Sri Lanka unearth their very own Paul Adams named Kevin Koththigoda

Photo: Asian Cricket Council

New Delhi: Continuing with what has become a tradition with Sri Lankan cricket, the country seems to have found another mystery spinner in the avatar of former South African bowler Paul Adams. Kevin Koththigoda, the 18-year-old legspinner from the island nation, is not only making his own but the heads of others turn as well with his unusual bowling action at the ongoing under-19 Asia Cup in Malaysia. 

"He has a very unusual action. It's like that of Paul Adams. The action wasn't coached or anything, it came naturally to him. Initially, he was struggling with the length as he couldn't see the pitch, but he has improved tremendously," former Sri Lanka 'A' opener Dhammika Sudarshana told Cricbuzz.

"Since his action is unique, the batsmen get confused. He is an excellent fielder and a decent batsman. He has got a very bright future ahead of him," Sudarshana further said.

#YouthAsiaCup2017 | Kevin Koththigoda of Mahinda College, Galle who made his Sri Lanka U19s debut today was first spotted last year by @ThePapareSports for his uncharacteristic bowling action during the Murali Harmony Cup in Jaffna! @PaulAdams39 @OfficialSLC @MahelaJay pic.twitter.com/auLDFlvtrS — Damith Weerasinghe (@Damith1994) November 11, 2017

"He has an incredible action but lands the ball in the right areas. (He is a) lovely kid and has a good future," said Sri Lanka's former first-class cricketer Sarath Asoka.