"The Sri Lankans, coached by Dav Whatmore and captained by Arjuna Ranatunga, used Player of the Tournament Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana as opening batsmen to take advantage of the fielding restrictions during the first 15 overs of each innings. At a time when 50 or 60 runs in the first 15 overs was considered adequate, Sri Lanka scored 117 runs in those overs against India, 123 against Kenya, 121 against England in the quarter-final and 86 against India in the semi-final. Against Kenya, Sri Lanka made 398 for 5, a new record for the highest team score in a one-day international that stood until April 2006."
1996 World Cup Finals Highlights | Run time 12:27
1996 World Cup Final - Wrap up by Greg Richie
1996 World Cup Final - Presentation Ceremony
1996 World Cup Final - Aravinda Accepting MOM Award
"England were defeated not only by Sri Lanka. They were beaten by a plan of attack beyond their imaginations, and never dreamt about in their own "play-the-percentages" philosophy.As Mike Atherton conceded afterwards, Sri Lanka have suddenly be- comethe foremost exponents of a new approach to one-day cricket, one whichturns the conventional English version on its head.
Their batsmen optfor vertical take-off in the first 15 overs, not the last 15, and onlythen do they throttle back. It seems to be a spectacular way to fly." - Cricinfo
For a glorious hour de Silva, a genius tuned to perfect pitch for the big occasion, took on India by himself. He hit the ball smoothly through the gaps with the full face of the bat, steely wrists allowing him to place it where he wanted. He uses the bat, as Neville Cardus once wrote of Reggie Spooner, as a lady might use her fan.
There were 11 fours in his fifty made from only 32 balls, the majority rifled through extra cover. - Cricinfo
There was a short period in 1996 just after Sri Lanka’s incredible World Cup victory when Sanath Jayasuriya gave cricket fans a glimpse of what it must have been like to watch Sir Donald Bradman bat in the 1930’s.
For a few glorious days in Singapore, Jayasuriya was seeing the ball like a water melon and everything the Pakistani bowlers delivered was despatched either to or over the boundary.
His first innings brought the flashing left-hander a century off a mere forty eight deliveries; bettering the previous best by a margin of 14 balls. He commenced scoring that day with a torrent of runs and it quickly became a raging flood.
He hit 12 off the first over from no less a bowler than Waqar Younis and Sunil Gavaskar commented; “He can’t keep scoring at this rate.”
By the end of the third over with the score close to 50, I queried Sunil, “Are you sure he can’t keep scoring at this rate?”
Exhilarating cricket
Jayasuriya’s century came from the first ball of the 16th over, not that it made any difference where skipper Aamir Sohail put the fieldsmen. One powerful pull shot sent the ball zooming over the trees, where it bounced on the road and was last seen heading up the steps of City Hall.
It was exhilarating cricket and deliveries short and full were treated alike; an abbreviated but quick stroke delivered by those blacksmith’s forearms and Jayasuriya would punch yet another boundary.
The humble Sri Lankan finished with an amazing 134 off only 65 balls and when he was finally dismissed by off-spinner Saqlain Mushtaq he was accorded a standing ovation. For an encore he blasted a half century off only seventeen balls five days later and that record remains until this day.
Despite Jayasuriya’s whirlwind knock Sri Lanka lost the final to Pakistan but when the team departed later that night via a crowded Singapore Cricket Club main bar, the gathering, which included a handful of ex-international cricketers, all stood to applaud a slightly embarrassed entertainer.
Special moments
It was one of those special moments that you remember for the rest of your life; the hair on the back of my neck stood to attention as Jayasuriya walked through that room.
Although Jayasuriya provided cricket fans with many more electrifying innings he never again quite reached that level of thorough domination. That is no disgrace because only Bradman ever regularly achieved such complete mastery over bowling attacks.
These days the dismantling of new ball attacks comes less often and rarely lasts long enough for another tilt at a record breaking century. However, he did recapture some of the magic at the SCG earlier this year to give Australian crowds a final glimpse of what Sanath Jayasuriya was really like.
Jayasuriya has wisely decided to close the book on his Test career; one that he admitted the other day only took off after he scored a fighting century at the Adelaide Oval in early 1996. That was the innings he convinced the selectors he should open for Sri Lanka and it will forever be marked in the fast bowler’s diary as a black day.
Unfortunate exit
Unfortunately for Sanath, a kindly soul with a ready smile, there has been no glorious finale to his worthwhile career of entertaining cricket fans. A few stitches in the thumb and a bleeding left-hand will be his memento from a last Test in Kandy. However, no disappointment can ever erase that glorious week in Singapore when Jayasuriya was a mirror image of Bradman.
Note: Jayasuriya has since made a comeback from retirement.
