Thursday, November 12, 2009

Sri Lanka ease to series victory


Third one-day international, Dambulla:

Sri Lanka 289-4 (46.3 ovs) beat Pakistan 288-8 (50 ovs) by six wickets

Mahela Jayawardene (left) and Upul Tharanga powe! red Sri Lanka to victory
It was Jayawardene's 11th one-day hundred and Tharanga's 10th fifty

A superb 123 by Mahela Jayawardene set up a comfortable six-wicket win for Sri Lanka over Pakistan which gave them an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series.

The tourists made 288-8 in their 50 overs, including 66 from Umar Akmal, brother of wicket-keeper Kamran.

But Jayawardene's belligerent ton - which included 14 fours and a six - coupled with Upul Tharanga's 76, set up a 202-run opening wicket partnership.

Despite losing wickets, Sri Lanka eased home with 21 balls to spare.

Pakistan had made ! their hi ghest total of the series, despite a middle-order slide in which three wickets fell for 27 runs.

Muttiah Muralitharan, who had ended Shahid Afridi's exciting cameo, then removed Umar, the ball after being hit for six by the 19-year-old right-handed batsman.

All-rounder Abdul Razzaq hit two sixes in a rapid 30, and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, back in the fold after ending his association with the rebel Indian Cricket League was unbeaten on 30 after also slamming two maximums.

It gave Pakistan the highest score in 28 previous internationals at the ground dating back to March 2001, but the superb Sri Lankan opening stand ensured that record did not last long.

It was Jayawardene's first one-day century for two years and only the second time he has opened the innings.

On the only other occasion he opened for the Sri Lankans in a one-day international he was out for a duck against Zimbabwe.

His last hundred was for Asia against Africa in the Afro-Asia Cup in Chennai in June 2007, and his last for Sri Lanka had been in April of that year.

After the double hundred partnership, which was recorded inside 34 overs, the two openers departed in successive overs.

It became three wickets in 12 balls when Thilan Samaraweera gave Saeed Ajmal a return catch, but skipper Kumar Sangakkara saw his team to victory.

The Sri Lanka captain insisted there were improvements to be made and said: "In this series and the Tests we have h! ad a few situations where we showed a lack of maturity by not really closing the door on Pakistan.

"But we've shown a lot of heart and hunger to come back in those situations and turn matches around.

"Every single player is not really satisfied that he's really there yet.

"But as a team, there's a really good feeling and everyone is really bonding well together.

"When you're winning it becomes easy and with a team that's trying really hard it becomes easier.

"But these are the good times and we have got to plan for the bad times and ensure we have the reserves and the mental and physical strengths to go through the bad patches as well."

Counterpart Younus Khan said: "I thought we had a good total, but that opening partnership took the game away from us.

"Our fielding was pretty ordinary ! and it w as another opportunity lost. But it's important to focus on the positives.

"With Umar's performances we now have a fairly good set of players and a decent combination."

Posted by gok men at 7:46 AM
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