1996 World Cup | A Lookback at Sri Lanka’s Legendary Campaign

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The 1996 World Cup was a great tournament since it saw an underdog winning. Yes, we are speaking about Sri Lanka, who would go on to win the trophy against all odds. Under Arjuna Ranatunga’s leadership, Sri Lanka beat Australia in the final, winning their maiden World Cup trophy.

Throughout the campaign, they found cricketers who would go on to serve Sri Lankan cricket for a very long time. We will briefly recap Sri Lanka’s 1996 World Cup campaign.

Sri Lanka is no longer the team they were in the 1996 World Cup. However, the Island nation sealed qualification for the 2023 World Cup. Make predictions on Sri Lanka’s matches in an online cricket betting platform and win exciting rewards during the mega event.

Recap Of Sri Lanka’s 1996 World Cup Triumph

Under Ranatunga’s leadership, Sri Lanka played eight games and won every match to the final. They, however, won their first and third match courtesy of a walkover as Australia and West Indies refused to travel to Colombo, raising security concerns.

In this section, we will look at their 1996 World Cup campaign and see how they fared on a match-by-match basis.

1996 World Cup Group Stage

Sri Lanka was placed in Group A, alongside Australia, India, West Indies, Zimbabwe, and Kenya. Let us look briefly at their group stage fixtures.

1. vs Australia: In a dramatic turn of events, Australia forfeited the match due to safety concerns. The Aussie players and support staff refused to travel to Colombo, handing Sri Lanka two points.
2. vs Zimbabwe: Sri Lanka took on Zimbabwe in the second group match in Colombo four days later. Chasing a target of 229 runs, the hosts clinched the victory with 13 overs remaining. Asanka Gurusinha (87*) and Aravinda de Silva (91) forged a solid partnership for the third wicket to help Lanka seal maximum points.
3. vs West Indies: It was another walkover for Sri Lanka without a ball being bowled, which meant they had won three matches on the trot. Taking a cue from Australia, the Caribbean outfit fortified the fixture citing security issues.
4. vs India: The match against co-hosts was played at the then Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in New Delhi. Sri Lanka went on to successfully chase down a challenging target of 271. Opener Sanath Jayasuriya (79) and Hashan Tillakaratne (70) ensured Sri Lanka made a mockery of the target.
5. vs Kenya: At the Asgiriya Stadium in Kandy, Sri Lanka’s top order fired in unison. Gurusinha (84) and De Silva (145) ensured that the hosts piled up 398. In reply, Kenya never looked like they were in the game. A 96 from Steve Tikolo ensured the minnows nation scored 254.

With the 144-run win in the last group stage fixture, Sri Lanka sealed its place in the quarter-final.

1996 World Cup Knockout Stages

Sri Lanka topped Group A thanks to picking up five wins in a row. Below is a match-by-match look at their knock stages results:

vs England (Quarter-final):

In Faisalabad, Sri Lanka restricted England to 235 runs. Nevertheless, chasing 236 runs was never easy. But Sanath Jayasuriya, who had picked up a couple of wickets early in the match, made 82 off just 44 balls. It ensured that Sri Lanka chased the target with 56 balls to spare.

vs India (Semi-final)

IInterestingly, this match ended on a disappointing note. Sri Lanka had batted first and had a disastrous start, reducing to 35/3. But De Silva (66) and Roshan Mahanama (58) steered them to 251. In reply, India’s batting collapsed on a turning track, and at the score of 120/8, the crowd threw bottles at the fielders, which forced the match referee to award the game to Sri Lanka.

vs Australia (Final):

Australia didn’t cancel out on Sri Lanka this time, as the match was scheduled in Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Australia had batted first, and despite captain Mark Taylor’s 74, they were restricted to 241/7. De Silva, who picked up three wickets, stepped up with the bat again for the Lankans. The openers returned to the pavilion early, but De Silva, Gurusinha, and Rangatunga combined to take Sri Lanka to their maiden title win.

Sri Lanka’s success remains among the most incredible World Cup triumphs ever. They became the first host country to lift the World Cup title. De Silva finished as the tournament’s third-highest run-scorer with 448 runs, while Muralitharan and Jayasuriya picked up seven wickets each.

Concluding Thoughts

Throughout the tournament, Sri Lanka didn’t put a foot wrong. Ranatunga led from the front. De Silva and Gurusinha stepped up every time Sri Lanka was in trouble. They also found the likes of Muttiah Muralitharan, Jayasuriya, and Romesh Kaluwitharana, who would serve them well in the future.

The pair of Jayasuriya and Kaluwitharna revolutionized the role of openers in cricketers, and teams started to copy the template set by the Lankan duo. It was also the beginning of the golden generation of Sri Lankan cricket.

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