Tharinda Ratwatte also known as Ashan Ratwatte (born 12 December 1995) is a Sri Lankan rugby union and sevens player who plays as a fly-half. His father Ashan Ratwatte was also a rugby union player having played for both Kandy SC and

Ceylonese Rugby & Football Club Ceylonese Rugby & Football Club, also known as CR & FC, is a Division-A rugby union team based in Colombo, Sri Lanka which plays in the Dialog Rugby League. Established in 1922, the club has won the Clifford Cup Knockout Tournament fifteen times, ...

. His granduncle

Anuruddha Ratwatte General Anuruddha Leuke Ratwatte (14 July 1938 – 24 November 2011), frequently referred to as Anuruddha Ratwatte, was a Sri Lankan soldier and politician. He was a Cabinet Minister and Deputy Minister of Defence. Early life Born in Kandy ...

was a politician.

Career

He captained Trinity College rugby team in 2014 and soon after schooling he joined Ceylonese Rugby & Football Club. In 2014, he was appointed as the captain of the Sri Lankan Youth rugby team for the Junior World Rugby Tournament (JWRT) – Asian edition. He was named in Sri Lankan men's rugby sevens squads for both the

2018 Commonwealth Games The 2018 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXI Commonwealth Games and also known as Gold Coast 2018, was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth that were held on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, bet ...

and

2018 Asian Games The 2018 Asian Games ( id, Pesta Olahraga Asia 2018 or ''Asian Games 2018''), officially known as the 18th Asian Games and also known as Jakarta-Palembang 2018 or Indonesia 2018, was a Asia, continental multi-sport event that was held from 18 A ...

. Sri Lanka would eventually finish at fourth position in men's rugby sevens tournament during the

thereby narrowly missing out on a bronze medal after going down 36-14 to South Korea in bronze medal 3rd place match while Sri Lanka finished at fifteenth position in men's rugby sevens tournament at the

. He joined Kandy SC in 2019 after playing for Ceylonese Rugby and Football Club for four years. He was the top points scorer in the Dialog Rugby League 2019/20 with 123 points including 3 tries and 42 conversion points. He was included in 110 member Sri Lankan contingent for the 2022 Commonwealth Games. He scored a try against New Zealand during the opening game of the

2022 Commonwealth Games The 2022 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Birmingham 2022, was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations that took place in Birmingham, England bet ...

men's rugby tournament. It was the first try to be scored by Sri Lanka against New Zealand in rugby sevens at Commonwealth Games and Ashan also became only the second Sri Lankan after Sudath Sampath to score a try against New Zealand in any forms of rugby.

Arrest

In June 2020, he was arrested and remanded for his involvement in an accident at Thummula junction which led to killing of a police officer attached to the State Intelligence Services.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ratwatte, Tharinda 1995 births Living people Sri Lankan rugby union players Sri Lankan rugby sevens players Rugby union players at the 2018 Asian Games Rugby sevens players at the 2022 Asian Games Rugby sevens players at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Rugby sevens players at the 2022 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for Sri Lanka Asian Games competitors for Sri Lanka Alumni of Trinity College, Kandy Place of birth missing (living people)