"A massive loss for World Cricket" - Twitter pays heartfelt tribute to Sri Lanka's legendary cricket fan 'Uncle Percy'  

As the Sri Lankan men's cricket team took on Afghanistan in Match 30 of the ICC World Cup 2023, there was some shocking news for the fans back in the island nation. Legendary cricket fan Percy Abeysekara, fondly known as Uncle Percy, passed away at the age of 87 on Monday evening after a prolonged illness.

Percy was a regular spectator in the stands when the Sri Lankan team played. He attended several major cricket tournaments since the 1979 World Cup, not just in Sri Lanka but across the globe.

Uncle Percy was also in close contact with many prominent Sri Lankan players, including greats like Kumar Sangakkara and Sanath Jayasuriya. He was also well known by other overseas players, particularly from neighboring India. Rohit Sharma, the current skipper of the Indian team, visited Uncle Percy at his home in Colombo during the Asia Cup 2023.

The cricket boards of Sri Lanka and India, and many former players like Sangakkara and Irfan Pathan, paid heartfelt condolences on the demise of the legendary Sri Lanka cricket fan. Here are some of the reactions from X, formerly known as Twitter:

When Rohit Sharma met Uncle Percy at his residence

Indian skipper Rohit Sharma visited Percy Abeysekara's home just a few days before the India vs Sri Lanka match in the Super Four stage of the Asia Cup 2023.

This happened days after a touring Indian journalist met Uncle Percy and put out a tweet that the Sri Lankan super fan wished to meet star Indian players Rohit and Virat Kohli.

Former Indian skipper Kohli had once invited Uncle Percy to the dressing room for an interaction during India's tour of Sri Lanka in 2015.

In September this year, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) presented Rs 5 million to their most celebrated fan for his health and well-being.