Anyone following Sri Lankan cricket would have seen this skinny, old man waving the national flag of Lanka wherever they play. Percy Abeysekera is what Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary is to Indian cricket
Uncle Percy with Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan at Galle on Saturday. Pic/Jasvinder Sidhu
Uncle Percy with Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan at Galle on Saturday. Pic/Jasvinder Sidhu
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Anyone following Sri Lankan cricket would have seen this skinny, old man waving the national flag of the island nation wherever they play. Percy Abeysekera, or Uncle Percy is what Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary and Chacha Cricket are to Indian and Pakistan cricket respectively.
He is Sri Lanka's one-man-cheering squad and this superfan turns 81 today. One day before his birthday he received a precious gift from Indian captain, Virat Kohli, a kiss on the cheek.
But Uncle Percy went one step further and gave Kohli a return gift that made everyone present there burst out laughing.
Kissed Kohli on both cheeks
"Before the presentation Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan came to me and wished me happy birthday. Then Kohli kissed me on my left cheek. I kissed him on both his cheeks" Percy, a public relations consultant, told mid-day on Saturday.
Just before the presentation ceremony at the Galle International Cricket Stadium after India defeated Sri Lanka by 304 runs, Kohli, Dhawan and Uncle Percy were seen having a long chat followed by lots of hugging and laughing between the trio.
"I had lot of fun meeting them and when I kissed Kohli people around us started laughing.
"Kohli said that he couldn't believe that I am 81, I said that I am just two days younger than Sir Garry Sobers," added Percy.
A native of Galle, the Sri Lankan superfan also shared a funny story involving the entire Indian team. "When they came here last, it was raining heavily. In one of those rain breaks, Kohli and Rohit Sharma invited me to their dressing room to have some fun.
"I didn't go as the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption official raised an objection. But the secretaries of both boards stepped in and allowed me to visit the Indian dressing room.
"Today, Kohli recalled my funny dance in the dressing room that day and we laughed a lot." When asked what was so funny about that day, Percy said, "When I was dancing madly, everyone in the dressing room was urging me to kiss Suresh Raina.
Shy Raina
"He was very shy and they all said 'kiss him, kiss him'. They even brought Raina to me and I kissed him left, right and centre. That brought the house down. Kohli and Rohit were jumping and laughing uncontrollably," Percy said with a chuckle.
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