Arguably the most devoted fan of Sri Lanka cricket, Percy Abeysekera passed away on Monday, October 30, aged 87. He was bedridden for several days and ultimately lost the battle of survival. Percy, fondly known as 'Uncle Percy' was immensely popular among international cricketers and cheered for the national cricket team during games in Sri Lanka and even overseas.
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) paid tribute to the super fan by taking to 'X' and posted "In loving memory of legendary cheerleader, Percy Abeysekera (87). His passion and energy on the cricket field will be dearly missed."
Former Sri Lanka captain and one of the greatest allrounders of his time Sanath Jayasuriya took to the social media platform 'X' to mourn the loss. "It is with great sadness that I heard our beloved Uncle Percy has met his maker. You were the first superfan and for all of us you will always be special RIP," he posted.
Recently, during the Asia Cup, the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma paid a visit to Percy's home and spent some memorable moments with the veteran cheerleader of Sri Lanka cricket. Sri Lanka Cricket had presented 5 million to Uncle Percy to aid his well-being during the continental tournament.
Meanwhile, not everything is going well for the Sri Lankan cricket team on the field. Their World Cup campaign has suffered several injury blows after players like Dasun Shanaka, and Matheesha Pathirana among others were ruled out from the marquee tournament. Sri Lanka are presently occupying the fifth spot on the points table with two wins in five games.
They are engaged in a mouth-watering clash with Afghanistan at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune. A win against Afghanistan will give their chances of semi-final qualification a massive boost. Kusal Mendis is leading the team in Shanaka's absence.
