Jeevantha Kulatunga was the surprise selection for Sri Lanka's Twenty20 squad for the Canada Cup in October 2008, aged 34, but it followed several outstanding domestic seasons.

His all-round abilities as an innovative and mentally resilient middle-order batsman capable of playing under pressure, as well as being a wily seam bowler, gave him the edge over less experienced rivals. Sri Lanka's selectors were attracted by his specialist limited-over skills and his huge experience as they tried to strengthen the middle order.

He later graduated up the order in T20 cricket for Wayamba, the domestic T20 champions in both 2009 and 2010, carving out a reputation for being one of the most destructive match-winners. In the 2010 season, he finished the third-highest scorer with 277 runs at 69.25 including a 152.19 run strike rate. He was also the first Sri Lankan to score a T20 hundred in domestic cricket and was named Player of the Tournament.