Sri Lanka's Most Important Player at the 2015 Cricket World Cup

Despite scoring nearly 9,500 one-day runs, Tillakaratne Dilshan is in danger of becoming the forgotten man for Sri Lanka at this World Cup.

While Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara get prepared to head into the sunset (or English county cricket in the case of the latter) after the event, the oldest player in Sri Lanka’s squad plans to play on.

But just like his two legendary compatriots who will retire from national duty in March, Dilshan will be a difficult man to replace when he finally decides to call time on his international career.

He is an all-round contributor for his country, a batsman who opponents still fear at the top of the order, a canny bowler capable of picking up wickets and one of the better fielders in the Sri Lanka side.

Indeed, when you watch him still play at the highest level, it is tough to believe that Dilshan is 38.

Seeing him throw himself around in the field would make you think he is actually a youngster freshly plucked out of domestic cricket who is desperately trying to make a good impression.

Sri Lanka often choose to station him in key positions—backward point to the pace bowlers, mid-wicket for the spinners—rather than waste him grazing in the deep.

He defies his age with the bat too.

On the one-day leg of the recent tour of New Zealand, the right-hander finished as top scorer on either side with 397 runs (including two centuries).

Eranga Jayawardena/Associated Press

His form, coming off the back of a hundred against England on home soil last December, was a plus point for his country in a 4-2 series defeat to the Black Caps.

It also bodes well for the upcoming World Cup, with the Sri Lankans playing three of their six group games at venues in New Zealand. 

Playing on Australian soil should not be a worry for Dilshan. He amassed 513 runs in the Commonwealth Bank Series in 2012, including hitting 106 against the hosts in Adelaide.

Having also hit a ton in the warm-up fixture against South Africa in Christchurch, Dilshan seems to be coming into a purple patch at the ideal time.

He is a calculated risk-taker, never better demonstrated than when he goes down on one knee to play his trademark Dilscoop (by the way—how many other batsmen have a shot named after them?) against the quicker bowlers.

It is a thin line between bravery and foolishness when you choose to tuck your chin into your chest and take your eye off the delivery at the last second in an attempt to ramp it over the wicketkeeper.

But it is also a well thought-out method to finding the boundary in an unprotected area, one Dilshan worked on while playing cricket with a tennis ball in his younger days, per an interview with Bivabasu Kumar in The Times of India.

"I have always wanted to do something special," he said. "Millions of people watch cricket and I wanted to have a special place for myself in their hearts. People forget a player after he retires. But I will continue to live through 'Dilscoop.'"

However, while understanding his role to attack during the opening powerplay, Dilshan also realises the need to cash in once he has built a promising platform.

In making 101 against England in Colombo late last year, for example, the right-hander reached 50 from 59 balls with one six and six fours. He only found the boundary three more times in the remaining 65 deliveries he faced.

While Sri Lanka have had problems finding him an opening partner of late, they can at least lean on Dilshan to lead from the front.

He is also relied on to play a part with the ball. While he has claimed only 97 wickets in 307 one-day appearances, his economy rate is a steady 4.82 runs an over.

Dilshan's off-spin has even been called upon to open the bowling, though it is his role at the top of the batting order where he is most important to his country.

While Jayawardene and Sangakkara provide the style, Dilshan is the one who can give the innings early momentum, a crucial factor ahead of a tournament that is likely to see bat dominate ball.

The one certainty for Sri Lanka is this: They will be relying heavily on their trio of golden oldies for one last time as they bid to reach a third successive World Cup final. 

Stats courtesy of ESPN Cricinfo and Howstat.com