Athapaththu and Nissanka named cricketers of the year, all winners revealed in star studded event

Sri Lanka Cricket staged its Annual Awards ceremony on Thursday, August 6, recognising outstanding individual performances across the Test, ODI and T20I formats during the 2025 calendar year. The event also celebrated contributions to domestic cricket and honoured legendary figures for their lifelong service to the game.

Chamari Athapaththu and Pathum Nissanka collected the top individual prizes of the evening, taking home the Women’s Cricketer of the Year and Men’s Cricketer of the Year awards respectively. Nissanka’s aggregate of 1414 runs at an average of 40.40 across all formats in 2025 made him the clear choice on the men’s side, while Athapaththu swept several individual categories to reinforce her standing as the defining figure in Sri Lankan women’s cricket.

Nissanka claimed the best batter prizes in Tests and T20Is. His Test output of 388 runs across five innings included two centuries, a strong return given Sri Lanka’s limited schedule in the longest format. In T20Is, 18 matches yielded 625 runs at a strike rate of 149.16, the most productive year of his career in that format. He also scored 401 runs in 12 ODIs at an average of 30.84, though the best ODI batter award went to Charith Asalanka, who anchored the middle order for 494 runs at an average of 44.90, edging out Kusal Mendis, who had accumulated 500 runs at an average of 38.46 in the same period.

Prabath Jayasuriya took the best Test bowler award with 15 wickets across seven innings, while Test captain Dhananjaya de Silva was recognised as the best Test allrounder. Asitha Fernando claimed the ODI bowling honour with a career-best 23 wickets across 12 games. Dushmantha Chameera earned the best T20I bowler award after finishing 2025 with 22 wickets across 14 matches, the most prolific T20I haul of his career. Wanindu Hasaranga won the ODI allrounder award with 207 runs and 18 wickets across ten matches, and Dasun Shanaka took the T20I allrounder prize with 220 runs and eight wickets across 17 games.

In the women’s categories, their inspirational captain Athapaththu claimed the ODI and T20I allrounder awards alongside the best T20I batter prize, having scored 190 runs across seven innings at a strike rate of 113.77. She also took the best ODI bowler award with 13 wickets across 11 innings. The best women’s ODI batter award went to Harshitha Samarawickrama, whose 441 runs across 13 innings outscored Nilakshika de Silva’s 389 runs in the same number of innings. Kavisha Dilhari earned the best women’s T20I bowler award with eight wickets across eight innings.

Who were the emerging players recognised at the ceremony?

Two younger players received special recognition for their breakthrough contributions in 2025. Kamil Mishara, 25, earned the Men’s Emerging Player of the Year award on the back of a standout T20I campaign, during which he scored 336 runs across ten matches at a strike rate of 131.25 opening the batting. His performances in the ongoing Lanka Premier League added further momentum to his case.

Imesha Dulani, 24, received the Women’s Emerging Player of the Year award after scoring 106 runs across three T20I innings, with a high score of 50, alongside one ODI appearance during the year. Her credentials were bolstered further by a match-winning unbeaten 101 off 64 deliveries against Pakistan in the days immediately preceding the ceremony.