Making amends: Sri Lanka bounce back in style

Defeat Australia by 82 runs in second ODI to level series 1-1

Sri Lanka made amends for their first ODI loss to Australia by cantering to an 82-run win in the second ODI at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo yesterday.

Kusal Mendis (69), Dinesh Chandimal (48), Angelo Mathews (57) and Kusal Perera (54) all starred with the bat in what was a comfortable win for the Islanders, who are now level with Australia in the five-match one-day series.

Electing to bat first, Sri Lanka posted a strong total of 288 runs courtesy a 125-run and 103-run partnership between Chandimal and Mendis and Perera and Mathews respectively. But it was not all smooth sailing for the hosts, who had to fight to stay in the match.

Sri Lanka lost opener Danushka Gunathilaka early on as he was clean bowled by Mitchell Starc, who continued his impressive form with the ball by claiming three wickets, while Tillakaratne Dilshan followed suit immediately when he was bowled by Nathan Lyon.



Chandimal and Mendis then brought some stability to Sri Lanka’s innings by registering a 125-run partnership which was broken by spinner Adam Zampa, who first claimed the wicket of Chandimal by catching him leg before and then dismissed Mendis in similar fashion two overs later.

In came skipper Mathews, who, along with Perera, anchored the hosts’ innings which had been threatened by the loss of quick wickets of Chandimal, Mendis and then Dhananjaya de Silva.

By the 31st over, Sri Lanka were 158-5 but thanks to Mathews and Perera’s 103-run stand, the hosts got back in the game and it was only a brilliant spell by James Faulkner, in which he claimed a hat-trick, which broke the partnership.

Faulkner finished with figures of 3-45, while Zampa concluded his spell with figures of 3-42.



The visitors, meanwhile, were off to a torrid start in their chase as they lost opener David Warner on the first ball of the second over off Thisara Perera, who also claimed the wicket of Aaron Finch.

Australia skipper Steven Smith (30) breathed some life into the visitors’ innings by smashing five fours in his quick-fire 30, but wasn’t able to hold his ground for long as he was caught by Dilruwan Perera off Amila Aponso’s delivery in the 10th over.

George Bailey and wicketkeeper Mathew Wade then registered a 61-run stand before the former was bowled by Aponso with Australia at 102-4.



Wade then carried on for the visitors and managed to make 76 run from 88 balls but was unable to handle Sri Lanka’s constant onslaught and finally caved in the 40th over to T Perera, who finished with figures of 3-33.

Travis Head (31) smashed three fours in his 48-ball stay but it was too much to ask from the 22-year-old, who was dismissed by Mathews in the 41st over.

Starc followed Head two balls later, while Zampa was dismissed in the 46th over. The match finished when Faulkner was caught leg-before by Aponso, who finished with career-best figures of 4-18 in only his second ODI.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 25^th, 2016.

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