Who is Kamil Mishara? 5 interesting facts about Sri Lanka batter who smashed a fifty in BAN vs SL Asia Cup 2025 match

Sri Lanka enjoyed a perfect start to their 2025 Asia Cup campaign with an emphatic win over Bangladesh at Abu Dhabi on September 13. Young left-hander Kamil Mishara was the star of the show, scoring an unbeaten 22-ball 48 on a pitch most others struggled to combat.

Chasing 140 in their 20 overs, the Lankans suffered an early setback with the loss of Kusal Mendis in the second over. However, Mishara entered the arena and immediately began dominating the Bangladesh bowlers, helping his side wrestle control of the contest.

The 24-year-old smashed four boundaries and two maximums in his stroke-filled knock, helping Sri Lanka comfortably chase down the target in the 15th over. With Sri Lanka looking likely to advance to the Super Fours and beyond, the cricketing world could witness much more of Kamil Mishara over the next fortnight.

Before that, it would be worthwhile to know more about the talented southpaw, who appears to be the next big thing in Sri Lankan cricket.

On that note, here are five interesting facts about Sri Lanka's up-and-coming star, Kamil Mishara.

#1 Multiple Asia Cups have happened since Kamil Mishara's Sri Lankan debut

Kamil Mishara has become a popular name among most fans only recently, but the left-hander has been in the Sri Lankan circuit for much longer. The youngster made his T20I debut for Sri Lanka as far back as February 2022.

Mishara played three total games in Australia and India in the very month, but struggled to make a mark. Having scored only 15 runs across the three outings, the southpaw was out of the scene ever since until the tour of Zimbabwe just before the ongoing 2025 Asia Cup.

With an unbeaten 73 and 46 in two of the three T20Is since his comeback, Mishara ensured he did not let go of his second opportunity. For context on how long the youngster had to wait between his first and second innings in the Lankan setup, two Asia Cups have come and gone during that period.

#2 Kamil Mishara has been close to playing in the whites for Sri Lanka

While Kamil Mishara has played only T20Is for Sri Lanka, he came close to playing Tests even before representing the country in the shortest format. The now-24-year-old earned his maiden call-up to the national side for the home Test series against the West Indies at the end of the 2021 season.

Unfortunately, Mishara did not break into the XI as Sri Lanka won the series 2-0. The Colombo-born batter was also selected in the Test squad for the tour of Bangladesh in 2022.

However, he did not play either Test as the Lankans pulled off a 1-0 win in the two-match series.

#3 Heroics as a school cricketer

The 'Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year' is a prestigious award that several renowned Sri Lankan legends have won before becoming big names in international cricket. The likes of Ranjan Madugalle, Arjuna Ranatunga, Roshan Mahanama, Marvan Atapattu, and Muttiah Muralitharan, among others, have been awarded the same.

In 2019, Kamil Mishara won the Schoolboy cricketer of the year honors, becoming the fourth Royal College student to achieve the same. He recorded the highest score of the school season with his 270-ball 250 against Ananda College in a Singer Trophy Under 19 match that season.

#4 Impressive A tour of Australia

Kamil Mishara enjoyed a successful tour of Australia with the Sri Lankan A side against Australia A before his return to the national side in T20Is. On the bouncy tracks of Australia, the youngster looked the part in the three unofficial one-day games and two unofficial Tests.

Mishara started the tour with a 79-ball 65 in the first one-day match and finished with a well-compiled 131-ball 81 in the second unofficial Test. His performances helped Sri Lanka A take the strong Australia A to the brink in the white-ball games and achieve a 0-0 draw in the red-ball series.

#5 Following the footsteps of most Sri Lankan batters with the ball

Kamil Mishara, like seemingly most Sri Lankan batters of the present and the past, can roll his arm over and bowl useful off-spin. The likes of Sanath Jayasuriya, Aravinda de Silva, and Tilakaratne Dilshan, among several others, offered much with the ball in addition to their batting exploits.

While Mishara is yet to bowl in international cricket, the 24-year-old boasts an impressive record with the ball at the domestic level.

Despite being used sparingly, Mishara has picked up 11 wickets in List-A cricket at an average of 17.45 and an economy of 4.17 in 53 matches. His overall T20 numbers are also more than respectable, with eight wickets at an average of 23.75 and an economy of 7.03.

Looking for fast live cricket scores? Download CricRocket and get fast score updates, top-notch commentary in-depth match stats & much more! 🚀☄️

Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran