India vs Sri Lanka: From 2011 World Cup final to Asia Cup 2008, a look at some blockbuster ODIs between Asian giants

India and Sri Lanka share a storied rivalry when it comes to the cricket field. India's 2011 World Cup triumph, the 1996 World Cup heartbreak, Rohit Sharma's record knock of 264 seven years ago, you name it — a lot of unforgettable memories have been born when two of Asia's biggest cricketing nations have taken centre-stage.

The upcoming limited-overs series will see a second-string Indian side with Shikhar Dhawan leading the side as the senior side is currently away in England for their Test tour, but this will be an opportunity for the likes of Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan to showcase their batting prowess on Lankan soil.

Ahead of the first ODI on 18 July, we take a look at 10 blockbuster India-Sri Lanka clashes:

1996 Cricket World Cup semi-final

On 13 March, 1996, the infamous Cricket World Cup semi-final between India and Sri Lanka was played out at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Sri Lanka, led by Arjuna Ranatunga, came into this contest on the back of an unbeaten run in the tournament, while Mohammad Azharuddin’s India had lost two games before this last-four clash.

Sri Lanka, however, had not been in a World Cup semi-final before and faced a tough task against the 1983 world champions.

It was an encounter which produced a winner under unforeseen circumstances, with the angry fans at the stadium losing patience, and throwing plastic bottles onto the field as India, chasing 252, reeled in their run chase.

India won the toss and chose to field. Their decision to do so seemed to work well in the earlier stages of the game, as they managed to get rid of Sanath Jayasuriya early. However, Aravinda de Silva then gave Sri Lanka a degree of impetus, leading them to 85-4. After this, Sri Lanka changed gears into a much more aggressive style, with Roshan Mahanama (58) and skipper Ranatunga (35) forging an 83-run stand for the fifth wicket. That proved to change the complexion of the innings, and contributions from Hashan Tilakaratne (32) and Chaminda Vaas (23) down the order led them to 251/8.

In India’s reply, despite losing Navjot Singh Sidhu early on, Sachin Tendulkar (65) and Sanjay Manjrekar steadied the ship only for the former to get stumped by Romesh Kaluwitharana off Jayasuriya’s bowling.

Things went downhill for the hosts, enduring a score of 120/8 when Ashish Kapoor was seen off by Muttiah Muralitharan. This was in the 35^th over, and with 15 overs to go, India still needed 132 runs to win with just two wickets in hand. It was after this dismissal that fans hurled plastic water bottles and soft drink containers onto the field. The crowd continued to impede the resumption of the game, and it was only after almost half an hour when match referee Clive Lloyd, along with umpires Cyril Mitchley and Steve Dunne managed to calm the crowd down once the players left field.

And just when Muralitharan was about to bowl the second ball of his incomplete over, the crowd once again got involved in bottle-throwing, and it was only after this that the match officials decided to end the match, and let the Lankans win by default. The Lankans would then go onto beat Australia in the final to clinch their maiden World Cup.

1999 Cricket World Cup

Three years since that infamous exit from the World Cup, it was time for India to exact revenge against the Asian giants. Both the teams were drawn in the same group, along with the likes of England and South Africa.

India did not have the best of starts in the tournament, and were coming into it on the back of two defeats in three games, with their only win till then coming against Kenya.

This time, however, it was a different game altogether after having been put in to bat by the Lankans.

Sri Lanka got off to a dream start, getting rid of S Ramesh towards the end of the very first over. However, it was a rampage all over from then on, with a record partnership of 318 in 45 overs between Dravid and Ganguly eventually propelling India to 373/6. That was the highest in any international limited-overs match at the time, and India were right in command of the game.

This was their highest team score in the World Cup, until their 413/5 against Bermuda in 2007 in the Caribbean.

The Lankans, however, lost momentum as early as in the fifth over following dismissals of Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Karunawitharana. Aravinda de Silva (56) and Arjuna Ranatunga’s (42) knocks were still valuable, but were not enough for the Lankans to see through the game. India were eliminated in the Super Six stage, but Dravid ending up as the tournament’s highest run-scorer with 461 runs was a silver lining.

India vs Sri Lanka, tri-series final in Sharjah 2000

India were outplayed by a formidable Sri Lanka side in the final of this tri-series, also involving Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe ended winless after the four league stage games, while unbeaten Sri Lanka topped the group with eight points. India were second with four points, having won two matches.

Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to bat, and it was Sanath Jayasuriya all the way. There were hardly any set batsmen at the other end, but Jayasuriya hardly lost rhythm. He clobbered 21 fours and four sixes en route to his 161-ball knock of 189, but a gritty unbeaten 52 from Russell Arnold meant that Lankans would finish at 299/5.

You wouldn’t expect an Indian side boasting the likes of Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar at the top to tumble, but it was just not their day as wickets kept falling like nine pins. The highest Indian score of the innings was Robin Singh (11), while the rest of the batsmen all collapsed for single figures. Chaminda Vaas took five wickets to destroy India for just 54. Jayasuriya was later adjudged Man of the Match for his batting heroics.

India vs Sri Lanka, Jaipur ODI 2005

India had dominated the first two ODIs with victories in this seven-match series contest, and eyes were on extending that lead now. Sri Lanka opted to bat in what was a very even contest, and Kumar Sangakkara was probably the highlight of their innings with an unbeaten 138, while Mahela Jayawardene also did his bit with a knock of 71. These knocks, along with Farveez Maharoof’s unbeaten 33 led Lankans to 298/4.

