SRI LANKA CRUMBLE AGAINST SOUTH AFRICAN PACE
All rounder Thisara Perera produced a magnificent display of power hitting in an entertaining 49-ball 65 that included 34 runs in one over but the rest of the Sri Lankan batsmen capitulated meekly on a fast, bouncy and seaming track at Pallekele Stadum here yesterday as South Africa ended an 11-match losing streak in Sri Lanka against the hosts, breaking a barren run of nearly two decades since 1993.
Left arm paceman Lonwabo Tsotsobe who missed the first two ODIs through an ankle injury returned strongly to be the wrecker in chief and claimed four for 22 as Sri Lanka folded up for 167 in reply to 223 for 7 made by the visitors who batted first after winning the toss. The five-match series now stands at 2-1 in Sri Lanka’s favour.
Perera’s onslaught that began in the 32nd over bowled by Robin Peterson in which he blasted five sixes and a four sparked a brief fight back for the locals as his 72-run eighth wicket stand in 12 overs with tail ender Rangana Herath gave something for the locals to cheer about.
While the pacemen completely dominated the clueless Sri Lankans even the spinners claimed control as wickets fell at regular intervals.
Tsotsobe initiated the Sri Lankan collapse capturing the wickets of opener Tillakaratne Dilshan and in-form Kumar Sangakkara in the fourth over of the innings with the total on 14. Just two runs later Tsotsobe removed the other opener Upul Tharanga too after the left hander had consumed 24 balls to make five.
Sri Lanka laboured to 24 for 3 in the first ten power-play overs while Mahela Jayawardene and Dinesh Chandimal attempted a recovery with a 55-run fourth wicket stand that needed a painstaking 17 overs. Chandimal needed 65 balls to score 29 with four boundaries while Jayawardene needed 51 balls to score 24.
But another collapse of four wickets for 22 sent Sri Lanka from 71 for 3 to 93 for 7 by the 31stover, before Perera’s thunderbolt in the 32nd over that dented the South African charge.
Perera was finally dismissed in the 43rd over by slow medium pace Farhaan Behardien with the total on 165 to relieve the visitors of further anxious moments. The dashing left hander thumped five sixes and five fours in his cameo.
The end came swiftly as the last two batsmen were dismissed for ducks while Herath remained unbeaten on 12.
Behardien finished with 3 for 19 in six overs.
Earlier David Miller plundered 35 runs in the last two overs of the South African innings as the visitors collected 39 runs to move from 185 for 7 at the start of the 49th over to finish on a fighting 223 for 7.
The dashing left hander who was unbeaten on 50 off 62 balls with two fours and six, exploded in the last two overs, pulverising Thisara Perera and Lasith Malinga to finish on 85 not out off 72 balls with four boundaries and five sixes.
His partner Ryan McLaren collected only two runs in those two overs and remained unbeaten on 14 off 20 balls having shared an unbroken 69 runs for the eighth wicket in 8.1 overs.
This rollicking finish largely erased the early struggles of the visitors who lost wickets at regular intervals to slump to 154 for 7 before the final flourish.
Spinner Ajantha Mendis recalled to the side for the first time in the series, proved to be the tormentor capturing 3 for 35 in his 10 overs while becoming the fastest Sri lankan bowler in history to complete 100 ODI wickets in his 63rd match. He bettered a record held by Lasith Malinga who had reached the landmark in 68 matches.
Mendis achieved the landmark with his second wicket of the match when he had South African skipper and world’s number one ranked ODI batsman AB de Villiers caught behind by Kumar Sangakkara for 47 off 72 balls with three boundaries.
De Villiers who walked in when his side were 50 for 2, held the innings together patiently while wickets fell constantly at the other end and was the seventh man out in the 40th over.
Perera bowled superbly with the new ball, claiming two wickets before the 49thover cost him 20 runs and finished with figures of 2 for 51 off eight overs.Malinga also had an excellent day till he was blasted for 19 runs in the final over and ended with 1 for 57 in his 10 overs.
Sri Lanka made three changes from the side that played the second ODI with skipper Angelo Mathews coming in for Jehan Mubarak, middle order batsman Angelo Perera making his debut in place of injured Lahiru Thirimanne and Mendis replacing paceman Shaminda Eranga.