# Jaffna Kings

Jaffna Kings (Tamil: யாழ்ப்பாணம் கிங்ஸ்), formerly known as Jaffna Stallions, are a franchise cricket team which plays in the Lanka Premier League (LPL). On 16 December 2020, the team won the inaugural Lanka Premier League 2020 Championship and are the current title holder of the tournament. The team captain Thisara Perera and Shoaib Malik both played pivotal roles in the win.
The team was coached by former Sri Lankan captain Thilina Kandamby. Thisara Perera was the team's captain for the first four seasons.

## Seasons

| Year | League table standing | Final standing |
| 2020 | 3rd out of 5 | Champions |
| 2021 | 1st out of 5 | Champions |
| 2022 | 2nd out of 5 | Champions |
| 2023 | 4th out of 5 | Playoffs |
| 2024 | 2nd out of 5 | Champions |

### 2020 season

The team was owned by a consortium consisting of Sri Lankans and Indians from all over the world including Australia, Canada, France, United Kingdom, and the USA. Arnold Anandan and Rahul Sood, creator of Microsoft Ventures M12, were leading the consortium of tech industry leaders from the Pacific Northwest and Silicon Valley. Among others, Rahul Sood was cited as a tech leader from the Seattle area who is investing in cricket, where the Jaffna Stallions also announced a global education partnership with Code.org. As part of their outreach to the country of Sri Lanka the Jaffna Stallions released a song in partnership with famous artists La Signore, aka Lahiru Perera, and Dinesh Gamage, the song contains lyrics in both Sinhalese and Tamil and it's now trending at the top of the charts in Sri Lanka.

### 2021 season

In July 2021, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) terminated the franchise ahead of the 2021 Lanka Premier League, due to financial issues. In September 2021, the team changed their name to Jaffna Kings after changing owners.

## Current squad

* Sources: ESPNcricinfo, ThePapare.com
* Players with international caps are listed in bold.
| No. | Name | Nationality | Date of birth (age) | Batting style | Bowling style | Year signed | Salary (US$) | Notes |
| Batters |||||||||
| 28 | Avishka Fernando | Sri Lanka | (1998-04-05) 5 April 1998 (age 26) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | 2024 | Direct signing | |
| 18 | Pathum Nissanka | Sri Lanka | (1998-05-18) 18 May 1998 (age 26) | Right-handed | — | 2024 | 40,000 | |
| 49 | Alex Ross | Australia | (1992-04-17) 17 April 1992 (age 32) | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | 2024 | 20,000 | Overseas |
| 32 | Rilee Rossouw | South Africa | (1989-10-09) 9 October 1989 (age 35) | Left-handed | Right-arm off break | 2024 | 60,000 | Overseas |
| | Ahan Wickramasinghe | Sri Lanka | (2001-09-02) 2 September 2001 (age 23) | Right-handed | — | 2024 | 5,000 | |
| All-rounders |||||||||
| 97 | Fabian Allen | Jamaica | (1995-05-07) 7 May 1995 (age 29) | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | 2024 | 32,000 | Overseas |
| 72 | Charith Asalanka | Sri Lanka | (1997-06-29) 29 June 1997 (age 27) | Left-handed | Right-arm off break | 2023 | Retained | Captain |
| 75 | Dhananjaya de Silva | Sri Lanka | (1991-09-06) 6 September 1991 (age 33) | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | 2024 | 50,000 | |
| 77 | Azmatullah Omarzai | Afghanistan | (2000-03-24) 24 March 2000 (age 24) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | 2024 | Direct signing | Overseas |
| | Wanuja Sahan | Sri Lanka | (2003-06-17) 17 June 2003 (age 21) | Left-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | 2024 | 10,000 | |
| | Lahiru Samarakoon | Sri Lanka | (1997-03-03) 3 March 1997 (age 27) | Left-handed | Right-arm fast-medium | 2024 | 13,000 | |
| Wicket-keepers |||||||||
| | Nishan Madushka | Sri Lanka | (1999-09-10) 10 September 1999 (age 25) | Right-handed | — | 2024 | 10,000 | |
| 13 | Kusal Mendis | Sri Lanka | (1995-02-02) 2 February 1995 (age 29) | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | 2024 | Direct signing | |
| | Vishad Randika | Sri Lanka | (1997-09-02) 2 September 1997 (age 27) | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | 2024 | 5,000 | |
| Spin bowlers |||||||||
| | Murvin Abinash | Sri Lanka | (2000-06-18) 18 June 2000 (age 24) | Left-handed | Right-arm off break | 2024 | 5,000 | |
| 15 | Tabraiz Shamsi | South Africa | (1990-02-18) 18 February 1990 (age 34) | Right-handed | Left-arm unorthodox spin | 2024 | Direct signing | Overseas |
| | Theesan Vithushan | Sri Lanka | (2001-05-02) 2 May 2001 (age 23) | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | 2024 | 5,000 | |
| 26 | Vijayakanth Viyaskanth | Sri Lanka | (2001-12-05) 5 December 2001 (age 23) | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | 2023 | Retained | |
| Pace bowlers |||||||||
| 65 | Jason Behrendorff | Australia | (1990-04-20) 20 April 1990 (age 34) | Right-handed | Left-arm fast-medium | 2024 | 50,000 | Overseas |
| | Asitha Fernando | Sri Lanka | (1997-07-31) 31 July 1997 (age 27) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | 2024 | 40,000 | |
| 40 | Pramod Madushan | Sri Lanka | (1993-12-14) 14 December 1993 (age 31) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | 2024 | 20,000 | |
| | Eshan Malinga | Sri Lanka | (2001-02-04) 4 February 2001 (age 23) | Left-handed | Right-arm fast-medium | 2024 | 13,000 | |
| | Arul Pragasam | Sri Lanka | (1993-11-06) 6 November 1993 (age 31) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | 2024 | 5,000 | |
| | Nisala Tharaka | Sri Lanka | (1991-04-20) 20 April 1991 (age 33) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | 2024 | 5,000 | |

