Veteran Sri Lankan all-rounder and former national captain Angelo Matthews recently opened up about the dramatic 2011 World Cup final between India and Sri Lanka at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.
Apart from being a thrilling affair, the 2011 World Cup final has been also famous for some outrageous claims including the toss controversy, while it was a heartbreak for the Islanders whereas it was a memorable glory for the hosts' Indian cricket team.
Sri Lanka had posted a good total of 274/6 and even had a great start while defending the total with the early dismissals of Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, but Gautam Gambhir (97) and MS Dhoni’s (91*) heroics with the bat brought the memorable win for India at the iconic Wankhede Stadium.
In an interview with Anis Sajan on his Youtube chat show Cricket Unplugged, Mathews – who was also part of the World Cup 2011 apart from two T20 World Cups in 2009 and 2010, opened up on the final, saying the Islanders fell short by 20-30 runs in the final against India.
Mathews said, “That was my first 50-overs World Cup as I played in the World T20 in 2009 and 2010. 2011 was a special one, especially because we were playing in our own conditions. We played some great cricket en route to the finals, and even in the final. Unfortunately, I got injured and that’s one of my disappointing moments as I was looking forward to playing the final after winning the semi-final.”
The veteran further recalled, “I couldn’t even walk for two weeks after the quadriceps muscle injury as it was painful. The doctors also ruled out my chances of me playing. But I was thankful that I was taken with the squad to India to see if I can play, but it didn’t happen."
I still feel that if we had gotten about 320, we could’ve given a good fight even against India’s strong batting lineup. Indian wickets are flat as roads and when a batsman gets going, it can be really tough to stop him. India had a gun batting lineup as well. Wankhede is not a massive stadium, but the ball stays hit when you hit it and the pitch was also good.”
He concluded, “We were short by about 20 to 30 runs. We had our chances, but Gambhir and Virat (Kohli) batted really well. Then, MS Dhoni joined them and finished it off. All in all, it was a good game.”
(With Cric Tracker Inputs)
