Michael Hugh Tissera (born 23 March 1939 in

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo m ...

) is a former Sri Lankan ODI

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

er who played in the 1975 Cricket World Cup.

School

Tissera was educated at

S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia , motto_translation = Be Thou Forever , song = Thomian Song , athletics = Yes , sports = Yes , nickname = Thora , denomination = Anglican , patron ...

, where, initially appearing in 1954 aged fourteen, he captained the Thomian cricket team in the

Royal–Thomian The Royal–Thomian (The Battle of the Blues) is an annual cricket match in Sri Lanka played between Royal College, Colombo and S. Thomas' College, Mount Lavinia since 1879. It is known as ''The Battle of the Blues'' due to the colours of the tw ...

series, known as "The Battle of the Blues", in 1957 and 1958. He made his first-class debut in March 1959, in the annual

Gopalan Trophy The M. J. Gopalan Trophy was an annual first-class cricket competition played between Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and Madras (now Tamil Nadu) between 1952–53 and 2007–08. History The idea of the competition came about with the starting of a silve ...

encounter between Ceylon and Madras.

International career

Tissera captained Ceylon to its first victory over a

Test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...

-playing nation in Ahmedabad in 1965, when his bold declaration in a low-scoring match led to victory over

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

by four wickets. He was selected as vice-captain for the tour of England with the Ceylon team in 1968, but the tour was cancelled just before it was due to begin. He made his two first-class

centuries A century is a period of 100 years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c. A centennial or ...

in unofficial Test matches for Ceylon. The first was against India in the second unofficial Test in India in 1964–65, when he made 122 in the second innings, adding 224 for the fourth wicket with

Stanley Jayasinghe Stanley Jayasinghe (born January 19, 1931 in Badulla) is a former Sri Lankan cricketer who played for Ceylon prior to the country being renamed Sri Lanka, and prior to them receiving either Test of ODI status. He was a right-handed batsman and pa ...

. The second was in the third unofficial Test in Pakistan in 1966-67, when he made 120 not out, also in the second innings. He played three ODIs in the 1975 World Cup, scoring 52 against Australia in the second match. A stalwart of Sri Lankan cricket, he managed the national team between 2005 and 2007.

Legacy

Test matches between

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

and Sri Lanka are now played for the Sobers-Tissera Trophy, in honour of Tissera and

Gary Sobers Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers, (born 28 July 1936), also known as Sir Gary or Sir Garry Sobers, is a former cricketer who played for the West Indies between 1954 and 1974. A highly skilled bowler, an aggressive batsman and an excellent fielder, ...

. Tissera was awarded the Sri Lankan honour

Deshabandu Deshabandu ( si, දේශබන්දු, translit=dēśabandu; ta, தேசபந்து, translit=Tēcapantu, translation=Patriot) is the third highest national honour awarded in Sri Lanka. It is awarded "for meritorious service". The ti ...

in 1987. In September 2018, he was one of 49 former Sri Lankan cricketers felicitated by Sri Lanka Cricket, to honour them for their services before Sri Lanka became a full member of the

International Cricket Council The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the world governing body of cricket. Headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, its members are 108 national associations, with 12 Full Members and 96 Associate Members. Founded in 1909 as the ' ...

(ICC).

References

External links

Michael Tissera
at Cricinfo
Michael Tissera
at CricketArchive
"Michael Tissera: The man who gave his name to West Indies-Sri Lanka Test series"

School

International career

Legacy

References

External links

See also