Before MS Dhoni smashed the winning shot to lift the prestigious trophy of the 2011 World Cup, all Kumar Sangakkara, the then skipper of the Sri Lankan cricket team do was smile. And the smile was captured and it became a historic picture, which was loved by the fans.
The Sri Lankan cricket team posted a competitive total of 275 in front of the Men in Blue during the World Cup finale at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. After the World Cup final, it was Kumar Sangakkara, who gave team India the greatest compliment. He had said:
“When you look at the Indian batting lineup, even 350 isn’t enough”
Recently, during a live interaction with R Ashwin ‘Reminisce with Ash’, Kumar Sangakkara opened up about many things including his ‘historic’ smile in the World Cup 2011 final. He had said:
“I think, in my life, living in Sri Lanka, there are lots of things that bring you down. There are lots of things that you worry about. 30 years we have had wars, we have had natural disasters in 2005. We have so many different issues but one of the greatest things about Sri Lankans is resilience. It is just inborn in us. When we play, we want to win, we are extremely competitive,”
He added:
“Whether we win or lose, we have this equilibrium on how to take a win or loss. The smile hides a huge amount of sadness, of disappointment, of thinking of 20 million people back in Sri Lanka who had been waiting for this for so long, since 1996,”
He also expressed how they had an opportunity in 2007 and 2011, and T20 opportunities in 2009 and 2012, but they failed to win the tournaments. He said:
“We had an opportunity in 2011, opportunity in 2007, then T20 opportunities in 2009 and 2012. So sometimes, the best way to take victory or defeat is to understand that that’s the way life is. Not every single thing goes your way. But the important thing is to be able to take that the same way,”
