Aravinda de Silva, superb, compact technique coupled with exhilarating strokeplay. Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘Don’s Century’

 

Sri Lanka’s Aravinda de Silva, on the other hand, was a gifted batsman. During the early stages of his career he would play brilliant cameos before throwing his wicket away through poor shot selection. For this he was called ‘Mad Max’. Gradually he learnt to temper himself and matured into one of the most exciting strokeplayers of modern times. In many ways, one felt, he was a more aggressive version of Gavaskar.

In fact the Indian maestro was initially an attacking player, with a penchant for the hook shot. But after the first flush of his memorable maiden series, when success became harder to come by, Gavaskar developed into an accumulator of runs, rather than a destroyer of bowling. De Silva retained the sparkle, though it has to be said that he was a middle-order batsman who could indulge in strokeplay with greater freedom than Gavaskar whose primary task was to see off the new ball and take away the sting from those menacing pacemen. Gavaskar and de Silva were of similar stature, maybe the latter was even a wee bit shorter, both compact and well balanced and similarly correct in strokeplay.

De Silva would drive in glorious fashion through the covers, or cut off the back foot, and was quick to hook or pull the short ones. When he got into the groove he was liable to pull off a string of big scores. His highest Test score of 267 came against New Zealand in 1990-91, the same match in which Martin Crowe registered his personal best of 299. De Silva scored centuries in each innings of a Test twice, against Pakistan at the Sinhalese Sports Club, Colombo in 1996-97, when he was unbeaten in both innings, and against India on the same ground the next season.

His most prolific year was 1997 when he amassed 1220 runs at an average of 76.25 with 7 hundreds, the most since Vivian Richards got as many 21 years earlier. In his 93 Tests, de Silva logged up 6361 runs at an average of 42.97 with 20 centuries.

The 1996 World Cup was memorable for de Silva’s superb strokeplay. His 91 against Zimbabwe was followed by 145 versus Kenya, the highest for Sri Lanka in a One-dayer. In the semi-final he hit 66 of the 85 runs scored while he was in, against India. In the final he brought up victory with his unbeaten 107. That was in addition to his stint of three for 42 with the ball. He was man-of-the-match in the semifinal as well as final. If the player-of-the-tournament award had not been decided before the semi-finals, it would surely have gone to de Silva. In the latter half of the nineties, de Silva was doubtlessly one of the three best batsmen in the world, the others being Tendulkar and Lara. There is nothing more to be said.

(Author Indra Vikram Singh can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com).

Don’s Century

Published in India by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0

Fully illustrated

Paperback French Fold 11 x 8.5 x 0.4 inches

Weight 480 grams

188 pages

Available on Amazon at an attractive price: https://www.amazon.in/dp/8190166859  

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Road to the cricket World Cup 2019. Lara's theme halts South African juggernaut. Excerpt from Indra Vikram Singh’s book ‘The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011’

South v West Indies (Quarter-final)

National Stadium, Karachi  •  11 March 1996

Brian Lara did not always relish the slow wickets of the sub-continent. With a penchant for playing even spinners on the rise, he was rarely happy with the ball not coming on to the bat. And here was a pitch which offered turn and also bounce. The opponents, South Africa, were in prime form, having won ten consecutive matches, including five in a row in the round-robin stage of the present competition. But when Lara was in good nick, little else mattered.

He came in at 42 for one off just six overs, and took charge rightaway. Using his wrists in inimitable fashion, Lara cut and flicked the pacemen. When the spinners came on he used his feet, and also employed the sweep to good effect. He raced to his fifty off just 45 deliveries, and then clouted Pat Symcox for 22 runs in an over, including five boundaries, four of them off successive balls. These were glimpses of the Lara of 1994, who broke the records for the highest individual scores in Tests as well as first-class cricket. Since then his career was chequered for a few years until he shifted into overdrive. On this day he was at his effervescent best.

The South Africans are usually an efficient, professional side. But they found themselves helpless when faced with the awesome talent of Lara in such brilliant touch. The seam of Shaun Pollock, Craig Matthews, Brian McMillan and Hansie Cronje came to him as easy as the contrasting spin of Pat Symcox and Paul Adams. In this mood no bowler troubled him as he toyed with all that was hurled at him, in his cavalier style. Being slight of build, not for him were shots of power. Rarely did he loft the ball. He wielded his bat with the deftness of touch of a born artist. Some of the strokes were patently his own - playing late, waiting for the ball to do what it had to off the pitch, and then guiding it with extremely skillful wrists. Unlike Mohammad Azharuddin, who used his wrists to flick the ball towards the on-side, Lara's wristwork enabled him to place the ball with a lightness of touch on the off-side as well. Hardly ever did you hear the thump of the ball against Lara's bat. He seemed to merely caress it most of the time.

In the company of Shivnaraine Chanderpaul, Lara added 138 runs for the second wicket in just under 25 overs. By then the West Indies had reached 180 in 30.5 overs, and poised for a total of 300. Lara cruised on, reaching his first World Cup century off 83 deliveries in his 13th match, having hit five half-centuries earlier. This was the second-quickest in the event, taking one ball more than Clive Lloyd's hundred in the 1975 final. Lara proceeded to notch up 111 runs off just 94 balls with 16 hits to the fence. With this he lifted his average in the premier event to over 50. After his departure the West Indies innings lost momentum somewhat, but Lara had already ensured that his side's total would be enough to get them into the semi-finals. "The difference was Lara", rued Cronje.

