Winning the World Cup . 96 is the end result of the care,
concern and commitment of many distinguished personnel. For many decades
they sweated and toiled, both on and off the field, rather silently,
through sheer hard work, greater sacrifice, unvanquished dedication, and
unwavering determination, to give Sri Lanka the highest possible
recognition in the international cricketing arena. It is thus indeed
" a crowning achievement of a life time, that may be equalled but is
unlikely to be surpassed ". It was not just another magnificent
win by Sri Lanka at Lahore, over the mighty Australians at their very
best. It was an incredible victory for the entire Nation, which brought in
immense fame and much glory, incalculable in value and within that greater
pride to every Sri Lankan, the world over. Through this fabulous
performance, we have shown the world that, "team work and the will to
win", is hard to beat.
History thus wrote a new chapter in glittering gold. It
was an extraordinary achievement through outstanding performances, which
should be cherished, not only for the rest of our own lives, but during
that of the next generation too. The painstaking efforts taken in
compiling this book, that too under many added hardships, is thus an
endeavour with sincere dedication to Sri Lankan Cricket, to fill this void
in the field of Cricket Literature.
"The Golden Era of Sri Lankan Cricket", is the story of the team
that radiated brilliance in 0vers limited cricket, starting around the
World Cup . 96 and extending beyond that for a longer period of time.
It is the fascinating story of Sri Lanka at World Cup . 96 and
beyond, capturing many a memorable happening and outstanding achievement,
throughout this long journey. It captures all the drama, controversy and
excitement in words, figures and pictures.
Aroused as they will almost certainly have been by the events of
a melodramatic tour of Australia, the cricket -loving public of the world
were in for a delectable feast of entertainment with some stupendous strokeplay
over the course of watching Sri Lanka play this global event,
World Cup . 96. World attention was soon focused on the batting
exploits of Sanath Jayasuriya, the audacious strokeplay of Aravinda
De Silva and the leadership qualities of Arjuna Ranatunga, all giving
new dimensions to 0vers limited cricket. Far beyond World Cup. 96
have these extended. This book captures for its readers many such
spectacular happenings, both on and off the field of play.
Sri Lanka shocked the entire cricketing world by winning this
prestigious title just 21 years after their first participation at the
inaugural World Cup competition as an associate member. But their efforts
were mistakenly put down as a proverbial flash in the pan. Their innovative
tactics in the opening overs was seen as a "bull - at - the - gate"
approach that suddenly paid off. As we all know now, their winning spree
and greater success at one-day internationals (ODIs), never ended with
winning the World Cup . 96. In fact it blossomed to establish them as
a champion team, one to be reckoned with. Endeavours have thus been made
in this book to demonstrate that Sri Lanka were the Kings amongst Kings
for an extended period of time.
International 0vers-limited cricket developed 28 years ago, from
a fun and frolic fill-in, to cheer-up disappointed spectators at a washed
out New Year. s Eve Test Match, into a highly marketable industry. They
are thus very much in the news with World Cup . 99 soon taking centre
stage. In fact one of our veteran countrymen, Stanley Jayasinghe (former
all-Ceylon and Leicestershire professional), participated in the first
such game ever played on an organised basis, in England. In this context,
it is pertinent to know about the birth and development of this game, -
hence my first chapter, - and also to get a glimpse of the "Mega event of
1999" - thus the last two chapters.
