Iconic Sri Lankan cricket team supporter ‘Uncle’ Percy Abeysekera passes away

The 87-year-old Abeysekera, who was fondly called as Uncle Percy by fans and cricketers alike, was a constant presence on cricket grounds across the world where his country played.

Representative image: His friendship with leading Lankan cricketers like Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara made him an unavoidable figure in the country’s cricketing landscape. | Photo Credit: AFP

Percy Abeysekera, the iconic flag-waving, quick-witted supporter of the Sri Lankan cricket team, passed away after a battle with prolonged illness here on Monday.

The 87-year-old Abeysekera, who was fondly called as Uncle Percy by fans and cricketers alike, was a constant presence on cricket grounds across the world where his country played.

Abeysekera, known for his colourful dressing, began his travels to cheer for the Lankan cricket team from the 1979 World Cup and since then he attended all major cricketing events except the on-going World Cup owing to poor health.

His friendship with leading Lankan cricketers like Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara made him an unavoidable figure in the country’s cricketing landscape.

Abeysekera also shared cordial relationship with Indian cricketers like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Rohit had visited Abeysekera at his home in Colombo during the recent Asia Cup.

Kohli had invited Abeysekera to the Indian dressing room for a short interaction during the tour to Sri Lanka in 2015.

However, Abeysekera’s health was not at its best over the last year and the Sri Lanka Cricket had recently given him LKR 5 million to meet his medical expenses.