Flashback: The only Men’s World Cup Final ton that has come in a losing cause
The ICC Men’s World Cup has witnessed six centuries being hit during the finals of the event, but there has been only one such instance where the century came in a losing cause. On all five other occasions, the centurion lifted the trophy with his team, but there’s only one player whose ton during the final game went in vain.
And that player is Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene, who, even after scoring an unbeaten 103*, could not celebrate his achievement as India lifted the World Cup of 2011 by chasing the score and winning the game by six wickets.
The innings’ rhythm was crisp, and the process of building it up was meticulous. While it took 49 balls for Jayawardene to get his first fifty runs, he scored the next set of 50 runs in 35 balls and compiled an unbeaten 103*(88) at the end of the first innings. He entered the innings to bat at No. 4 when his team was struggling at 60/2. However, his magnificent strike helped Sri Lanka post a total of 274/6.
Ironically, Mahela had made his debut for the country against India in the year 1997, the match when Sri Lanka posted the highest ever total in the history of Test cricket as they declared their innings at 952/6.
It was his 16th ODI century, and it turned out to be the only one where his team ended up losing. Prior to that ton, all his 15 ODI centuries had led Sri Lanka to a victory. His outstanding knock was dominated by India’s enthralling victory that day. Even though he felt that he did his best, he wished that to happen with no other player in his life.
The veteran’s swansong was the 2015 World Cup quarter-final game against South Africa, where Sri Lanka failed to move forward in the game, facing a nine-wicket defeat. That was the last game that Jayawardene played before he announced his retirement from international Cricket.
