Former England spinner and BBC Test commentator Alex Hartley, who was part of the 2017 World Cup-winning England team, has predicted that Kavisha Dilhari will be the most influential player in the Sri Lankan team.
Kavisha Dilhari is a prominent player in the Sri Lankan squad that was named for the 2026 T20 Women's Cricket World Cup.
Kavisha Dilhari, a right-handed batsman and right-arm off-spinner, is currently 25 years old.
Born on 24 January 2001 in Rathgama, Galle, Velikontage Kavisha Dilhari was educated at Devapathiraja College, Rathgama, which has produced the largest number of members for the Sri Lankan women's cricket team.
Kavisha Dilhari excelled in cricket from a young age.
However, it was not easy for her father, who made a living by fishing, to meet the necessary expenses.
Kavisha began cricket training wearing a cheap outfit she had bought when her father visited Colombo. She was 14 years old at the time.
Despite the financial hardships, her father supported her in taking her daughter forward in cricket.
In 2013, the sports teacher of Devapathiraja College, who saw this exceptional player playing softball cricket at a school sports event, introduced her to leather ball cricket.
She played her first leather ball tournament in 2014.
Under the guidance of Mahesh Sandaruwan, the girls' cricket coach of Devapathiraja College, Kavisha soon became a standout player at the school and national levels.
Initially playing as a fast bowler, she later became a spinner under the guidance of her coach.
While playing school cricket, she was nicknamed "Batti".
In 2016, Kavisha got the opportunity to participate in a national cricket team training camp.
Kavisha later stated that the experience and knowledge gained from that training camp helped her further improve her bowling and batting.
In a match against Dharmapala College, Pannipitiya in 2018, she scored an unbeaten 353 runs. It was also included in the records of girls' school cricket in the country.
Due to the skills of the players including Kavisha, Devapathiraja College, Rathgama, was able to win the Under-19 Girls' Cricket Championship for many years.
Due to the skills she displayed on the school cricket field, Kavisha was able to win the awards for the best batsman, the best bowler and the best all-rounder at several school cricket awards ceremonies.
The doors of the national team were opened to her through the coordination of the cricket coach of Devapathiraja College.
She got the opportunity due to the skills she displayed in a competition to select a spinner for the national team. She was referred to the competition by her coach.
She had to travel from Rathgama to Colombo and back from Colombo to Rathgama to train with the national team.
Kavisha was 17 years old when she won her international debut in 2018.
She won her international debut in the One-Day International cricket match against Pakistan in Dambulla.
Kavisha is also the first player from Devapathiraja College, Rathgama to be selected for the Sri Lankan women's team.
She won her T20I international cap against India in 2018.
Her four-hitting Dilscoop shot in that tournament caught the attention of many.
A year after joining the national team, she suffered a fracture that hampered her playing career.
However, with hard work and dedication, she was able to return to the ranks of the best in a very short time.
Kavisha became the highest wicket-taker for Sri Lanka in the Asian Women's Emerging Teams Cricket Tournament held in October 2019.
Kavisha won the Player of the Tournament award in several tournaments, including the Bangladesh Women's tour of Sri Lanka in 2023 and the Sri Lankan team's tour of South Africa in the same year, as well as the last World Cup T20 Qualifier in Abu Dhabi.
Kavisha was among the players who made a strong contribution to the Sri Lankan team in winning the 2024 Asia Cup Women's Cricket Championship.
In the final match against India at the Rangiri Dambulla International Cricket Stadium, Kavisha scored the winning run for Sri Lanka with a 6.
She has scored 825 runs in 44 One Day International matches and has also taken 37 wickets.
Kavisha has scored 3 ODI half-centuries.
She has scored 637 runs in 80 Twenty20 Internationals, including one half-century.
Her 20/20 bowling tally includes 66 wickets.
Kavisha Dilhari has said that Virat Kohli is her hero in the world of cricket. This was reported by the ESPNcricinfo website.
She also mentioned that as a Sri Lankan player, she would like to emulate former Sri Lankan women's cricket team captain Shashikala Siriwardena.
"I watch videos of Virat Kohli. I have learned a lot from the shots he plays, the way he runs between the wickets, the way he works when chasing runs.
"But, as a woman who grew up in Sri Lanka, I always like to emulate Shashikala Siriwardena. Another of my favorite players is Meg Lanning. I got the opportunity to bowl to her and it was an amazing experience. The work they have done for women's cricket is huge," it further stated.
"I want to be the number one all-rounder in the world. "My dream is to win matches for Sri Lanka on my own. I have wanted to play cricket since I was a child," she had also said on another occasion.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka women's cricket team captain Chamari Atapattu had once said that Kavisha Dilhari reminds her of her childhood.
"I think she is like me. I was like her when I was a child, aggressive, and had a feeling that I had to do a lot to prove myself in cricket. She is one of the best young players in the world, I believe she will be one of the best players of our time."