Manelker De Silva

Manelker de Silva is a skilful all-round cricketer from Colombo, Sri Lanka. A schoolboy star for St Peters College, one of Sri Lanka’s most prestigious cricketing schools, Manelker was a standout schoolboy performer with bat and ball. Having represented the Western Province Central U19 side in the SLC U19 tournament in 2016, he was selected to represent the Sri Lankan U19 side to contest both the Tri-Series with Zimbabwe and South Africa and the standalone series against the junior Proteas that followed in early 2017.

A hard-hitting Left-hander suited to the middle order, Manelker is also a very capable Right-arm Fast/Medium seamer that made his professional debut late in the summer following his National U19 appearances. His 2-8 helping Colombo to clean Kalutara District out for just 83 on List A debut.

His first class debut came in late 2017, as a 19 year-old, in a stacked Colombo CC side containing 5 Internationals and a couple of other domestic legends. Whilst his record to date doesn’t reflect the talent, the fact he was picked to tour England in 2022 with the Sri Lankan A side shows that the higher-ups think he has something to offer Sri Lankan Cricket in the long term.

Manelker had previously visited the UK before his A team tour, having had a 2019 stint with Atherton CC in the Bolton League. Whilst scoring 576 runs @ 32.00, it was his bowling in English conditions that particularly impressed, bagging 35 wickets @ 15.42 with a best of 6-21 aginast Astley Bridge CC.

Manelker returned in 2024, joining Sudbury CC in the ECB East Anglian Premier League, scoring 770 runs and chiming in with 33 wickets for the summer in an excellent return.

Seeking a return to the UK next summer, Manelker will come back to the UK a much more experienced Professional with plenty to offer with both bat and ball next season. Manelker holds an English Cricket Board Level 2 coaching qualification.