Winning a major tournament like the Cricket World Cup is rarely about one single factor. It is the culmination of numerous elements—batting, bowling, and fielding—all clicking in harmony, backed by consistent team efforts and individual brilliance. However, sometimes a single tactical decision, made in the lead-up to the event, becomes the unexpected trump card that changes everything. For the Sri Lankan cricket team in 1996, that masterstroke was the decision to send wicketkeeper-batter Romesh Kaluwitharana to open the innings.
The Fateful Promotion in Melbourne
Exactly thirty years ago, on January 9, 1996, the Sri Lankan think-tank made a bold move during the Benson & Hedges World Series in Australia. In a match against Australia at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Romesh Kaluwitharana walked out to open for the first time in his five-year ODI career. His mandate was clear and radical for the era: attack from the very first ball.
Australia, batting first, had posted 213 for 5, largely thanks to a brilliant 123 from Ricky Ponting and an unbeaten 65 from Michael Bevan. When Sri Lanka's chase began, they lost two quick wickets, stumbling to 39/2. However, Kaluwitharana, unfazed by the situation, launched a counter-attack. He forged an 88-run partnership with captain Aravinda de Silva (35) to steady the ship.
Kaluwitharana's blistering knock of 77 runs off just 75 balls, including 12 fours, set the platform. Although he fell with the job not yet complete, contributions from Roshan Mahanama (51) and Kumar Dharmasena (28) saw Sri Lanka chase down the target with three wickets and 15 balls to spare.
Birth of a World Cup-Winning Strategy
That innings in Melbourne was no one-off. Kaluwitharana embraced his new role with gusto throughout the tri-series, scoring rapidly: 20, 50, 74, and 13 in subsequent matches before a duck in the final. This aggressive approach at the top of the order, even if inconsistent, planted the seed for a revolutionary strategy.
By the time the 1996 ODI World Cup, co-hosted by India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, began in February, the plan was fully formed. Kaluwitharana was paired with the explosive Sanath Jayasuriya, who would go on to win the Player of the Tournament award. Together, they formed a devastating opening pair that terrorised bowlers during the fielding restrictions, a concept exploited masterfully long before T20 cricket formalised it.
While Kaluwitharana's individual World Cup scores were modest—73 runs in total—they came at a staggering strike rate of 140.38. Jayasuriya scored 221 at 131.54, de Silva amassed 448 at 107.69, and captain Arjuna Ranatunga made 241 at 114.76. In an era where a strike rate of 100 was considered exceptional, having four top-order batters consistently scoring at such a pace was revolutionary.
A Legacy That Transformed Cricket
The outcome of that tactical gamble on January 9 was monumental. Within ten weeks, Sri Lanka, led by Arjuna Ranatunga, lifted their maiden Cricket World Cup trophy, defeating Australia in the final in Lahore. The decision to use Kaluwitharana as a pinch-hitter, though yielding limited personal runs, created a template of fearless, upfront aggression.
This strategy did not just win Sri Lanka the World Cup; it altered the very fabric of limited-overs cricket. The Lankan batters were true trendsetters, proving that attacking in the first 15 overs could dictate the course of a 50-over game. Their approach paved the way for the aggressive batting philosophies that dominate modern white-ball cricket, especially in the powerplay overs of T20 matches.
Thus, a single selection decision, aimed at solving an immediate puzzle in a bilateral series, inadvertently became the cornerstone of one of cricket's most memorable underdog triumphs and left an indelible mark on how the game is played today.
