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Scorecard Summary
SRI LANKA 345/8 (50 OVERS)
- Kusal Mendis119 (119)
- Avishka Fernando127 (123)
- Sheldon Cottrell4/67 (10)
- Alzarri Joseph3/57 (10)
WEST INDIES 184 (39.1 OVERS)
- Shai Hope51 (65)
- Nicholas Pooran31 (41)
- Lakshan Sandakan3/57 (9.1)
- Wanindu Hasaranga3/30 (10)
Scorer: Chandan Duorah | Commentator: @saurabh_42
10.12 pm: That brings us to the end of this match. There is still one ODI to go and then the T20Is on this tour. Make sure you check out Andrew Fidel Fernando's report of this game. Till then, on behalf of Fidel and Chandan, this is Saurabh saying goodnight and goodbye.
Dimuth Karunaratne: "I'd like to thank my teammates. They played their hearts out. The way Kusal and Avishka batted - the intensity is what I'm expecting from the boys. Be confident and play their natural game. [Wristspinners] are the wicket-taking bowlers. Last few years we didn't have that in one-day matches, so hopefully they'll continue in the next matches as well. The fast bowlers were also good, kept good areas. Thisara is bowling well, batting well. When I give him the ball he bowls well and when he gets a chance to bat, he does well. Mickey Arthur is a nice guy, and he's trying to groom us. With all the youngsters in the side it's not easy but he was supporting us and giving us confidence. He's doing a good job. Thanks to all spectators also, I'm expecting this crowd in Pallekele as well."
Kieron Pollard: "It was the start we were looking forward to, getting two wickets early. But I put the catch of Kusal Mendis down, otherwise they would have been three down. We didn't stick to our plans long enough. I don't think we were up to the international standard today. Well bowled to them and well played to them. We weren't there in all three departments today. We can pinpoint a lot of things but I don't want to go into a lot of details. We'll do that as a team. I cop this one on the chin and we move on to Kandy."
Avishka Fernando is the Man of the Match.
10.04 pm: Presentations coming up soon.
Angelo Mathews: "Brilliant win. We had a poor start but the way Avishka and Kusal Mendis batted was outstanding. And then the bowlers did their job. [on his fielding] (laughs) well I'm trying to contribute whichever way I can. A very big thank you to the crowd, they've been right behind us. [on his resuming bowling] Feeling good. I've been building it up the last couple of weeks."
9.53 pm: Takes Sri Lanka just four balls to wrap things up after the floodlight failure. They'll be mighty pleased with this series win. Avishka Fernando and Kusal Mendis both hit their respective 2nd ODI centuries in a massive 239-run stand. The new-ball bowlers were disciplined and the wristspinners ran rings around the West Indies batsmen.
Celebrations in the Sri Lankan camp and lots of smiles. There's some introspection to do for West Indies. The first match was evenly fought but they've been blown away here. The bowling needs an urgent lift. Batting collapses while chasing big totals can happen, so that's there. But overall, this match has been one-way traffic apart from the initial few overs when Sri Lanka lost two quick wickets.
FA Allen c NLTC Perera b Sandakan 17 (14b 2x4 1x6) SR: 121.42
DinBandhu : "Quite literally..lights out for Windies...they need to sort the team combination...first four lack firepower completely and then the power hitters over-compensate..think windies need Hetmeyer and Pooran at the top"
END OF OVER:39 | 4 Runs 2 Wkts | WI: 184/9 (162 runs required from 11 overs, RR: 4.71, RRR: 14.72)
- Fabian Allen17 (13b)
- Nuwan Pradeep6-0-37-2
- Lakshan Sandakan9-0-57-2
AS Joseph b Pradeep 0 (3b 0x4 0x6) SR: 0.00
9.48 pm: All set to restart.
9.45 pm: And Fidel was right, because the lights are coming back on.
9.42 pm: Fidel says reassuringly that "flooodlight failures have happened in Hambantota before and it's probably just a generator issue." So hopefully it'll get fixed soon.
9.35 pm: We're having a bit of a technical problem at the venue with some of the lights. While they get that sorted, it's me, Saurabh, back for the final stretch. We'll have to wait a bit though. One light tower seems to have gone out. Possibly two have.
KMA Paul b Pradeep 21 (27b 3x4 0x6) SR: 77.77
Match Coverage
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