Sri Lanka has a history of producing unconventional spinners, and Akila Dananjaya is the latest installment on that list. Dananjaya has had a peculiar career when compared to others. During his stint as a net bowler for the Sri Lankan team, he impressed Mahela Jayawardene with his impressive control. At Jayawardene's request, he was fast-tracked to the national team without playing a single first-class match. However, after Jayawardene stepped out of the captaincy, Dananjaya found it hard to stay on the right side of the selectors. After a long absence from international cricket, Dananjaya was back in the national team fold in 2017. In 2018, six years after his T20I and ODI debuts, he made his Test debut. In his first Test match, he grabbed eight wickets and became only the second Sri Lankan to do so. His bowling figure of 8/44 is the best on debut by a Sri Lankan. In 2018, he was suspended by ICC for suspected illegal bowling action. He was later cleared by ICC in 2019. He was suspended the same year again for 12 months and was finally cleared to bowl in international games in 2021.