Credit: ICC
On August 31, 1998, legend Muttiah Muralitharan picked up 16 wickets against England at The Oval and guided Sri Lanka to a 10-wicket win. At the toss, Sri Lanka skipper Arjuna Ranatunga emerged victorious and elected to field first. England posted a huge total of 445 runs on the board, riding on the centuries from Graeme Hick and John Crawley. Hick scored 107 runs off 238 balls while John Crawley smashed an unbeaten 156 off 249. Muralitharan looked exceptional with the ball and clinched 7/155 figures in his 59.3-over spell. His hunts included mainstay England batters Mark Ramprakash, Steve James, and Ben Hollioake.
Following the total, Sri Lanka witnessed the batting belligerence of Sanath Jayasuriya and Aravinda de Silva who produced the knocks of 213 and 151 respectively. Riding on the innings from both batters, the visitors erected a massive total of 591 and took a 146-run lead. Muralitharan, who played the role of wrecker-in-chief with the ball, scored crucial 30 runs from his bat.
Muttiah Muralitharan became more ferocious in the second innings
In the second innings, Muttiah Muralitharan looked more aggressive towards batters and delivered another magnificent performance. He registered 9/65 figures in 54.2 overs and played an instrumental role in bundling out the hosts on a total of 181. Mark Ramprakash notched up 42 runs off 220 deliveries and emerged as the highest run-scorer for England in the second innings.
Sri Lanka were tasked to chase the total of 36 runs and their openers Sanath Jayasuriya and Marvan Atapattu took the team home comfortably. Jayasuriya played an unbeaten knock of 24 off 17 while Atapattu contributed nine runs off 13 balls. Muralitharan, who bagged 16 wickets in the contest, became the recipient of the Player of the Match (POTM) award.
