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The following lists events that happened during 1981 in Sri Lanka .
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The following lists events that happened during 1981 in Sri Lanka .
The Sri Lanka men's national cricket team, nicknamed The Lions, represents Sri Lanka in men's international cricket. It is a Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with Test, One-Day International (ODI) and T20 International (T20I) status. The team first played international cricket in 1926–27 and became an associate member of ICC in 1965. They were later awarded Test status in 1981, which made Sri Lanka the eighth Test cricket-playing nation. The team is administered by Sri Lanka Cricket.
International cricket matches are played between the teams representing their nations, organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). The main forms are Test matches, One-Day matches and Twenty20 matches.
The Bangladesh men's national cricket team, popularly known as The Tigers, is administered by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). It is a Full Member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) with Test, One-Day International (ODI) and T20 International (T20I) status. It played its first Test match in November 2000 against India with a 9 wicket loss in Dhaka, becoming the tenth Test-playing nation. Bangladesh became an associate member of the ICC in 1977, and competed in six ICC Trophies, the leading ODI competition for non-Test playing nations.
Kumar Chokshananda Sangakkara is a former professional Sri Lankan cricketer and former captain of the team. He currently serves as a Cricket commentator and businessman, and was a former president of the MCC. He is widely regarded as a profound batsman in international cricket and is also an ICC Hall of the fame inductee.
Herath Mudiyanselage Rangana Keerthi Bandara Herath, known as Rangana Herath, is a former Sri Lankan cricketer, who played all forms of the game and a former Test captain for Sri Lanka. Herath is the most successful left arm bowler in Test cricket history. He is currently working as spin bowling consultant with the Bangladesh cricket team. Herath was a member of the Sri Lankan team that won the 2014 ICC World Twenty20.
Bandula Warnapura was a Sri Lankan cricketer and former captain of the Sri Lankan cricket team. He played four Test matches and twelve One Day Internationals (ODI) during his international cricketing career from 1975 to 1982. He was a right-handed opening batsman and a right-handed medium pace bowler.
Ian James Gould is an English former first-class cricketer and a former member of the ICC Elite Panel of cricket umpires. He previously also served as the chairman of English football club Burnham FC. In April 2019, Gould announced that he would retire as an umpire following the 2019 Cricket World Cup. On 6 July 2019, Gould retired from umpiring, after standing in the World Cup match between India and Sri Lanka. However, he has since umpired in matches in the 2020 Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
The Sri Lanka women's national cricket team represents Sri Lanka in international women's cricket. One of eight teams competing in the ICC Women's Championship, the team is organised by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC).
Cricket was introduced to Sri Lanka in the first quarter of the 19th century, following colonisation of the island by the British. The earliest known match was recorded in 1832 and the earliest first-class one in 1926. The national team has played Test cricket from 1982. The national team has achieved international success by winning the 1996 Cricket World Cup and the 2014 ICC World Twenty20. Cricket is played nationwide with Test venues in Colombo, Galle, Kandy and Moratuwa. The country's most notable players include Aravinda de Silva, Arjuna Ranatunga, Rangana Herath, Sanath Jayasuriya, Mahela Jayawardene, Muttiah Muralitharan, Kumar Sangakkara and Chaminda Vaas. Administration and governance are performed by Sri Lanka Cricket, which was founded in July 1922 as the Ceylon Cricket Association (CCA). The main domestic competition is the Premier Trophy which attained first-class status in 1988.
The England cricket team toured Sri Lanka in February 1982. The tour included two One Day International (ODI) matches and one Test match. Sri Lanka had become a Test playing nation the year before, and this was their inaugural Test match. Many celebrations had been prepared in Sri Lanka, include the issuing of commemorative stamps and coins.
The Sri Lanka national cricket team toured England in the 1981 season and played thirteen first-class matches, mostly against county teams. The Sri Lankans also played two one-day matches and finished their tour with a visit to the Netherlands where they played two minor games. During the tour Sri Lanka was awarded Test cricket status by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and played their inaugural Test match the following year.
Cricket is the most popular sport in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is one of the twelve nations that take part in Test cricket and one of the six nations that has won a cricket World Cup. Cricket is played at professional, semi-professional and recreational levels in the country and international cricket matches are watched with interest by a large proportion of the population.
The Sri Lankan cricket team toured the West Indies in June 2018 to play three Test matches. The series was played for Sobers–Tissera Trophy. The tour featured Sri Lanka's first Test matches in the West Indies since April 2008 and included their first Test match at the Kensington Oval. The Test match at the Kensington Oval also became the first day/night Test to be played in the West Indies. Ahead of the Test matches, there was a three-day tour match. The Test series was drawn 1–1.
The England cricket team toured Sri Lanka in October and November 2018 to play three Tests, five One Day Internationals (ODIs) and one Twenty20 International (T20I) match. The tour included England's first Test matches in Sri Lanka since 2012.
The Sri Lankan cricket team toured Pakistan in September and October 2019 to play three One Day Internationals (ODIs) and three Twenty20 International (T20I) matches against the Pakistan cricket team. The tour originally had two Test matches scheduled to take place, but these were moved to December 2019. Sri Lanka last played a match in Pakistan in October 2017, when the third T20I took place at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Pakistan won the ODI series 2–0, after the first match was washed out, and Sri Lanka won the T20I series 3–0.
The Zimbabwe cricket team toured Sri Lanka in January 2022 to play three One Day International (ODI) matches. The ODI series formed part of the inaugural 2020–2023 ICC Cricket World Cup Super League.
The England cricket team toured Sri Lanka in January 2021 to play two Test matches. The Test series formed part of the inaugural 2019–2021 ICC World Test Championship. Originally, the tour was scheduled to take place in March 2020, but the series was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In December 2020, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) confirmed the dates for the tour, with both Test matches played in Galle.
The Sri Lanka men's cricket team toured New Zealand in March and April 2023 to play two Test, three One Day International (ODI) and three Twenty20 International (T20I) matches. The Test matches formed part of the 2021–2023 ICC World Test Championship and the ODI series formed part of the inaugural 2020–2023 ICC Cricket World Cup Super League.
The Ireland cricket team toured Sri Lanka in April 2023 to play two Test matches. This was Ireland's first ever Test series consisting of more than a single match.
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