Sri Lanka’s netball star Tharjini Sivalingam has retired from international netball competition.
After a remarkable netball career spanning over a decade, Sri Lanka’s iconic goal shooter, Tharjini Sivalingam, fondly known as ‘Gene,’ bids farewell to her illustrious career at the Netball World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa.
At 44 years, Gene, hailed as one of the world’s best netball shooters of all time, confirmed that this World Cup marks her final international representation for her country.
“Since this is my last World Cup and last international tour representing Sri Lanka, I cannot say a lot. Thanks for all the love, to each and every one,” she said emotionally.
Sivalingam’s sporting career had a late start due to the north-east civil war which ended in 2009. After pursuing Economics at the Eastern University in Batticaloa, she found her passion for netball and the national pool.
“I couldn’t really enjoy competitive sports in my childhood due to the war in Sri Lanka. I started my netball career at my university and from there, I was identified based on my height and flexibility,” she recalled. In 2004, she was spotted by Sri Lanka coach Thilaka Jinadasa during a university tournament.
In 2017, Sivalingam made history as the first Sri Lankan netball player to play professionally, representing the City West Falcons netball club in Australia. Her invaluable contribution helped Sri Lanka secure the fifth Asian Netball Championships title in 2018 and she was named Player of the Tournament.
"For many years I have contributed to the success of netball in Sri Lanka. Now I am 45 years old. No female player in Asia has been involved in netball as long as I have. I have decided to retire from Sri Lanka netball after the 2023 World Championship Netball," Sivalingam, one of the most recognised players in the international netball arena said.
Although I say goodbye to international netball, I will definitely participate in club netball in Australia. And I will never forget Sri Lanka. Representing Sri Lanka is the reason is that I am a world-renowned netball player," she has said.
Sivalingam has participated in many international tournaments including five Asian Netball Championship (2009, 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2022) and four Netball World Cups (2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023) and she once led the Sri Lanka team at the Asian Netball Championship.
"I only got to train with the Sri Lankan team during the training matches held in Botswana before the World Cup. Also, I played to the best of my abilities in the two World Cup matches that I participated in," she said.
Sivalingam won the World Best Shooter Award in the 2011 Netball World Cup and the Asian Best Shooting Award in 2009 and 2012.
Tharjini Sivalingam (born 30 December 1978) is a former skipper of the Sri Lankan national netball team. With her staggering height of 206 cm or a fraction under 6ft 9inches, she has been recognized as one of the most successful shooters of all time and often regarded as the tallest netball player ever. She is the most capped international netball player to represent Sri Lanka. She has been a regular member of Sri Lankan netball team in international netball tournaments since making her debut in 2009. She is well known for her unusually tall height and considered one of the marquee players in Sri Lankan netball history. She also faced many hardships in her childhood as she grew up in warzone.
In July 2019, during the 2019 Netball World Cup Sivalingam made her 100th international appearance for Sri Lanka, becoming the first Sri Lankan to do so. She was the tournament's top-scorer with 348 goals in 375 attempts (scored in seven matches), 44 clear of Jamaica's Jhaniele Fowler and also recorded the most points (77) by a player in a single match at the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup.
After a remarkable netball career spanning over a decade, Sri Lanka’s iconic goal shooter, Tharjini Sivalingam, fondly known as ‘Gene,’ bids farewell to her illustrious career at the Netball World Cup in Cape Town, South Africa.
At 44 years, Gene, hailed as one of the world’s best netball shooters of all time, confirmed that this World Cup marks her final international representation for her country.
“Since this is my last World Cup and last international tour representing Sri Lanka, I cannot say a lot. Thanks for all the love, to each and every one,” she said emotionally.
Sivalingam’s sporting career had a late start due to the north-east civil war which ended in 2009. After pursuing Economics at the Eastern University in Batticaloa, she found her passion for netball and the national pool.
“I couldn’t really enjoy competitive sports in my childhood due to the war in Sri Lanka. I started my netball career at my university and from there, I was identified based on my height and flexibility,” she recalled. In 2004, she was spotted by Sri Lanka coach Thilaka Jinadasa during a university tournament.
In 2017, Sivalingam made history as the first Sri Lankan netball player to play professionally, representing the City West Falcons netball club in Australia. Her invaluable contribution helped Sri Lanka secure the fifth Asian Netball Championships title in 2018 and she was named Player of the Tournament.
"For many years I have contributed to the success of netball in Sri Lanka. Now I am 45 years old. No female player in Asia has been involved in netball as long as I have. I have decided to retire from Sri Lanka netball after the 2023 World Championship Netball," Sivalingam, one of the most recognised players in the international netball arena said.
Although I say goodbye to international netball, I will definitely participate in club netball in Australia. And I will never forget Sri Lanka. Representing Sri Lanka is the reason is that I am a world-renowned netball player," she has said.
Sivalingam has participated in many international tournaments including five Asian Netball Championship (2009, 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2022) and four Netball World Cups (2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023) and she once led the Sri Lanka team at the Asian Netball Championship.
"I only got to train with the Sri Lankan team during the training matches held in Botswana before the World Cup. Also, I played to the best of my abilities in the two World Cup matches that I participated in," she said.
Sivalingam won the World Best Shooter Award in the 2011 Netball World Cup and the Asian Best Shooting Award in 2009 and 2012.
Tharjini Sivalingam (born 30 December 1978) is a former skipper of the Sri Lankan national netball team. With her staggering height of 206 cm or a fraction under 6ft 9inches, she has been recognized as one of the most successful shooters of all time and often regarded as the tallest netball player ever. She is the most capped international netball player to represent Sri Lanka. She has been a regular member of Sri Lankan netball team in international netball tournaments since making her debut in 2009. She is well known for her unusually tall height and considered one of the marquee players in Sri Lankan netball history. She also faced many hardships in her childhood as she grew up in warzone.
In July 2019, during the 2019 Netball World Cup Sivalingam made her 100th international appearance for Sri Lanka, becoming the first Sri Lankan to do so. She was the tournament's top-scorer with 348 goals in 375 attempts (scored in seven matches), 44 clear of Jamaica's Jhaniele Fowler and also recorded the most points (77) by a player in a single match at the 2019 Vitality Netball World Cup.
