How did Sri Lanka become a cricketing power so quickly?

[Statpadder Inc]

Sri Lanka got test status in 1981 and 15 years later won the wc which is unprecedented.
And they won it in the midst of a civil war, what was the reason for their rapid rise in world cricket when you compare it to a country such as Bangladesh who haven't won even an Asia despite having test status for 2 decades and millions poured in investment

 

[boomboomcheema]

Any country team would look like Quick learners compared to Bangladesh. I bet even Afghanistan and Ireland will win a WC/ ICC Title before Bangladesh.

 

[JaDed]

Any country team would look like Quick learners compared to Bangladesh. I bet even Afghanistan and Ireland will win a WC/ ICC Title before Bangladesh.

Nope Lanka is different.

Lanka had better economy irrespective of civil war , also education wise they were very ahead which helped as school
cricket is what brought out their cricketers.

Also they had all legends for 15 years together.

 

[Statpadder Inc]

No other subcontinental country had a rise as rapid as lanka.

 

[The Bald Eagle]

The raw talent and love of cricket made that happen.

 

[ExpressPacer]

And still going strong…

 

[Cricket Warrior]

They made their presence felt with a bang in 1996 and since then they have never looked back. See where they stand in the Asia Cup winning records compared to other Asian nations.

 

[pakistani pride]

Loads of talent.

 

[BouncerGuy]

They have a habit of winning asia cups for sure. Underdogs in big tournaments.

 

[Swashbuckler]

Pound for pound the greatest cricket nation. 2 crores population for a third world country, saw major civil war for most of their country's history, not as cricket crazy as India, Pakistan. Still 3 ICC trophies since 1996, in last 10 years they have won test series in Eng and SA.

One thing I like about their system is they don't overcoach their players. Loads of natural talent but also with flair and unorthodoxy, they are also very smart and ahead of their time like the tactics in 1996. Streetsmart players with mental toughness to back it, honey badger of cricket.

I always wonder why Tamil Nadu plus Kerala underperform in cricket despite being so similar to Sri Lanka, but with 5 times that population and good economy, HDI.

 

[Swashbuckler]

3 WC finals, 3 T20 WC finals. So not just Asia Cup.

---

 

[Statpadder Inc]

One thing I like about their system is they don't overcoach their players. Loads of natural talent but also with flair and unorthodoxy, they are also very smart and ahead of their time like the tactics in 1996. Streetsmart players with mental toughness to back it, honey badger of cricket.

I always wonder why Tamil Nadu plus Kerala underperform in cricket despite being so similar to Sri Lanka, but with 5 times that population and good economy, HDI.

I read somewhere that lankans are pound for pound, the physically strongest people in the subcontinent

 

[Statpadder Inc]

Pound for pound the greatest cricket nation. 2 crores population for a third world country, saw major civil war for most of their country's history, not as cricket crazy as India, Pakistan. Still 3 ICC trophies since 1996, in last 10 years they have won test series in Eng and SA.

One thing I like about their system is they don't overcoach their players. Loads of natural talent but also with flair and unorthodoxy, they are also very smart and ahead of their time like the tactics in 1996. Streetsmart players with mental toughness to back it, honey badger of cricket.

I always wonder why Tamil Nadu plus Kerala underperform in cricket despite being so similar to Sri Lanka, but with 5 times that population and good economy, HDI.

Cricket seems secondary to football in Kerala

 

[RyanRyan10]

Cricket seems secondary to football in Kerala

And they hardly produce great footballers even by Indian standards, which is very low. They have some great T&F athletes though, most of them which move out to represent other states.

 

[ExpressPacer]

Pound for pound the greatest cricket nation. 2 crores population for a third world country, saw major civil war for most of their country's history, not as cricket crazy as India, Pakistan. Still 3 ICC trophies since 1996, in last 10 years they have won test series in Eng and SA.

One thing I like about their system is they don't overcoach their players. Loads of natural talent but also with flair and unorthodoxy, they are also very smart and ahead of their time like the tactics in 1996. Streetsmart players with mental toughness to back it, honey badger of cricket.

I always wonder why Tamil Nadu plus Kerala underperform in cricket despite being so similar to Sri Lanka, but with 5 times that population and good economy, HDI.

What do you think of their current team and their position in world cricket over the next 5 years?

 

[Hitman]

From being minnows till around 1994 to winning 2 Test series in Pakistan in the 90's. That keeping in mind we won our first Test series in Pakistan in 2004.

 

[Swashbuckler]

What do you think of their current team and their position in world cricket over the next 5 years?

Potential is there and they have some genuine exciting talents in bowling department, both pace and spin. Their batsmen lack temperament, but can play freakish innings against the best in business.

Main problem is their cricket board is bankrupt, they make even PCB look professional. Political interference as well, their players are refusing to sign contracts, Sri Lankan legends are in unison about mismanagement and corruption by their board and then there is the financial crisis their country is facing. So don't think they will challenge top four spot in next 5 years at least.

 

[Swashbuckler]

Cricket seems secondary to football in Kerala

Yet they don't produce quality football players.

 

[Swashbuckler]

I read somewhere that lankans are pound for pound, the physically strongest people in the subcontinent

Don't know about that but their cricketers appear to be the strongest and fittest in Asia, historically the best fielding unit from Asia. Some massive units, just look at Jayasuriya's forearms.

 

[Swashbuckler]

From being minnows till around 1994 to winning 2 Test series in Pakistan in the 90's. That keeping in mind we won our first Test series in Pakistan in 2004.

In the 80s they beat Pakistan at home, in a test series. No mean feat that time because Pak was second best behind the legendary West Indies team that era.

 

[Hitman]

In the 80s they beat Pakistan at home, in a test series. No mean feat that time because Pak was second best behind the legendary West Indies team that era.

They beat Pakistan in a Test match, not series.

 

[mominsaigol]

Sad that the team declined

 

[MenInG]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1776544392414969974

 

[Statpadder Inc]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1776544392414969974

2014 was the most successful year in lankan cricket history, they won the t20 wc, Asia cup and a test series in eng. Been downhill ever since then