Sri Lankan superfan 'Uncle' Percy Abeysekera passes away in Colombo

Sri Lankan superfan Percy Abeysekera passed away on Monday after a battle with prolonged illness.

The 87-year-old Abeysekera, who was fondly called Uncle Percy by fans and cricketers alike, was a constant presence on cricket grounds across the world.

Abeysekera began his travels to cheer for the Lankan cricket team from the 1979 World Cup and since then he attended all major cricketing events except the ongoing World Cup owing to poor health.

His friendships with leading Lankan cricketers like Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya, and Kumar Sangakkara made him an unavoidable figure in the country's cricketing landscape.

Abeysekera also shared a cordial relationship with Indian cricketers like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Rohit had visited Abeysekera at his home in Colombo during the recent Asia Cup.

Kohli had invited Abeysekera to the Indian dressing room for a short interaction during the tour to Sri Lanka in 2015.

However, Abeysekera’s health was not at its best over the last year and Sri Lanka Cricket had recently given him LKR 5 million to meet his medical expenses.