Sri Lanka's Maheesh Theekshana paid tribute to super fan 'Uncle Percy' after the passionate supporter's death at the age of 87 was announced Monday.
Percy Abeysekara, known as 'Uncle Percy', had been a mainstay of Sri Lanka matches for more than five decades.
He rose to global prominence during the 1996 World Cup when seen parading the Sri Lanka flag around the ground in Lahore, after Sri Lanka's victory in the final and was among the first generation of cricket's globe-trotting super-fans.
Theekshana, speaking after Sri Lanka's seven-wicket defeat by Afghanistan in a World Cup match in Pune on Monday, said of Percy's passing: "I just heard about it; I didn't know actually.
"We feel sorry for him because he was the main guy who was there when I was a kid also. I saw him waving the flag so as a team we are disappointed to hear that news."