## Administration and support staff

| Position | Name |
| Director | Ganeshan Vaheesan |
| Manager | Charinda Fernando |
| Head Coach | Avishka Gunawardene |
| Assistant Coach | Mario Villavarayan |
| Assistant Coach | Hemang Badani |
| Batting Coach | Jehan Mubarak |
| Bowling Coach | Sachith Pathirana |
| Fielding Coach | Vimukthi Deshapriya |
| Performance Analyst | GGT Niroshan |

## Statistics
### By season

| Year | Matches | Wins | Losses | No result | % win | Position | Summary |
| 2020 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 67% | 3/5 | Champions |
| 2021 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 72.72% | 1/5 | Champions |
| 2022 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 80% | 2/5 | Champions |
| 2023 | 8 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 33.33 | 4/5 | Eliminator |
| Total | 46 | 28 | 17 | 1 | 62.22 |
* Source :ESPNcricinfo

### By opposition

| Opposition | Matches | Won | Lost | NR | % Win |
| Colombo Franchise | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 80 |
| Dambulla Franchise | 11 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 63.64 |
| Galle Franchise | 12 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 66.67 |
| Kandy Franchise | 9 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 40 |
* Source: ESPNcricinfo

### Individual records
#### Captains

| No. | Player | From | To | Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | NR | Win% |
| 1 | Thisara Perera | 2020 | 2023 | 45 | 28 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 61.64 |
| 2 | Charith Asalanka | 2024 | present | - | - | - | - | - | - |

#### Most runs

    As of 19 August 2023
| Runs | Player | Seasons |
| 926 | Avishka Fernando | 2020–2022 |
| 674 | Shoaib Malik | 2020–2023 |
| 640 | Thisara Perera | 2020–2023 |
| 607 | Rahmanullah Gurbaz | 2021–2023 |
| 302 | Tom Kohler-Cadmore | 2021–2022 |
* Source: CricInfo

#### Highest individual score

    As of 19 August 2023
| Runs | Player | Opposition | Venue | Date |
| 100 | Avishka Fernando | Dambulla Giants | Hambantota | 21 December 2021 |
| 97* | Thisara Perera | Dambulla Viiking | Hambantota | 30 November 2020 |
| 92* | Avishka Fernando | Galle Gladiators | Hambantota | 27 November 2020 |
| 92 | Tom Kohler-Cadmore | Colombo Stars | Colombo | 16 December 2021 |
| 84 | Avishka Fernando | Galle Gladiators | Hambantota | 3 December 2020 |
* Source: CricInfo

#### Most career wickets

    As of 19 August 2023
| Wickets | Player | Seasons |
| 33 | Maheesh Theekshana | 2020–2023 |
| 28 | Wanindu Hasaranga | 2020–2021 |
| 22 | Vijayakanth Viyaskanth | 2020–2023 |
| 16 | Dunith Wellalage | 2022–2023 |
| 15 | Multiple players | Multiple players |
* Source: CricInfo

#### Best figures in an innings

    As of 19 August 2023
| Figures | Player | Opposition | Venue | Date |
| 4/10 | Dunith Wellalage | Galle Titans | Pallekele | 4 August 2023 |
| 4/13 | Jayden Seales | Colombo Stars | Colombo | 16 December 2021 |
| 4/16 | Chathuranga de Silva | Dambulla Giants | Colombo | 13 December 2021 |
| 4/22 | Binura Fernando | Dambulla Aura | Pallekele | 11 December 2022 |
| 4/25 | Maheesh Theekshana | Colombo Stars | Colombo | 10 December 2021 |
* Source: CricInfo

## Kit manufacturers and sponsors

| Year | Shirt sponsor (front) | Shirt sponsor (back) | Chest branding |
| 2020 | | | Code.org |
| 2021 | Lyca Mobile | Cycle Incense | NLB |
| 2022 | SkyExch | SkyExch | |
| 2023 | 1xBet | Wolf777 | Batbricks7 |
| 2024 | MelBat | MGlion News | |

## Honours
### League

* Lanka Premier League
** Champions (4): 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024