One of the closest Sri Lanka gets to an all-rounder these days, Dharmasena is primarily a nippy off-spinner, whose quickish tweaks and unorthodox action have landed him in trouble.
Dharmasena came into the international scene in 1994 against South Africa. His invariable accuracy immediatly made him an ideal one-day bowler, especially in Sri Lankan conditions.
With time he also developed into a useful middle-order batsman, which guaranteed him regular place in the Sri Lankan one-day squad.
His career came to a standstill in 1998, following an ICC ruling to correct his bowling action. However, he worked hard on his action, and was cleared to play again by the Sri Lankan cricket board in July 2000.
He soon returned to the ODI and Test squad, and his useful batting is what may give him the nod over other spinners in the court of Murali.