It is uncertain whether Muttiah Muralitharan smokes or drinks alcohol. |
His grandfather Periyasamy Sinasamy relocated to Central Sri Lanka from South India in 1920. |
Muttiah Muralitharan played rugby during his school days. |
At 14, he was named the 'Bata schoolboy cricketer of the year' in the 1990/91 season. |
In 1991, he joined the 'Tamil Union Cricket and Athletic Club' after being selected for the Sri Lanka-A tour of England. |
He took 13 wickets in 12 T20 matches with an average of 22.84. |
Muralitharan has 1374 wickets in 232 first-class matches with an average of 19.64. |
In January 1998, he achieved his best test match figures of 16/220 against England. |
He reached the 4th rank in the LG ICC best ever ODI bowling ratings on 9 April 2002. |
Muralitharan took 53 wickets in world cup tournaments in 1996, 1999, 2003, and 2007. |
During a test against Zimbabwe in Galle, he became the fastest bowler to reach 400 wickets. |
He retired from test cricket on 7 July 2010 and from all international cricket in the same year. |
In 2015, he was appointed as the Brand Ambassador for the 'Presidential Task Force' to combat kidney disease. |
His favorite foods are crispy duck and milk chocolate. |
Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara are Muralitharan's closest friends in the cricket world. |
Muralitharan is the only cricketer of Indian origin to represent Sri Lanka in international cricket and hold Overseas Citizenship of India. |