuka Rajapaksa played his first T20 and first-class match in 2009 where he represented the Schools Invitation XI, and Sinhalese Sports Club respectively. From here, he earned a spot in the Sri Lankan U-19 team.
In the U-19 tour of Australia in 2009, he topped the list of highest run scorers in the series with a brilliant knock of 154 runs from 111 deliveries in the second ODI.
Next year, he got a call-up for the U-19 World Cup held in New Zealand. He emerged as the leading run-getter for Sri Lanka with over 250 runs in the tournament.
He also holds the record as the first U-19 player to score 1000 Youth ODI runs.
He earned the honor of Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year for a second time in 2011.
Bhanuka made his International debut in 2019 against Pakistan in a 3-match T20 series as a replacement for another player who refused to play in Pakistan for security reasons. Sri Lanka won the series, and Bhanuka became the player of the series with his impressive hard-hitting. He smashed a fast-paced 77 off just 48 balls in the second T20 international.
Bhanuka entered the international ODI circuit in July 2021 against India. It was also the first time when Sri Lanka won a T20 series against India.
He was selected in the Sri Lankan squad for the 2021 T20 World Cup.
Bhanuka was signed by the Punjab Kings in the 2022 IPL auction for 50 lakh rupees. He went on to make his IPL debut against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Punjab Kings won the match and Bhanuka was their highest scorer with 43 runs.
Apart from cricket and swimming, he is also fond of the sport, squash.
He became the Ambassador of Chariot, Sri Lanka, a well-established restaurant chain in Sri Lanka.
Rajapaksa owns two cars: a Toyota Land Cruiser and a Subaru STI.
Bhanuka revealed that he had quit smoking in a 2014 Facebook post.
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FAQs on Bhanuka Rajapaksa
Bhanuka Rajapaksa is married to his long-time girlfriend Sandrine Pereira.
No, the couples haven’t welcomed their first baby yet.
Yes, Bhanuka Rajapaksa is related with the Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.
On 5 January 2022, Bhanuka Rajapaksa announced his retirement from International Cricket, but later he withdrew his decision at the request of the Sports minister.
