New Delhi: Sri Lanka’s 1996 World Cup-winning squad is having a reunion in Colombo on January 12. Only two of the 14, Kumar Dharmasena and Marvan Atapattu, will be absent.

According to Roshan Mahanama, a member of the winning 11, the 1996 champions are going to play a T20 match against a Sri Lankan XI to raise funds for Baby Cheramy Big Heart Project, which focuses on “educating destitute children.”

The champions will, of course, be led by Arjuna Ranatunga.

“It’s all for a good cause,” Mahanama, Match Referee during Pakistan’s tour of India, told The Telegraph at the ITC Maurya.

Dharmasena can’t make it for the fund-raiser at the Nondescript Cricket Club as he’s out of Sri Lanka officiating, while batting coach Atapattu is with the national squad in Australia.

There were some doubts over Muttiah Muralidharan’s availability, as he’s busy playing in the KFC Big Bash, but the record-breaking off-spinner has “promised” to make it.

Coach Dav Whatmore, now with Pakistan, has been “invited.” He hasn’t confirmed his presence, though.

The 1996 squad

Sanath Jayasuriya, Romesh Kaluwitharana, Asanka Gurusinha, Aravinda de Silva, Arjuna Ranatunga, Hashan Tillakaratne, Roshan Mahanama, Kumar Dharmasena, Chaminda Vaas, Pramodya Wickramasinghe, Muttiah Muralidharan; Marvan Atapattu, Upul Chandana, Ravindra Pushpakumara