The Wills World Cup Begins

-February 14th, 1996-

Weeks after the Central Bank bombing, the Wills World Cup began, with Pakistan, India and--for the first time--Sri Lanka, as co-hosts. Leading up to the World Cup, Sri Lanka joined India and Australia as one of the best One-Day cricket teams in the world. However, their international presence had been clouded by the civil war happening back at home.

During the World Cup, Sri Lanka revolutionized the One-Day strategy by playing a different brand of cricket. During the first 15 overs of a game, there are field restrictions that only allow two fielders outside the inner circle of the field. Up until the World Cup, it was normal to gain about 50-60 runs during this time and play aggressively towards the end of the innings. Instead, Sri Lanka’s coach Dav Whatmore and captain Arjuna Ranatunga flipped the script and had their opening batsman Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana play aggressively during first 15 overs, doubling the average scores most teams were used to getting.

Using this technique, Sri Lanka rolled over teams like Kenya and Zimbabwe during the group stages and against England in the quarterfinals, setting the stage for a powerhouse match against a historically powerful Indian squad. 

The Collapse at Eden Gardens

View fullsize

illustration by Delaney Kuric 

-March 13th, 1996-

India were heavy favourites to become the first host country to win the World Cup, having just defeated the defending champions in the quarter-finals. They went into the semifinals with confidence playing at home in Eden Gardens to a crowd of over 100,000 screaming Indian fans. In their batting arsenal, they had Sachin Tendulkar during the peak of his career, widely regarded as one of the best batsmen to have ever played the game.

India’s confidence skyrocketed when Sri Lanka’s groundbreaking opening duo, Sanath and Kalu both got out within the first six balls of the game. The Indian crowd could feel an easy path to the World Cup final. However, Sri Lanka fought back, and with Aravinda de Silva and Roshan Mahanama at the helm, posted a respectable score of 251. It was now up to Murali, Chaminda Vaas and the rest of the revered Sri Lankan bowling attack to finish the job.

As expected, India started fast and Tendulkar looked unstoppable, reaching 98 with ease before disaster struck. Ironically enough, it was the dynamic batting duo of Sanath Jayasuriya and “Little Kalu” that made the difference. With India cruising, Kalu stumped Tendulkar, setting the stage for one of the worst batting collapses in Indian cricket history. One by one, wicket after wicket, the Indian crowd watched helplessly as their powerful batting line up collapsed under the hands of Murali, Vaas and Jayasuriya. After starting 98/1, India lost 7 wickets for only 22 runs, sliding to 120/8 with only 16 overs left in the innings. Outraged at their team’s performance, Indian fans began to throw bottles and debris and lit the stadium on fire, causing the first default in Test and One-Day International cricket history. 

Kings of Lahore

-March 17th, 1996-

After a controversial end to their semi-final victory, Sri Lanka came full circle and found themselves up against a familiar opponent. Australia was a team with extreme talent and experience and were favorites in the final. However, Sri Lanka had come a long way from the Boxing Day test in December and were ready to bring home the trophy for the Sri Lankan people.

Arjuna Ranatunga won the toss and although no team in the history of the World Cup had ever won a final batting last, he chose to put his bowling attack on first, which later proved to be a smart move. Sri Lanka’s bowling attack stifled Australian batting powerhouses and let Sri Lanka’s deep batting lineup bring the trophy home to the people of Sri Lanka.

That day, Sri Lanka became the first country to win the World Cup, and the first host country to win the World Cup. More importantly, cricket became Sri Lanka’s identity. The world forgot about the war. The Sri Lankan people were world champions.