Not for nothing was Lara considered a temperamental genius. When in form there was no sight quite like him in international cricket. It is also a fact that in the four years prior to this tournament - and after - the West Indies relied almost exclusively on Lara, Richie Richardson and Chanderpaul to get the runs. And so was it in their last three matches, in which they performed so well, in the 1996 tournament. Perhaps Lara felt uninspired in a lacklustre team. Whatever it was, innings like the one at Karachi were few and often far between during that phase from this immensely gifted player.

West Indies  264 for eight wickets (50 overs)

South Africa  245 all out (49.3 overs)

(Author Indra Vikram Singh can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com).

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Indra Vikram Singh’s books are available at attractive prices on Amazon:

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011

Published in India by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

https://www.amazon.in/dp/8190166840

Crowning Glory

Published by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-6-7

https://www.amazon.in/dp/8190166867

Don’s Century

Published in India by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-5-0

https://www.amazon.in/dp/8190166859

A Maharaja’s Turf

Published in India by Sporting Links

ISBN 978-81-901668-3-6

https://www.amazon.in/dp/8190166832

Indra Vikram Singh’s forthcoming books:

Indian Spring, on India’s triumph in the cricket World Cup 2011

Wonder Down Under, special souvenir on the cricket World Cup 2015

Wills Cricket World Cup 1996 - Rampaging Lankans storm their way to the pinnacle : Excerpt from ‘The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011’ by Indra Vikram Singh

The sub-continent had the honour of staging the tournament once again in 1996. This time three nations - India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka - played host. Now the top three associate members vied with nine teams from the big league. For the first time teams like ICC Trophy 1994 winners United Arab Emirates, Holland and Kenya made their appearance. Kenya had been represented in 1975 in the East Africa team. Now they were an entity by themselves.

Wills were the sponsors of this edition. The amount paid by them for title sponsorship only was Rupees 552 million ($12.8 million).  It was cricketing heritage to the fore with a 28-inch sterling silver trophy, conceived and designed in 1882 specifically for the game of cricket by the 200-year-old Garrard and Company of London, the Crown jewellers. The trophy has etchings of a painting done in 1785 depicting a cricket match in progress. The painting adorns a wall of the cricket museum at Lord's.

That Sri Lanka, a team listed along with the minnows not long ago, lifted the exquisite trophy in a masterly display at Lahore, was evidence of the fact that the game had touched new frontiers.

The mascot for the tournament was an animated cricket ball named "Googlee", designed by Hindustan Thompson Associates. The sponsors described the mascot as a "reflection of the refreshing resurgence of a fine cricketing art - leg-spin bowling - within which the googly is the perfect symbol for intrigue, unpredictability, and the courage to dare to be different."

By now satellite television had ensured that cricket became a global sport. Unimagined sums were raked in by way of television rights, to vie with gate money in the revenue stakes. It was estimated that two million people watched the matches at the grounds, but two billion saw them on television during the 1996 World Cup, a quarter of these in India alone. No wonder World Tel paid $10.7 million plus 75 percent of the profits, totalling $22 million, for worldwide television rights that they in turn sold to various channels.

Instadia advertising rights were bought by Gokul Finance for Rs.150 million ($4 million). Professional Managment Group (PMG) helped sell these advertisement boards. Sightscreens and other instadia advertisements raked in another $1.5 million. The average gate collections are believed to have been around Rupees 10 million ($267,000) per match.

Marketing of the World Cup soared to amazing peaks. The official suppliers reportedly paid $8 million, with Coca Cola pouring in $3.7 million plus $340,000 for hoardings. Visa, Wimpy's and Indian Overseas Bank paid $350,000 each. Others like Taj Group of Hotels, Indian Airlines, Tradewings, PCL Computers and Fuji Film offered various packages. International Management Group (IMG) shelled out $4 million for hospitality tents that they put up in 17 venues across India.

The prize money totalled £200,000 ($324,000), with the winners receiving £30,000 ($48,600), and the runners-up £20,000 ($32,400). The losing semi-finalists received £10,000 ($16,200) each, while the losing quarter-finalists took home £5,000 ($8,100) each. The award for the man-of-the-tournament was an Audi A4 car, which was won by Sri Lanka's scintillating opening batsman Sanath Jayasuriya.

Guarantee money of $405,000 each was paid to Test-playing nations, and $202,500 each to associate members. Even associate members that did not play this tournament received $162,000 each.

The teams were again divided into two groups. Group A comprised Australia, India, Kenya, Sri Lanka, West Indies and Zimbabwe. In Group B were England, Holland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. For the first time there was a quarter-final stage, and the teams that did not make it were Holland, Kenya, the United Arab Emirates and Zimbabwe. The semi-finals were contested between Australia and the West Indies, and India and Sri Lanka. Australia advanced to the final along with Sri Lanka, and the rest is history.

The final:

Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, 17 March 1996

Sri Lanka won by 7 wickets

Australia: 241 for 7 wickets in 50 overs (Mark Taylor 74, Ricky Ponting 45, Michael Bevan 36 not out, Aravinda de Silva 3 for 42)

Sri Lanka: 245 for 3 wickets in 46.2 overs (Asanka Gurusinha 65, Aravinda de Silva 107 not out, Arjuna Ranatunga 47 not out)

Man of the Match: Aravinda de Silva

Player of the Tournament: Sanath Jayasuriya

(Author Indra Vikram Singh can be contacted on email singh_iv@hotmail.com).

The Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011

ISBN 978-81-901668-4-3

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