Suraj Randiv

Suraj Randiv, the 26-year-old all-rounder, who made his Test debut against India yesterday at the Sinhalese Sports Club ground, is one of the few cricketers who have changed their names. Suraj Randiv was previously known as Mohamed Marshuk Mohamed Suraj, but he changed his name in 2009. A few other instances of famous conversions are: Tillakaratne Dilshan converted from Islam to Buddhism at an early age of 16. Prior to his conversion to Islam in 2005, Mohammad Yousuf (Yousuf Youhana at that time) was one of the few Christians to play for the Pakistan cricket team.

"After marrying me (on May 21 last year), he decided to change his name," Randiv's wife, Jeevani said from Colombo. "He got converted from Islam to Buddhism. I was very happy to learn that he has been selected in the playing eleven," added Jeevani.

Interestingly, Randiv was a fast bowler at the junior level. But when his school found that they had no spinner in their under-15 side, the coach requested him to switch over to bowling offbreaks. Starting as a part-time bowler, he was soon picking up wickets on a regular basis and started representing Matara Sports Club while still at school.

This writer is a freelancer