Five Best Innings of Tillakaratne Dilshan
Here we will have a look at the five best innings of Tillakaratne Dilshan. He is an all-round performer on the field with destructive abilities. He is always an asset to have in the team. This batting all-rounder can score runs at a brisk pace and totally unsettle the bowlers. He can also chip in with wickets with his handy off-spin bowling and moreover he is a swift and agile fielder and can save some runs and pull of great catches on the field virtually on any fielding position. He has also kept wickets for Sri Lanka in many matches. Let us have a look at his best five:
5. 108* vs England
If history was taken into consideration, the target of 230 should have been a competitive one for Sri Lanka to chase in the quarter-final of the 2011 World Cup at the Premadasa Stadium. There were not many successful run chases on this ground prior to this. After a series of tough group matches England were backing themselves up to defend this total. But Dilshan and Tharanga made it as easy as one would like and chased this total down with all 10 wickets in hand. Both batsmen after the early explosive start applied a sensible approach by ticking singles and also dispatched the loose deliveries. Inspite of some good bowling, the English were unable to trouble the Sri Lankans in any way and both remained unbeaten completing their centuries on course. This victory booked their birth for the semi-final and later they lost the final to India.
4. 81* vs India
After losing their top five including the likes of Jayasuriya, Sangakkara, Jayawardene and Attapattu, it looked like Sri Lanka will again meet the same fate in the fifth ODI as they did in the first four matches of the 7 match ODI series. But, Dilshan who came in at number 6 was the saviour for SriLanka, he scored 81 of just 67 balls and had an unbeaten partnership of 131 with Russel Arnold for the sixth wicket to see Sri Lanka through the target of 285. He made great use of the favourable conditions due to the dew in the outfield. It proved to be the only victory for Sri Lanka in the series.
3. 92 and 123* vs New Zealand
Dilshan was opening for the first time in Test cricket in the first Test against the Kiwis at home in 2009. Inspite of losing his two partners very early in the innings, he did not hold himself back and kept on playing his shots and was at his natural best. He missed out on a blistering century when he got out on 92 off just 67 balls. After taking a huge first innings lead there was not a big pressure on the hosts in the second innings. Dilshan batted even more freely and his shot selection was better this time around. He completed his much deserved ton and remained unbeaten for 123. Sri Lanka won the match by a big margin.
2. 96* vs West Indies
In the semi-finals of the second edition of the World T20 in England, Sri Lanka was invited to bat by Chris Gayle. Dilshan took the charge and blasted the Windies bowling early in the innings. He was the dominant partner in the opening partnership of 73 with Jayasuriya who struggled to find his flow all through the innings of 37 balls in which he scored only 24. But after the departure of Jayasuriya nobody was even able to stand with Dilshan. He made an unbeaten 96 out of the total of 158. Sri Lanka later won the match and sealed a date with Pakistan for an all Asian final.
1. 160 vs India
No matter how flat a wicket is, it is never easy to chase the target of over 400 in an ODI game. In the first match of the series India posted a total of 414 at Rajkot in late 2009. This gave Dilshan the licence to go all guns blazing and start firing from the word go, and he did exactly what he enjoys the most. He just kept hitting the ball all around the park. He was picking up the ball from every length. At one point of time, it looked like he will become the first man to score a 200, but unfortunately he fell for 160 of 124 balls and his side lost just by 3 runs.
