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Prime Minister Narendra Modi met up with the 1996 World Cup-winning members during his visit to Sri Lanka.
PM Modi meets with Sri Lanka’s 1996 World Cup-winning team. (Image: X)
The Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi during his visit to Sri Lanka interacted with some of the members of their iconic 1996 World Cup-winning squad earlier today.
The Indian PM in a post on his official handle on X (formerly known as Twitter) shared a few images with some of the Sri Lankan stars.
His post was captioned saying, “Cricket connect! Delighted to interact with members of the 1996 Sri Lankan cricket team, which won the World Cup that year. This team captured the imagination of countless sports lovers!”
Cricket connect!Delighted to interact with members of the 1996 Sri Lankan cricket team, which won the World Cup that year. This team captured the imagination of countless sports lovers! pic.twitter.com/2ZprMmOtz6
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 5, 2025
The squad led by Arjuna Ranatunga managed to beat Australia by 7 wickets and 22 balls to spare in the summit-clash held in Lahore on March 17. The Aussies had set a target of 242 with the skipper, Mark Taylor leading the charge with a 74-run knock.
But the Sri Lankans pulled out a performance for the ages as Aravinda de Silva’s unbeaten 107 alongside supporting knocks of 65 in 99 balls by Asanka Gurusinha and Arjuna Ranatunga’s quickfire 47 in 37 balls helped them claim their first and only World Cup title.
PM Modi Conferred With Mitra Vibhushana Award By Sri Lanka
The award, the highest civilian honour of the island nation, was instituted in February 2008 by then President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Its previous recipients include former Maldivian president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.
“It is an honour for me to be awarded the Sri Lanka Mithra Vibhushana by President Dissanayake. It is also an honour for 1.4 billion Indians,” Modi said in his remarks.
The award was bestowed on Modi by Dissanayake during a ceremony at the presidential secretariat in Colombo.
The recipient of the honour is awarded a citation and a silver medal to be worn around the neck, studded and adorned with nine types of Sri Lankan gems and the symbols of a lotus, globe, sun, moon and sheaves of rice.
Modi landed in Colombo last evening after concluding his trip to Bangkok, where he attended a summit of the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation).
(with PTI Inputs)
