Sri Lanka Skipper Dimuth Karunaratne yesterday, achieved a significant milestone in his career when he completed 5,000 runs during the opening day of the second Test against Bangladesh at the Pallekele Stadium in Kandy.
The elegant left-hand opening batsman, playing in his 72nd Test match joined a unique select band of Sri Lankan players who have completed 5,000 runs in Test cricket.
In fact, Karunaratne became the 10th Sri Lankan batsman to achieve this feat after having launched his Test career way back in November, 2012.
It was a very anxious Karunaratne who eventually went past the 5,000-run mark after having faced some tough moments against the Bangladesh pacemen Abu Jayed, Taskin Ahmed and Mehidy Hasan.
No doubt this is a tremendous achievement considering the fact that he has been plunged with a couple of injuries in the recent past and also has the added responsibility of leading the side during the last two years.
Since making his Test debut against New Zealand at the Galle Stadium, Karunaratne has earned a reputation as a high-class specialist batsman who has excelled for his country mostly in the second innings.
Incidentally, six out of his 11 centuries has been scored in the second innings which is quite a remarkable achievement for a batsman who was dismissed without scoring in his Test debut.
But Karunaratne gave a glimpse of his potential as a top order batsman when he compiled an unbeaten half-century in the second innings of his first Test match.
That Test match was altogether a memorable one for Karunaratne as Sri Lanka romped to a comprehensive 10-wicket triumph to take a 1-0 lead in the two-match series.
He made his first overseas Test tour to Australia in 2012 but could not make an impact until he produced a battling 85 in the second innings of the third and final Test at Sydney.
He was the top scorer in the second innings and made a valiant effort to stretch the match to the fourth day against a fearsome attack, which included bowlers of the calibre of Mitchell Starc, Jackson Bird, Mitchell Johnson and Peter Siddle.
Karunaratne eventually scored his maiden hundred in his 14th appearance when he made a splendid 152 in the second innings of the Boxing Day Test against New Zealand in Christchurch.
He was dismissed for a four-ball duck in the first innings but made amends by compiling a magnificent century while batting under tremendous pressure.
This was an innings that Karunaratne showed his real character and temperament while battling for more than six hours against the likes of Trent Boult, Tim Southee and Neil Wagner.
Thereafter, he went on to cement his place in the Sri Lankan Team as a regular opening batsman and has scored some vital runs both at home and away.
In fact, one of his best Test innings was compiled during a Day/Night Test in Dubai, United Arab Emirates where he hammered a superb 196 against Pakistan to win the Player-of-the-Match award.
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