Lankans unite to bring Aussies down

Dinesh WEERAWANSA

TODAY could well become another red letter day in the annals of Sri Lanka’s sports. It could turn out to be another March 17, 1996 - the day Arjuna Ranatunga and his mighty Lankans concurred the Mount Everest in world cricket.

The stage is set for the grand finale of the 2007 ICC World Cup tournament as the defending champions Australia take on the high-riding former champions, Sri Lanka at the Kensington Oval in Barbados today.

Whatever the outcome may be, Sri Lanka is ready to give the Aussies a testing time. True that Ricky Ponting’s men have been playing as true professionals with an undisputed record on their way to the final.

But Mahela Jayawardene’s gallant men from the Indian Ocean Island have the talent, willpower and strength to put an end to Australia’s unbeaten record.

It is exactly what Ranatunga and his men did 11 years ago at Lahore’s Gadaffi Stadium, as the kangaroos ate humble pie.

Making their debut World Cup final, Sri Lanka showed no mercy in thrashing Australia by seven wickets. Sanath Jayasuriya, who was just 26 years then, was adjudged the Most Valuable player of the 1996 Reliance World Cup.

Jayawardene’s mighty Lankans are only a step away to reach the pinnacle of World cricket. Having thrashed New Zealand in convincing fashion, Sri Lanka has earned its rightful place in the final.

With the disappointing first round exits of India and Pakistan, millions of cricket fans in the cricket-crazy sub continent, would join Sri Lankans across the globe in wholeheartedly backing Jayawardene and his cricketing brigade.

Cheering for the ‘Lions’ from Lanka at the Kensington Oval would be sports-loving President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Be it cricket, rugby or athletics, President Rajapaksa, who has been a versatile sportsman during his school career, has always been a keen sports promoter.

It was President Rajapaksa who was instrumental in giving a rebirth to dashing opener Sanath Jayasuriya’s illustrious career.

When the former selectors gave a premature death to Jayasuriya’s career and the promising left hander was at the receiving end, it was President Rajapaksa who meted out justice.

Today, Jayasuriya has proved his worth, aggregating 408 runs with two centuries and a fifty at an average of 44.88 in the current World Cup tournament.

The presence of all-rounder Jayasuriya is a tower of strength. He is sure to form the backbone of Sri Lanka batting today, along with Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Upul Tharanga.

Sri Lanka’s progress to the World Cup final has once again attracted world attention. The world cricketing fraternity strongly believes that the only team that could bring the Aussies down to earth is Sri Lanka.

On the other hand, the World Cup cricket tournament in the Caribbean has enabled Sri Lanka to tell a success of story of unity to the rest of the World.

It has once again been proved that sport is a great leveller. It is amazing what sport could do to unite people across the globe.

Be it Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Burghers or Malays, all communities in Sri Lanka are cheering Jayawardene’s men as one family. Even the ruthless LTTE terrorists have joined millions of cricket followers.

LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran is believed to be a strong cricket fan. Probably that would have prompted Tiger spokesman Rasiah Illanthiriyan to tell that they won’t be engaged in any type of terrorist activities during World Cup matches as they would also be watching matches on television.

Why can’t we use this unique mode of sport to iron out differences and have a better understanding amongst all communities living in this beautiful island?

If the Sri Lanka team lives up to expectations and brings home that glittering cup, even a small portion of that credit should also go to controversial Amnesty International and LTTE sympathizer Mayuran who ran on to the field with a Tiger flag during the Super Eight match between Sri Lanka and Australia.

Those dirty ball games have injected much needed guts and willpower to our team. Amnesty’s unsporty acts, which violated the human rights of our cricketers and fans, have given more strength and courage to our cricketers to face any challenge.

All those acts have not only strengthened the mental stability of the team but have also given that much needed feeling of unity to all communities.

All Lankans have come under one umbrella with the feeling of one country, one flag, one team and one common goal - of winning the World Cup.

Our national team is a classic example of unity and strength. It has cricketers belonging to different communities and faiths. But they live like one family and work towards one goal.

Their followers and well wishers too belong to various nations and religious beliefs. But sport has made them unite.

Spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan, who has captured 23 wickets in the 2007 ICC World Cup, has stressed the importance of unity on the eve of the big ‘un.

When fans cheer for their sporting heroes, they do not care for their race, caste or creed. What matters for them is performance and the success of the team they support.

The ‘Daily News’ will join millions of Sri Lankans and their supporters all over the world in whishing Mahela Jayawardene and his men all success in the final hurdle today.

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