Team India will begin first Test against Sri Lanka in the two-match series on their 80th Independence Day on Saturday in Galle.
Published: August 14, 2026, 11:08 AM IST
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Kapil Dev led India to their first ODI World Cup title in 1983(Source: X)
India vs Sri Lanka 2026 1st Test: Shubman Gill’s Team India will begin the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka on a special day – the country’s 80th Independence Day on SaturdaySince India got Independence in 1983, the country has seen plenty of landmark moments on the cricket field – from 2011 ODI World Cup win to 2007, 2024 and 2026 T20 World Cup triumphs.
It is always a difficult proposition to pick one path-breaking triumph since Independence DayFormer India left-arm spinner Murali Kartik spoke to India.com and shared the one cricket success which changed India cricket’s eco-system.
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Ahead of the first Test between India and Sri Lanka at Galle, Kartik spoke to a select group of media, including India.comAsked about Indian cricket’s biggest moment since gaining Independence in 1947, Kartik said it was the 1983 ODI World Cup win under captain Kapil Dev.
“The 1983 World Cup win was a huge, huge moment, because that inspired a lot of young people to take up the gameYou think of one moment, and I’m thinking for other sports in India as well,” Kartik told India.com.
“Imagine somebody doing something similar in other sports – winning a major in golf or doing something spectacular in tennisIt actually inspires usHow did we all start playing the game? It is because we were inspired by somebodyThat is the reason why you have somebody trying to copy Jasprit Bumrah or a Harbajan Singh or a Anil Kumble or Ravichandran Ashwin.
“If you can even inspire 1 per cent of the population, I think you’ve done a great jobSo, from that point of view, I think 1983 was a huge moment, because things changed around, the belief system changed that we can also do it at the highest stage,” Kartik said.
Kapil Dev’s Team India defeated two-time champions West Indies to win their ODI World Cup title in 1983 at Lord’s in LondonIndia had to wait another 28 years for their next ODI World Cup titles, which came under the captaincy of MS Dhoni in 2011.
In T20 cricket, India have won three World Cups – the first one again under Dhoni in 2007Rohit Sharma helped India become T20 World Cup champions for the second time in 2024 in West Indies and Suryakumar Yadav’s side became the first team to defend the title – winning in 2026 earlier this year in March.
Independence Day plans? We’ve got you covered #SLvIND 1st Test begins tomorrow, 9 AM onwards, LIVE on Sony Sports Network TV channels & Sony LIV#SonySportsNetwork #SonyLIV #BeautifulGameOfTestCricket pic.twitter.com/MRMQXPc7Dx
— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) August 14, 2026
Kartik turned out in 8 Tests and 37 ODIs for Team India in his career, claiming 24 and 37 wickets respectivelyThe 49-year-old left-arm spinner also snared 644 wickets in first-class cricket.
The former Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings star, however, refused to name a single player who can be called the ‘greatest Indian cricketers’ since Independence.
“Again, from a single point of view, as I said, I’m not going to name anyone, because all of them have played a huge part in where we areIt’s an exclusive club,” Kartik said.
“It’s not a club where you can pay and get intoPeople work really hard to wear that India cap, and what, 705 players have played for India or 706 have played for India, if I’ve got my stats right across all three formatsSo that’s a very exclusive club and I’m pretty sure everybody has played a big part in getting India where it is,” he added.
Kartik believes that it will be an injustice to name only one cricketer as an inspiration for the sport“We are in a better position because of what someone else did for usSo, from that point of view, think of what the first Indian team and what they had to endure, and what they had to do and from that, if you take the history of India to where it is right now, we are one of the powerhouses of world cricket,” he felt.
(Watch Sri Lanka vsIndia 1st Test Day 1 on August 15, 2026, from 10 AM IST live on Sony Sports Ten 1 SD & HD & Sony LIV)
