for his lyrics on two occasions. The Government of Sri Lanka named a road after him in the capital city of Colombo. Pioneer Sinhala cricket commentator Abeysekera made history in the world of radio by being the first cricket commentator using the Sinhala language. He commentated on matches played by Ceylon against visiting English, Indian and Australian teams from the 1950s to the 1970s. He also commentated on local cricket matches. He had to devise cricket terminology to describe cricketing actions - this was uncharted territory in Sinhala; his words to describe various aspects of cricket are used to this day. Quote on Karunaratne Abeysekera See also Radio Ceylon Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation List of cricket commentators List of Sri Lankan broadcasters Bibliography Cricket and National Identity in the Postcolonial Age, [Hardcover], Stephen Wagg (Editor), Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (7 July 2005), References External links Daily News Colombo: Karunaratne Abeysekera of Radio Ceylon - The Legacy Lives On BBC Radio 4 - Empire: Young Ceylonese Talents Studio Five named after Karunaratne Abeysekera Abeysekera Peerless Lyricist SLBC-creating new waves of history Eighty Years of Broadcasting in Sri Lanka Reflections on Karunaratne Abeysekera එන්න මඳ නළේ ගොස් පවසන්න දුක මගේ Sri Lankan radio personalities Sri Lankan cricket commentators Sri Lankan lyricists Sri Lankan poets Sri Lankan songwriters Sinhala-language poets Sri Lankan Buddhists Alumni of Nalanda College, Colombo 1930 births 1983 deaths 20th-century poets