In reply, India lost Tendulkar early in the first over, but then came MS Dhoni who did wonders with the bat.

Dhoni had forged a 96-run stand with Sehwag when he notched up his first ODI century months earlier against Pakistan, and this time the duo put up 92 for the second wicket. Support came aplenty for Dhoni, with Dravid (28) and Yuvraj (18) playing vital cameos, but it was Venugopal Rao (19*) who eventually saw off the game with Dhoni, with six wickets and 23 balls to spare.

 2011 Cricket World Cup final

Everyone who’s witnessed this game, live at the ground or on TV, knows what exactly happened in this final at the Wankhede Stadium. It came home to India after 28 years, after heroics from Gautam Gambhir (97) and Dhoni himself (91*) powered India to their target of 275 with 10 balls to spare.

Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to bat, but lost Upul Tharanga early. Knocks from Kumar Sangakkara (48) and Jayawardene (103*) had stabilized their innings to take them to 274/6. Not to forget, even cameos from Nuwan Kulasekara (32) and Thisara Perera (22*) were crucial. But, in the end, it was not meant to be for the Lankans.

2008 Asia Cup final

Eight years since Jayasuriya’s blistering 189, the opener, 39 years old at the time of the 2008 Asia Cup final, was once again at his best with a knock of 125.

India elected to field after winning the toss, and while wickets were consistently falling in their favour, Jayasuriya continued to trouble the bowlers during the course of his 114-ball knock.

The Lankans were 66/4 at one stage but a 131-run stand between Jayasuriya and Tilakaratne Dilshan brought them back in it, as they were bundled out for 273.

274 seemed like a challenging target, but it was a below-par batting display from Indians, with knocks from Sehwag (60) and Dhoni (49) being the only positives.

Ajantha Mendis scalped his best figures of 6/13 to see off India for 173, helping Sri Lanka seal the trophy with a 100-run win.

India vs Sri Lanka, 4^th ODI, 2014/15

One of the most recent matches over the years will be known for ‘Hitman’ Rohit Sharma’s merciless knock of 264. India had already clinched the five-match series 3-0, and it was just pride to play for the Lankans at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens.

India elected to bat first but lost Ajinkya Rahane within the first 10 overs. Rohit Sharma at the other end kept calm and held his nerve in his 173-ball knock, which included 33 fours and nine sixes at a strike rate of 152.

With this knock, Rohit broke Virender Sehwag’s record of 219 as an individual score in ODIs, as India posted 404/5 on board. No batsman apart from Dilshan (34) found an answer to the Indian bowlers, up until Angelo Mathews (75) and Lahiru Thirimanne (59) stepped up, but the target was too much to ask for a side losing frequent wickets.

The Lankans were bundled out for 251 in the 44^th over as the hosts eased to a comfortable win.

2019 Cricket World Cup

Up until this last league game, India were coming off a smooth World Cup barring a defeat to England. Sri Lanka were down and out of the tournament, and were playing for pride. They won the toss and opted to bat first, however, their plan to do so was met with a setback, being restricted to 55/4. In the middle order, Mathews (113) and Thirimanne (53) led their recovery to post 264/7.

In reply, the openers did light work of the chase as KL Rahul (111) and Rohit Sharma (103) led India to a seven-wicket win with more than six overs to spare.

India vs Sri Lanka, 1^st ODI at Rajkot, 2009

Talk about a run-fest! This epic India-Sri Lanka thriller was played out at the Madhavrao Scindia Cricket Ground, Rajkot, and India, led by Dhoni came out on top. The Lankans won the toss and elected to field first, but it was partnerships galore as the Indian top-order, comprising of Sehwag (146), Tendulkar (69) and Dhoni (72), ran riot to take India to 414/7.

Jadeja, too, played a pivotal role with a 17-ball knock of 30.

You wouldn’t see an explosive Sri Lankan top-order these days but Tharanga (67), Dilshan (160) and Sangakkara (90)  responded strongly in this even contest.

Dilshan was dismissed in the 40^th with the Lankans at 339-4, and that was when Indians gained a sense of optimism. Their lower order, despite a valuable 38 from Mathews, failed to produce that explosion the top order provided, and they eventually fell short by three runs.

2007 ICC World Cup

After suffering an opening loss to Bangladesh, followed by a victory over Bermuda, a Rahul Dravid-led India came into their final group game against Sri Lanka needing a win. They had just two points, while Sri Lanka had won both their opening games, so there was no doubt that Lankans had the upper hand heading into the contest.

India elected to field first, and although Sri Lanka lost Jayasuriya early, Tharanga’s valiant 64 brought them back into the game, and by the halfway mark of the Lankan innings, they were 100/3.

However, the Islanders suffered a setback when Tharanga was dismissed in the 33rd, leaving them at 133/4. After that, a knock of 59 from Chamara Silva, and contributions from Dilshan and the rest of the lower-order batsmen would eventually take Sri Lanka to 254/6.

India, boasting a batting line-up with the likes of Rahul Dravid and Tendulkar, began their chase on a horrific note.

A flurry of wickets meant India were restricted to 98/4 in the 23rd after the dismissal of Sehwag (48), but Dravid’s composed knock of 60 gave them a glimmer of hope. However, he didn't have much support at the other end, and when he lost his wicket, India’s score read 159-8. It was then just a matter of time before they were dismissed for 185, with Muralitharan picking up three wickets. This confirmed India’s exit from the tournament, while Sri Lanka would go onto reach the final, where they lost to Australia.