Lankans rev-up but Duckworth/Lewis has the last say
Lankan batsman Dasun Shanaka who top scored with a bright knock of 66, is run out. Pix by Priyantha Wickramaarachchi
Another match, another loss. But this time, Sri Lanka can hold their heads high for they fought with renewed aggression, something they lacked in the past. Their 18-run defeat against England in the Duckworth/Lewis method cost them the series 3-0, with one to go in the five-match series.
This is their fifth series loss since their 0-5 defeat to South Africa in 2017. But the manner in which Sri Lanka fought the battle brought a smile to the faces of disheartened local fans.
They batted with a purpose, bowled to a plan and fielded energetically but still fell behind the high-riding Englishmen who lived up to their reputation of being the number one ranked team with yet another dominant display. When the rain poured down at 3.46 pm, just 27 overs into English innings, England had reached 132 for the loss of 2 wickets—18 runs ahead of the par score of 114.
Ever reliable Eoin Morgan(31 not out) and Joe Root (32 not out) stuck around sharing an unfinished 56 runs for the third wicket when the downpour finally stopped the proceedings. Jason Roy (45) and Alex Hales (12) shared 52 for the first wicket but both fell prey to spinner Akila Dananjaya.
England would not have expected Sri Lanka to put on board a par score of 273 for 7, certainly not after they reduced hosts to 102 for 4, but Sri Lanka’s middle-order capitalised on missed opportunities—a run-out and a drop catch—to put a decent score on the board.
Niroshan Dickwella went about his business in familiar fashion, scoring most of his runs behind the wicket, despite losing his opening partner Sadeera Samarawickrama (1) cheaply, to lay a solid platform. But just when we thought the walls of the building were stacking up nicely, the foundation was rocked by few quick wickets.
From an impressive 89 for 1, Sri Lanka fell to 102 for 4, as England took control of the game once again. Skipper Dinesh Chandimal, who shared 70 for the second wicket, gifted his wicket in a most ludicrous manner, handing the advantage back to the Englishmen. Chandimal (33) came forward to greet Moeen Ali but got completely foxed as the ball passed through the gate to clip the off-stump.
England Captain Eoin Morgan in action
Niroshan Dickwella, who made his 7th ODI half century, was then trapped leg-before-wicket off Ali. Kusal Mendis had the last four balls in his last three innings, not scoring a single run, survived to make five runs. But his vigil lasted just fourteen balls when Adil Rashid trapped him leg-before. It’s surprising the faith the coach has placed on the struggling right-hander who continues his miserable run since the Champions Trophy last year. He has scored just 272 runs off 23 innings at 12.95.
At this stage, there were signs of another collapse looked but three surprise 50 plus partnerships in the middle order drove Sri Lanka past the 270 run mark—their first 250 plus score in five innings.
Dasun Shanaka was the catalyst in the middle, stroking a career-best 66 runs as he did much of the hard work, digging Sri Lanka out of a hole. Shanaka, who bats up the batting order, played some glorious shots. He cleared the boundary five times in his run-a-ball innings but it was not as convincing as one would have expected. Promoted high up in the order, largely due to his domestic T20 exploits, Shanaka would have long retired to the pavilion had England fielded better.
On 14, Shanaka was saved by a poor throw by Jos Buttler to the bowler’s end before Alex Hales misjudged at deep mid-wicket off Rashid on 24, when a big slog sweep flew just over the mid-wicket boundary. Hales failed to close his hands in time as the ball went over the ropes—a costly blunder by the Englishman as Shanaka made most of the opportunity.
Shanaka continued his onslaught the way he knows best, taking on the bowlers fiercely. But just as Sri Lanka were perfectly set for a massive score, with five wickets in hand, Shanaka offered his wicket on a platter while attempting a suicidal run. Shanaka was particularly ruthless against the spinners, hitting three of his sixes against them, including one that went deep into the crowd through the mid-wicket boundary. But he lacked the same confidence against the pace.
With his departure, a score of 250 looked an improbable task. But Akila Dananjaya, who joined up with Thisara Perera, put on a brisk 56 runs for the seventh wicket to lift Sri Lanka’s total. Perera hit 44 off 41 balls before being run-out in the penultimate ball of the innings. Dananjaya stroked a fine 32 off 26 balls including a six and four off consecutive balls off the last over.
Scoreboard
Sri Lanka innings
Niroshan Dickwella lbw b Ali 52
(Batsman misses sweeping a straight one; ruled out after review)
Sadeera Samarawickrama c Buttler b Woakes 1
(Batsman tries to play it on the off side edged it to wicket keeper)
Dinesh Chandimal b Ali 33
(Draws batsman out, spins through the gap and bowled)
Kusal Mendis lbw b Rashid 5
(Batsman jabbing across the line and misses it rapped on the knee roll)
Dhananjaya de Silva c Buttler b Curran 17
(Batsman aims to run one behind square nicks it to wicket keeper)
Dasun Shanaka run out (Morgan/Woakes) 66
(Batsman attempts a single, non striker Shanaka was sent back, failed to make the ground as Woakes took off the bails)
Thisara Perera run out (Stokes/Buttler) 44
(Batsman plays on the leg side and takes on Stokes’ arm from the deep and falls short)
Akila Dananjaya not out 32
Lasith Malinga not out 4
Extras (lb 10, w 9) 19
Total (For 7 wickets in 50 Overs; RR: 5.46) 273
Did not bat: Amila Aponso, Kasun Rajitha
Fall of wickets: 1-19 (Samarawickrama, 4.2 overs), 2-89 (Chandimal, 18.5), 3-102 (Dickwella, 22.5), 4-102 (Mendis, 23.1), 5-154 (de Silva, 34.2), 6-212 (Shanaka, 42.1), 7-268 (Perera, 49.5)
Bowling: Chris Woakes 10-0-45-1, Olly Stone 7-0-50-0, Tom Curran 9-1-50-1, Moeen Ali 10-0-55-2, Adil Rashid 10-0-36-1, Ben Stokes 4-0-27-0
England innings
Jason Roy lbw b Dananjaya 45
(Batsman attempts to flick a leg break, which hit the pad and ruled out lbw after review)
Alex Hales st Dickwella b Dananjaya 12
(Batsman leans too far forward misses the ball and gets stumped)
Joe Root not out 32
Eoin Morgan not out 31
Extras (b 8, nb 1, w 3) 12
Total ( For 2 wickets in 27 Overs: RR: 4.88) 132
Did not bat: Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Tom Curran, Adil Rashid, Olly Stone
Fall of wickets: 1-52 (Hales, 9.1Overs), 2-76 (Roy, 15.4)
Bowling: Lasith Malinga 5-0-15-0, Amila Aponso 6-0-37-0, Kasun Rajitha 5-0-27-0, Akila Dananjaya 7-0-27-2, Dhananjaya de Silva 4-0-18-0