Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav took a moment on Friday to send his condolences to Sri Lankan spinner Dunith Wellalage. This was a magnificent show of sportsmanship that went beyond the tough rivalry on the field. The kind contact happened during the Asia Cup 2025 Super 4s match at the Dubai International Stadium. It was only a few weeks after Wellalage’s father, Suranga Wellalage, died after a heart attack.
Sri Lanka’s head coach, Sanath Jayasuriya, told Wellalage about the tragedy during a group stage match against Afghanistan. The young cricketer went back to Colombo for the funeral and then back to the UAE for the Super 4s games.
A Kindness Moment
Sony Sports Network published a video of the meeting that instantly went viral. It showed Suryakumar stepping over to the 22-year-old spinner and putting a hand on his chest to comfort him. The Indian captain talked quietly for about two minutes, giving Wellalage advice and patting him on the back to cheer him on. Wellalage nodded his head in accord, as if he was thankful for the help.
Suryakumar’s gesture is a strong reminder of how human people are in professional sports. Wellalage had a tough few weeks because he was kicked off the team for two games after not playing well against Bangladesh in the Super 4s. During a moment of bereavement and professional stress, this kind of help from the captain of a rival team can mean a lot.
This wasn’t the first time an opposing team showed support for Wellalage. Earlier in the competition, Pakistan’s captain, Salman Ali Agha, coach Mike Hesson, and manager Naveed Akram had also welcomed Wellalage and offered their help.
Highlights of the Match
The game itself was very exciting. India was able to score 202 runs for 5, owing to a strong 61 from opener Abhishek Sharma. Sri Lanka came back hard, with opener Pathum Nissanka hitting a century, but the game went into a dramatic Super Over. Arshdeep Singh, India’s bowler, gave up only two runs in the Super Over, making it easy for India to chase. Captain Suryakumar Yadav hit the winning runs on the first ball, which was the right thing to do.
India will now play Pakistan in the Asia Cup final at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday, September 28.