Sanath Jayasuriya
Jayasuriya revolutionised the way openers approached an innings in it's formative stages, leaving a mark on the game forever.
The 1996 World Cup brought a new way the game was played to centre stage and the front-running pioneer of this change was none other than Sanath Jayasuriya. His aggressive approach to opening the batting was something the likes of which had rarely been seen before and was a massive contributing factor to Sri Lanka lifting the World Cup for the first time ever. He took advantage of the fielding restrictions imposed early on in the game, lifting the ball over onlooking infielders on the way to cementing invaluable opening partnerships. Nothing is more characteristic of this than his trademark shot that fans all over the world have come to associate with him, his lofted cut over point.
The first recipients of the implementation of this audacious strategy were India who after posting a seemingly mammoth target of 271 in the 24th match of the World Cup were left gobsmacked after Jayasuriya smashed 79 off 76 to demoralise the Indian attack and send Sri Lanka on their way one of many of their shocking victories in the lead up to the final.
As of today, he stands sixth in the list of highest run scorers in World Cup history.
World Cup Record:
Played: 38
Innings: 37
Runs: 1165
High Score: 120
Average: 34.26
Strike Rate: 90.66
Centuries: 3
Fifties: 6
El Loco's XI:
1.
2. Sanath Jayasuriya
3.
4. Javed Miandad
5. Steve Waugh
6. Shakib Al Hasan
7. Andrew Flintoff
8. Richard Hadlee
9. Anil Kumble
10.
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