Life is unpredictable because at any time it takes unexpected twists and turns. We have heard about how ordinary people have come a long way to touch the pinnacle of success, which is just like that rags to riches stories. Case in point, cricketers earn so much money these days through matches, brand endorsements, advertisements and so on.
Apart from representing the team in international cricket, they also ply their trade in the lucrative Indian Premier League. However, not all cricketers maintain top position in their careers. There are a certain number of former international players who parted ways with the sport and are earning a living somewhere else.
Meanwhile, former Sri Lankan player, Suraj Randiv is currently struggling to meet the daily expenses. He works as a bus driver in Australia to make his ends meet. Interestingly, he was part of Sri Lanka’s 2011 World Cup and was a part of the playing XI against India in the 2011 World Cup final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The veteran spinner is currently plying his trade at France-based transport company in Australia.
Not just him, even two other fellow cricketers namely Chinthaka Jayasinghe and Waddington Mwayenga are also working in the same organization. For the unversed, Transdev is a France-based company that recruits as many as 1200 drivers from various professions. Besides this job, the 36-year-old Randiv plays cricket at district level as he represents Dandenong Cricket Club.
Prior to the Border Gavaskar Trophy series between Australia and India, Suraj Randiv was called up by the Australian cricket board as a net bowler in order to prepare the Aussies against spin. “I was asked by CA to come and bowl against their bowlers and I didn’t want to miss the opportunity,” said Randiv in a video uploaded by 9 News.
Randiv has represented Sri Lankan cricket team in 12 Tests, taken 43 wickets. The spinner represented Sri Lanka in 31 ODIs, 7 T20Is, taking 36 wickets and 7 wickets respectivey. Although he started his international career pretty strongly, the rise of spinners like Ajantha Mendis and Rangana Herath saw Suraj Randiv lose his spot in Sri Lankan team.
It should be noted that the veteran off-spinner was not part of the initial World Cup squad for Sri Lanka. Nonetheless, Angelo Matthews’ injury opened the spot for him for the World Cup event.
It is worth mentioning that Randiv was involved in a big controversial moment during his international career when he deliberately bowled a no-ball to deny Indian opener Virender Sehwag a century during a 2010 tri-series fixture against Team India.
