Perera fell one agonising run short of his third ODI century
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Sri Lanka opener Kusal Perera scored 99 and batsman Lahiru Thirimanne made an unbeaten 81 to lead their side to an eight-wicket win via the Duckworth-Lewis method against the West Indies in the second ODI in Colombo.
However, West Indies opener Johnson Charles and stand-in skipper Marlon Samuels deserve a lot of credit as they scored 83 and 63 respectively.
Samuels would have been regretting his decision to bat first early on as Andre Fletcher was caught behind off the bowling of Lasith Malinga on the second ball of the match.
Jermaine Blackwood followed soon after before Charles made his presence felt and led a counter-attack with the help of Darren Bravo.
Once Bravo was dismissed for 21, Charles began to up the ante and looked to be on track for his third ODI century, but Milinda Siriwardana stopped that from happening as he trapped Charles lbw for 83 off 70 balls, which included seven boundaries and four sixes.
Charles made a gutsy 83
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Just a short while after Charles’ dismissal, the rain came and the players were ushered off the field.
Following a lengthy delay, the game was reduced to 38 overs per side and all the West Indian batsmen, with the exception of Samuels, failed to mount any sort of offense.
It was thanks to Samuels’ 63 off 61 deliveries, which included four boundaries and two sixes, that the West Indies were able to score 214 before being bowled out.
Samuels scored a valiant 63
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Malinga and Siriwardana picked up two wickets apiece, while Suranga Lakmal and Sachithra Senanayake chipped in with one wicket each.
Chasing 225 to win due to the Duckworth-Lewis method being in effect, Sri Lanka got off to a solid start before Tillkaratne Dilshan was clean bowled by Sunil Narine for 17.
Perera and Thirimanne made up for the loss of Dilshan with a 156-run partnership, during which both batsmen brought up their half-centuries, before Perera was caught by Carlos Brathwaite at short fine leg off the bowling of Ravi Rampaul.
Perera’s magnificent innings of 99 came off 92 balls and included six boundaries and four sixes.
Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal proceeded to mop up the remaining runs to help Sri Lanka clinch the series.
Thirimanne finished on 81 off 95 deliveries, which included five boundaries and a six, while Chandimal remained undefeated on 15 off 20 balls, which included one boundary.
Thirimanne hit five boundaries and a six during his unbeaten knock of 81
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Narine and Rampaul claimed one wicket each.
Samuels, who filled in for regular skipper Jason Holder as he was banned for one match due to an over-rate offense, was disappointed with his side’s performance, and said: “Another 20 runs through those run-outs would have been crucial, but we dropped too many catches. Catches win matches. But credit to SL. We needed another 20 runs. This is the first time I got a start on this tour and I carried on, but a run-out at that time, it’s part of the game.”
Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews was thrilled to have secured the series, and said: “I thought it was a clinical performance from the whole unit. All the bowlers bowled brilliantly. I’m very glad the way they bowled. I knew I had to keep my faster bowlers’ overs because the spinners would find it tough to grip later. Delighted to see Thiri get some runs.”
Perera was named Man of the Match, and said: “It’s rarely happened to me (cramps) but I kept the first innings so maybe that was it. Me and Dilshan had a good start and when Lahiru came, I decided to rotate the strike and take calculated risks.”