Kumar Dharmasena has been in the eye of the storm for his controversial decisions during the World Cup 2019 final which inadvertently handed England the trophy. As the issue rages on, we take a look at how Dharmasena unwinds with his family by going to exotic locales for vacations. (Pics/ Kumar Dharmasena Twitter)
Updated On: 2019-07-17 10:35 AM IST
Kumar Dharma is a cricket umpire who is on the ICC panel of umpires. Dharmasena officiated the recently concluded World Cup 2019.
In pic: Kumar Dharmasena with family
Kumar Dharmasena is also a former cricketer who played Tests, ODIs extensively for the Sri Lanka national team.
Kumar Dharmasena is also known as Unanduwa, a nickname which is used by his close friends and family.
Kumar Dharmasena was one of the most established spinners in world cricket during his playing days. He used to fox batsman with his off-breaks.
Kumar Dharmasena was a vital member of Arjuna Ranatunga's Sri Lanka team that won the 1996 Cricket World Cup.
Kumar Dharmasena retired from cricket as a player in 2006 and chose to become an umpire as he wanted to remain close to the game.
Kumar Dharmasena has often been embroiled in controversies for his umpiring decisions in big matches. The most recent one being him awarding 6 runs instead of 5 to England for an overthrow which eventually led to England winning the World Cup 2019.
Earlier, in the semifinal of the World Cup 2019 between England and Australia, Kumar Dharmasena was in the news for another controversial decision when he gave Jason Roy out caught behind, then seemingly retracting his decision and sending it to the third umpire, only to retract that decision and go back to his original decision of 'Out' on the protest of the Australian players.
The replays showed that Jason Roy was clearly not out with a huge gap between the ball and bat. Jason Roy was very miffed with the situation and threw a fit before walking off in a huff.
An interesting fact about Kumar Dharamasena is that he is the only person to play in an umpire in a World Cup final. He played in the 1996 World Cup final for Sri Lanka and umpired in the 2015 and 2019 World Cup finals.
A popular joke in cricket circles is that the DRS system which is the short form of the Decision Review System is often called as the Dharmasena Review System.
Kumar Dharmasena won the ICC Umpire of the year award in 2018.
Kumar Dharmasena is seen here enjoying a day out with his wife in Europe.
Kumar Dharmasena posted this picture of himself and his wife in Ireland, enjoying a vacation.
Kumar Dharmasena is married to Dushyanthi Gunewardena. The two of them are often seen posting pictures together.
Kumar Dharmasena is seen here enjoying a date with his lovely wife Dushyanthi.
Kumar Dharmasena loves to go out on family dinners and post those pictures on his Twitter account.
Kumar Dharmasena's job allows him to travel to various countries with his wife Dushyanthi, enjoying different cultures.
Kumar Dharmasena is seen in full Caribbean mode in this picture, trying to emulate the look of the locals during a vacay to Jamaica.
Kumar Dharmasena clicked this selfie with the victorious England team in the backdrop. Dharmasena was one of the two on-field umpires during the World Cup 2019 final.
