ICC World Cup 1975 - Sri Lanka's courageous display against Australia's furious pace

Duleep Mendis receives medical treatment after being hit on the head by Jeff Thomson

Sri Lanka and East Africa were the non-Test status teams to participate in the inaugural ICC World Cup in 1975. Both teams suffered heavy defeats in their respective opening matches. The Kiwis thrashed the East Africans while the Sri Lankans were mauled by the Caribbean pace battery.

In their second match, East Africa were, as expected, pummeled by the Indians at Leeds, and at the Oval the same fate was expected in case of Sri Lanka because this time around, their batsmen had to face the fury of Lillee and Thomson who were as lethal as the West Indian pace battery.

Australian batsmen feed on Lankan bowlers

After the horrifying experience against West Indies, the Sri Lankan captain Anura Tennekoon didn’t want to expose his batsmen against Lillee and Thomson earlier in the morning and decided to field first on a placid Oval track after winning the toss.

But Tennekoon’s decision didn’t favour Sri Lanka as the Australian openers - Rick McCosker and Alan Tuner made the Lankan bowlers to toil hard. Turner hit nine fours and one six to script a knock of 101 runs. The opening stand of 182 runs was ended as legspinner Somachandra de Silva accounted for the wicket of Alan Turner. De Silva accounted for the wicket of McCosker as well and after a while Lalith Wasantha Silva Kaluperuma dismissed Ian Chappell cheaply to bring the Sri Lankans back into the game.

But Sri Lanka’s joy didn’t last long as Greg Chappell and Doug Walters started to dent the Lankan bowlers by scoring at a rapid pace. A partnership of 117 runs for the fourth wicket came up quickly and the Australians posted a huge total of 328 for 5 in 60 overs.

Sri Lanka’s gutsy reply

Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson delivered thunderbolts but the Sri Lankan openers, Ranjit Fernando and Sidath Wettimuny weathered the storm well. After scripting a cautious opening stand of thirty runs, Fernando was castled by Thomson’s sheer pace. Bandarna Warnapura and Wettimuny added 54 runs for the second wicket. Ashley Mallet dismissed Warnapura but that didn’t dent Sri Lanka’s momentum at all.

Duleep Mendis joined Wettimuny and both of them batted with courage and confidence to give Ian Chappell enough headaches. The Sri Lankans were 150 for 2 in 32 overs and were well on course to chase down Australia’s mammoth total.

Dennis Lillee (L) and Jeff Thomson

The Sri Lankans did weather the fury of Lillee and Thomson earlier, but when Ian Chappell introduced both of them for a second burst, they were too hot to handle. Especially Thomson was devastating. As Chappell recalled, “The two little Sri Lankans (Duleep Mendis and Sunil Wettimuny) were going boom, boom, boom and I said to Thommo (Jeff Thomson), look, these guys certainly can play on the front foot, let’s see how good they are on the back foot”.

The fury of Jeff Thomson

Jeff Thomson transformed into a demon when he came back to bowl in his second spell. Thomson continued to bang the ball short with extreme pace and thudded into the batsman’s body again and again. According to Wettimuny, “It was like a flash. I couldn't see the ball”. Remembering that spell, Mendis said, “It was the fastest spell of fast bowling I had ever faced in my life. He was averaging over 100 miles. It was seriously fast and we had no protection. You couldn't pick the ball cleanly from his action that he had - plucking the ball from behind - and over that, he was firing them at top speed. It was a great challenge”.

Mendis and Wettimuny’s resistance against Thomson didn’t last long as a Thomson snorter hit Mendis on the head and immediately he went down on the pitch as if he was shot in the head with a gun. The figure of Mendis lying on the pitch was a sad sight. He was taken to hospital for further medical management.

Duleep Mendis being taken off the ground after he was hit by a Thomson snorter

Then Thomson knocked down Wettimuny. Thomson delivered a fast inswinging yorker which hit Wettimuny’s foot badly and he yelped in pain, but received no sympathy from Thomson, who uttered, “Look, it's not broken, you weak bastard. But if you're down there next over, it will be”.

But Wettimuny didn’t give up easily and decided to carry on. And yes, he was on strike when Thomson returned to bowl again and again, Thomson banged in another yorker into the same spot again – Wetimuny’s foot was broken and with that his confidence ebbed away.

Mendis and Wettimuny were admitted in the same hospital for treatment and were discharged the next day. But Wettimuny was forced to walk on crutches because of a damaged instep while Mendis missed Sri Lanka's last match with a lingering headache.

Sri Lanka didn’t give up but continued the fight back

Sri Lanka’s hope of scripting a win was dented by the departure of Wettimuny and Mendis but they refused to get intimidated by the fury of Australian pace. Anura Tennekoon and Michael Tissera continued the Sri Lankan fight and added 82 runs for the third wicket. Tennekoon scored 48 while Tissera 52 runs but, it was not enough as they lost the match by 52 runs with six wickets intact.

While bowling the bouncers Jeff Thomson said, “They were only little fellas so you couldn't call it a bouncer exactly”. Indeed, they were little fellas but they were not short of confidence and courage. The Australians might have won that day, but, Sri Lanka had received all the accolades for their courageous display.