in June 2010. Return Maharoof was included to the ODI squad for tour against England and Ireland in 2016, after 4 years in international arena. After 2008, he played his first T20I against England on 5 July 2016, where 72 T20Is were missed by Maharoof for Sri Lanka, before appearing in this match. Honors The Castrol Asian Cricket Awards were held for the first time in June 2008, and Maharoof was named best ODI Asian bowler. Although selected to tour Pakistan for three ODIs and two Tests in January to March 2009, Maharoof sustained a groin injury and was ruled out of the Tests. Playing style When it comes to batting, Maharoof has described himself as "more of a hard hitter than a technician", and as of February 2012 his batting strike rate (85.24) is the fourth highest amongst Sri Lankans in ODIs. In the opinion of Kumar Sangakkara, he has "the technique and the shots to be an excellent No. 7 batsman [at international level]". Maharoof has a sound batting technique and is able to adapt to many different scenarios. He is mostly known as a player who can score quick runs down the order, but he can also bat a more patient innings, especially if the top batting order collapses. He bowls at speeds of up to and concentrates on accuracy rather than pace because pitches in Sri Lanka are generally slow. Sangakkara has also noted that Maharoof is able to swing the ball, complementing his accuracy. Under the advice of then Sri Lanka coach Tom Moody, in 2006 Maharoof altered his bowling action slightly so that his front arm was coming down straight in delivery. Of Sri Lankan players who have bowled at least 2,000 balls in Tests, Maharoof's strike rate of one wicket every 117.6 deliveries per wicket is third worst behind Asoka de Silva (291.0) and Arjuna Ranatunga (148.3). Maharoof has been more successful in the opposition's first innings in Tests, taking 20 of his 25 wickets under such circumstances at a strike of 107.7, which increases to 157.2 in the second. References External links 1984 births Living people Sri Lanka One Day International cricketers Sri Lanka Test cricketers Sri Lanka Twenty20 International cricketers Sri Lankan cricketers Bloomfield Cricket and Athletic Club cricketers Colombo Cricket Club cricketers Delhi Capitals cricketers Wayamba cricketers One Day International hat-trick takers Lancashire cricketers Cricketers from Colombo North Central Province