Sri Lanka win T20 on Malinga’s return

Chamara Kapugedera smashed a boundary off the last ball to secure a thrilling five-wicket victory for Sri Lanka against Australia in the first Twenty20 Internationals yesterday.

Needing one run off the last ball, Kapugedera drove the fuller delivery from Andrew Tye through cover to seal the match and put his team 1-0 up in the threematch contest.

With several of their top players in India for a Test series, Australia fielded a second-string team with Michael Klinger, Billy Stanlake and Ashton Turner making their debut in Twenty20 Internationals.

Put in to bat, the hosts could not make the most of a strong start and posted a modest 168-6 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Top effort

Skipper Aaron Finch (43) went on to complete his 1,000 runs in Twenty20 Internationals.

Paceman Lasith Malinga, playing his first international match in 12 months, was the pick of the Sri Lankan bowlers, claiming two wickets in two balls while also taking a couple of catches on his return.

Sri Lanka skipper Upul Tharanga fell for a duck but Dilshan Munaweera (44) and Niroshan Dickewalla (30) steadied the innings before Asela Gunaratne (52) hit his maiden fifty to take the tourists close to win.

Turner injected fresh excitement into the contest claiming two wickets in the 18th over.