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Arjuna Ranatunga claims his 1996 Sri Lankan team would beat the current Indian side in three days. He also criticised the Sri Lankan Cricket Board for not nurturing talent.
Arjuna Ranatunga (L) and Rohit Sharma (R) – AFP Image
Former Sri Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga made a bold claim, referring to India’s poor form in Test cricket. The 1996 World Cup winner feels his champion team would have defeated the current Indian side at home within just three days.
Rohit Sharma and his men have failed to qualify for the 2025 World Test Championship (WTC) final after losing two crucial Test series in a row. They first suffered a 3-0 whitewash against New Zealand on home soil before going down 3-1 in the Border Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
Ranatunga who was in charge of the Sri Lankan team for almost a decade, reckons his team featured some top-quality bowlers like Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan who would easily beat Rohit Sharma and Co, that too in India.
“With bowlers like Vaas and Murali, that team of mine would have beaten India in India in three days,” Ranatunga said during an interview with the Telegraph. He further showed his faith in the current Sri Lankan team but lashed out at the management and the board for not nurturing the talents properly.
“There is no dearth of talent even in this current Sri Lankan team. Overall, it’s a pretty talented lot. Looking back at the 1996 team, only Aravinda De Silva was a few notches above the present team players. The actual problem lies within the SLC (Sri Lanka Cricket). The management of the board is corrupt, which is the root cause of all problems,” Ranatunga explained.
After India crashed out of the race, Sri Lanka had a great opportunity to reach the WTC final. They, however, lost the deciding two-match series to Australia at home, finishing sixth in the standings.
Meanwhile, India, shaking off the WTC disappointment, is now gearing up for the ICC Champions Trophy, scheduled to begin on February 19. The Men in Blue are currently playing an ODI series against England at home.
India has already secured an unassailable lead in the bilateral assignment by winning the first two games. They will look to replicate the result in the third ODI and wrap up the series on a triumphant note. India will open their Champions Trophy campaign with a match against Bangladesh in Dubai on February 20.
