Shanaka's 25-ball 54* scripts stunning victory for Sri Lanka
Hosts smash a record 59 off last three overs to deny Australia 3-0 sweep
Hosts smash a record 59 off last three overs to deny Australia 3-0 sweep
Scorer: Chandan Duorah | Commentator: Madushka Balasuriya
And on that note, it's farewell from myself, Alex and the team. What an incredible game of cricket, thanks for tuning in. And remember, the ODI series starts on the 14th, so until then it's goodbye from us!
Zeevy: "That, my friends, is why sport is important. We can forget almost any problem while we concentrate on the game. Those last three overs, there were a few million people who forgot to even breath."
Aaron Finch is named Player of the Series: "I'm happy with our performance throughout the series, it was just an unbelievable knock by Dasun tonight. We felt that the pitch slowed down a bit towards the end of our innings, so we didn't think it made too much of a difference whether we batted first or second. In general, we're quite comfortable with our side and our options."
So unsurprisingly Dasun Shanaka is the Man of the Match: "At the initial moment when I went out to the crease, so I took a few balls to get in. I think my strike rate was around 50. I read the wicket really well, and kept my wicket in the other side without throwing it away. And in the end I was hoping I'd be able to finish the game. Toss is always important in Sri Lanka, and maybe it wasn't the best decision to bat first. We hope to take this momentum forward into the ODI series."
Huzaifa: "As the country falls into economic and political turmoil, there comes a captain who gives them hope and happiness. What an incredible innings!"
Shah Safeer: "As a Pakistani I always support Sri Lanka and their win makes me happy. Fantastically well done Shanaka. Sri Lanka desperately needed this"
Uwaisul Karnain: "This game took my memory back to the Melbourne miracle. This game isn't too far away either!"
Sawa : "This match was not just about cricket. It showed us Sri Lankans how to fight back together as a nation. Gave us hope in these difficult times. "
10.27 Well I think it's safe to say we all need a moment to take a breath, cos what in the world have we just witnessed? Australia take the series 2-1, but tell that to the Sri Lankan fans in the stadium! Dasun Shanaka ends unbeaten on 54 off 25 balls, including 5 fours and 4 sixes, and saw to it that Sri Lanka scored 59 runs off the final three overs to win the game - to be clear, that is the most scored by any team to win a game in the last 3 overs, surpassing the previous record of 56. What makes the innings all the more incredible is that it quite literally came out of nowhere. Shanaka had come to the crease in the 13th over, and had looked rather out of sorts, but something clicked in the 18th over, and Australia simply had no answers. That over went for 22 runs and was bowled by Josh Hazlewood, who had gone for just three (3!) runs in his previous three - just another in the string of impossibilities that led to this most improbable of wins. But until Shanaka's intervention this match had looked to be going much the same way as the previous two, with Sri Lanka's middle order flailing after a promising start from the top order. While earlier, Australia had paced their innings to perfection, with knocks from Warner, Finch, Stoinis and Smith helping set what looked for large parts to be a match-winning total. That was until Shanaka burst into life.
1 needed from 1. How one earth did we get here?!?!
Aunim: "OH MY GODDDD SHANAKAAAAAAA!!!!!"
15 needed from 4.
Kapil Joshi: "18.6 over Alongwith 50 partnership, Shanaka also completed 1000 T20I runs"
Head coach believes team had been "really good over a period of time'" before Shanaka changed the course of the game
Hosts smash a record 59 off last three overs to deny Australia 3-0 sweep
Allrounder suffering from calf strain is expected to stay on since he's part of the team picked for the Test leg of the tour
The home side needs one of the top order to convert a start into a substantial score