The Fantastico Duo of Sri Lankans who I grew up Adoring! - Part III

The Fantastico Duo of Sri Lankans who I grew up adoring! - Part III

In this concluding part of ‘The Fantastico Duo of Sri Lankans who I grew up adoring!’ I will enlist a player who is perhaps the best batsman that the island nation has ever produced (though some might have a thing or two to say to that comment) and a batsman who, though very limited in his talent was still a main-stay and a lynchpin of the Lankan middle order right through the 1990’s.

Aravinda De Silva

Aravinda is considered the greatest batsman that the little emerald isle has produced. He produced several savage knocks and left a deep impact on the game, not only in Sri Lanka but across the globe. He was at his very best during the 1996 World Cup and he produced one memorable knock after another. He was known for his cuts and hook shots and he played them with ridiculous ease.

He blazed away to a 47 ball 66 in the Semi Finals against India when Sri Lanka were 1-2 at Eden Gardens before laying in to the Australians to score a match winning innings of 107*. This was after he had a stellar day in the field picking up 3 wickets and 2 catches. He last played for Sri Lanka in the 2003 World Cup and batted with the same verve and audacity that he was known for. Unfortunately he could not produce another match winning innings as Sri Lanka crashed out at the Semi Final stage against Australia.

He was no less of a test player and boasted of several high profile innings both in Sri Lanka and abroad. His highest test score of 267 was scored against New Zealand at Wellington. I also remember that he scored a quick-fire 152 in England that had helped Sri Lanka beat England in England for the first time. He scored a double ton in his last match against Bangladesh. He was also a very reliable fielder and a handy off break bowler who had a golden arm and provided regular breakthroughs whenever required.

Roshan Mahanama

Roshan was an integral part of the Sri Lankan side in the 1990's and though he has only a modest record to show as a batsman he was one of their main strengths in the middle order.

He could stabilise the ship when required and had a good technique. He was also one of the most athletic fielder of that time and I remember seeing him take some great flying catches. He was one of their main pillars during their successful campaign of 1996 World Cup.

Although he averaged less than 30 in both tests and ODI's but I feel that his contribution was much more than what numbers could ever suggest. He was also a great match referee and just retired last year to spend more time with his family.

The Fantastico Duo of Sri Lankans who I grew up adoring! - Part II

The Fantastico Duo of Sri Lankans who I grew up adoring! - Part II

There are cricketers who are naturally gifted and ooze talent from a very young age. Then there are those who are limited in their capability but have that one quality which the gifted players often do not possess. That quality is that of self belief. If you believe in yourself and still be humble then that is a very potent quality. I've always loved the Sri Lankans for their flair and the way that they changed the game was played in the late 1990's. I'll enlist below two cricketers who played a very significant role in the emergence of cricket on the island.

Arjuna Ranatunga

Arjuna started his career in the early 1980's where he played in the first test that Sri Lanka played. He was a decent player who could handle the pressure situations and was unfazed when facing bigger opposition. He could also bowl some handy medium pace which is always an added bonus for any young cricketing nation just trying to find its feet amongst the big boys.

He assumed captaincy as the 1990's approached and his attacking captaincy and innovative ideas led Sri Lanka to their greatest glory when they lifted the 1996 World Cup. It was he who asked his openers to go hammer and tongs in the opening 15 overs while the field was up and it was he who was in the Australian's face not backing down when confronted with sledging. In fact he gave it to them and in his own uncanny way unsettled the Australians with his mastery. Just before the finals he told a jam packed room filled with media that Shane Warne was just an ordinary bowler. That he believed so much in his batsmen and their ability showed the extent to which he could back his players. Shane Warne was overpowered by Aravinda and Arjuna easily add they romped home with a victory.

He was a no nonsense captain and backed his players to the hilt and combined with his cunning mind and nerves made of steel he was almost unmatchable when it came to captaincy skills. The impact that he had on the oppositions psyche even before a ball had been bowled was often the difference between Sri Lanka winning the game and losing it!!

Marvan Atapattu

A player who scores just 1 run in his first 6 test innings can be lost forever but Marvan was someone who did not let pressure affect him. He went on to become the most successful test opening batsman for the Lankans as he raked up 16 test centuries by the time he retired with 6 of them being double tons. He was a very stylish player and had a compact technique.

He also partnered Sanath in the ODI’s for Sri Lanka hitting over 8500 runs and playing over 250 ODI’s. He is the perfect epitome of a cricketer who was not very gifted but with his sheer hard work and determination climbed up the ladders of success.

The Fantastico Duo of Sri Lankans who I grew up Adoring! - Part I

The Fantastico Duo of Sri Lankans who I grew up adoring! - Part I

Sri Lanka are a team that endeared me in the late 1990's after I watched them play a special brand of attacking cricket right through the 1996 World Cup. They were also the underdogs which meant that as a kid I was naturally attracted towards them. Watching the small nation script a fairy tale run during that World Cup left a deep impact on my mind and they are still the team that I support vehemently after India. In this part I will speak about two batsmen who are credited with revolutionizing the way that ODI cricket was played with their belligerent batting styles and an all-out attacking mind-set.

Sanath Jayasuriya

He was another attacking batsman, perhaps light years ahead of his time and he is credited having revolutionizing the ODI game along with Kaluwitharana as the duo went after the bowling right from ball one.

Sanath had forearms as strong as an Ox and his hand eye co-ordination was amongst the best. His short arm flicks landed way beyond the boundary over the mid-wicket region and his cuts often went whole way as well. He played several match winning knocks for the Lankans and single-handedly won the game for them on most occasions. He is perhaps the most complete ODI player ever to play the game with over 13000 runs and 300 wickets to his name.

He was also a splendid slow left arm spin bowler who took more than 300 wickets along with being one of the best fielders that the game has seen. He once held the record for the fastest 50, fastest hundred and the fastest 150 in ODI cricket!!

He also excelled in the longest format of the game, his 340 against the Indian side displaying his hunger for runs and supreme powers of concentration. He finished with an average of over 40 in test matches.

Romesh Kaluwitharana

The diminutive Sri Lankan wicket-keeper was the partner in crime with Sanath Jayasuriya and together they went about terrorising about every opposition bowler. He started with a fine 132 on his test debut but failed to live up to the high expectations since then. Fierce cut shots and mighty pulls and hooks were his trademark and he made a name for himself in the ODI setup when he played several glowering innings in Australia just prior to the 1996 World Cup. That made Ranatunga shove him and Sanath into the pinch hitting opening role.

His wicket-keeping skills were also quite exceptional and he was a very acrobatic and fast behind the stumps. He affected 75 stumpings in only 189 ODI matches and also took 132 catches. Known as ‘Little Kalu’, he never did full justice to the immense talent that he had averaging only in the 20’s in both forms of the game.