Tarish Bhatt
What it means to become a Kumar Sangakkara? Be it at Tests, ODIs and T20s, You need to score runs at all levels. And, no one is willing to buy the argument that he is supposed to retire from ODI cricket after this World Cup, seeing the kind of form he is in.
The Lankan Lion is setting new standards every day, and against Scotland in Hobart he became the first batsman to score four successive ODI centuries in the history of the game. Earlier, Sangakkara made an unbeaten 105 against Bangladesh and another 117 not out against England.
These two knocks were followed by 104 against Australia, and against Scotland, he made a stoke-full 124. This majestic form also propelled Sri Lanka to a thumping win over the Scots in Hobart.
In the process, the Sri Lankan all-rounder now has surpassed six batsmen, who had scored three ODI centuries in a row. Not only that, he is the leading run scorer in this World Cup and also the leading scorer in all forms of the game in last five years. It’s nothing but a remarkable achievement.
With Sri Lanka already in the quarterfinals, it would be interesting to see what kind of role Sangakkara would play. His team is backing him to make this World Cup a memorable one. But the forms of Mahela Jayawardene and T Dilshan would equally be important for Lanka to cherish their dream.
Not to forget that Sri Lankans are the 2011 finalist and had lost India at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. Last years, they played and won the final of the World T20 championship against India in Bangladesh.
So, their track record is fairly decent as far as the ICC events are concerned. Now, it all boils down to what Sangakkara would do for his team in the days to come!
