All the 16 teams slated to participate in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup are undergoing their final stretch of preparations. One out of those 16 teams is Sri Lanka, which was once regarded as one of the best cricket-playing nations in the world. The Lankan Lions have competed in all editions of the T20 World Cup while also emerging as champions in the 2014 edition by defeating Team India in the final. And the sub-continent nation would be desperate to win their second T20 World Cup crown.
After winning the recently-concluded Asia Cup 2022 title, confidence in the Sri Lankan camp has soared and the belief seems to have returned to a team that was beleaguered after some of the biggest names in Lankan cricket history walked away from the sport.
If you look at Sri Lankan cricket, its history is widely revered and cherished solely because of what the country has been able to achieve on the pitch. Sri Lanka became a dominant force in cricket after winning the ODI World Cup in 1996 and from there began a journey that has since weathered turbulent times to reach the summit. Let's have a look at the cricket history of Sri Lanka:
Sri Lanka's independence
Talking about Sri Lanka, it's an island country surrounded by the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka was ruled by the Portuguese in the 16th century, followed by the Dutch and finally by the Britishers. Being a British colony, Sri Lanka not only inherited the sport of cricket but went on to dominate the game for a long period of time. In 1948, Ceylon (as Sri Lanka was known earlier) gained independence from the British rule. It was in 1972 that the country was renamed as Sri Lanka.
Cricket in Sri Lanka
It is believed that cricket was first played in Sri Lanka during the later 1700s when the British entered the country. The game was also appreciated by the people of Sri Lanka and the earliest definite mention of cricket was a report in the Colombo Journal on September 05, 1832, which indicated the formation of a cricket club.
After the formation of Colombo Cricket Club in 1832, cricket started flourishing in the country with major events such as the Premier Trophy (starting in 1938) and Premier Limited Overs Tournament (starting from 1988-89) began to be staged in the country. It was in 1975 when Sri Lanka stepped into ODI cricket from the ODI World Cup and never looked back after that.
The world champions (1996)
After making their ODI debut in 1975, the Sri Lankan team received the status of a Test playing Nation from the ICC in 1981. After this, the popularity of cricket in Sri Lanka increased significantly with more and more people started playing the sport. The result of which was that within 21 years of starting international cricket, Sri Lanka emerged as the champions of world cricket.
In the 1996 ODI World Cup, Sri Lanka defeated Australia by seven wickets in the final to clinch the title and rise the champions of cricket. And thus started a journey that saw Sri Lankan cricket achieve several feats and paving way for numerous legendary cricketers who popularised the spot throughout the would by displaying unparalleled skillset.
From thereon Sri Lanka went on to win the Champions Trophy and reached the final of multiple ODI World Cups but the nation once again became the champions of world cricket in 2014, albeit in a different format.
T20 World Cup champions
In 2014, Sri Lanka defeated India by six wickets in the final of T20 World Cup in Mirpur to clinch their first-ever title in the shortest format of the game. It was a historic day for Sri Lanka, a team which once again displayed their mettle and never-say-die-attitude to reach the summit.
Performance in international cricket
Sri Lanka won the ODI World Cup in 1996, ICC Champions Trophy in 2002 (co-champion with India) and ICC T20 World Cup in 2014. The country has also won Asia Cup crown for six times (1986, 1997, 2004, 2008, 2014 and 2022) and has been runner-up in the 2007 ODI World Cup, 2011 ODI World Cup, 2009 ICC T20 World Cup and 2012 ICC T20 World Cup.
