Kusal Mendis hit a gritty 74 not out as Sri Lanka posted a thrilling three-wicket win against New Zealand to clinch the three-match ODI series on Sunday. Sri Lanka were reeling at 93-5 but Kusal Mendis played the anchor role to perfection despite battling a groin injury to hand the hosts their fifth ODI series triumph this year.
It was also Sri Lanka’s first win in an ODI series over the Black Caps in 12 years. Kusal Mendis was ably supported by Maheesh Theekshana who hit an unbeaten 27 off 44 balls as Sri Lanka reached the target of 210 runs with six balls to spare.
Pitch Report and Toss
Pitch Report: The players’ fitness will be tested today – it’s very hot, humid and dry, the temperature is 32 degrees, but it feels hotter. There are a lot of cracks around, so it wouldn’t be straightforward to bat, the spinners will come into play, it’ll slow down and a score around 270 could be very competitive, reckons Farveez Maharoof, in his pitch report.
Toss : Sri Lanka skipper Charith Asalanka won the toss and chose to bowl with Dilshan Madushanka making a place for Dunith Wellalage. New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner batting first made no changes in the playing XI.
Mark Chapman’s 76 runs carry NZ to 209 as spinners run riot
New Zealand had a tough start, losing two wickets in the powerplay after being put in to bat. Mark Chapman briefly steadied the innings in the company of Will Young and Glenn Phillips. But Sri Lankan spinners kept striking at regular intervals to ensure that they didn’t let the early momentum slip away despite a rain break during the innings.
However, an attacking 75-run stand in just 72 balls between Chapman and Mitch Hay provided New Zealand the momentum they were looking for. The duo was measured with their attack but were quick to take advantage of the errors in lengths by the bowlers. Chapman even danced down the track to hammer Wellalage for a six over deep mid-wicket.
However, Asitha Fernando returned to the attack and had Chapman’s innings cut short on 76, after which New Zealand failed to recover. Even as Hay kept the scoreboard moving from the end, he kept running out of partners, as New Zealand lost their last six wickets for only 36 runs.
The catching was undoubtedly the highlight, where despite dropping some tough chances, Sri Lanka held on to even tougher ones. Avishka Fernando was at the forefront of this excellence, completing two nearly identical grabs, diving forward in the deep to scoop the ball centimeters off the ground, to dismiss both Phillips and and Chapman.
And Avishka Fernando was not done yet, taking another stellar catch on the run and sliding to remove Bracewell. Pathum Nissanka too threw his name in the hat for catch of the match, with a stunning sprint from long-off towards mid-off, culminating in a full-length dive to hold on to a skier from Santner.
Sri Lanka’s ground fielding too was on point – even with the caveat of a few sloppy boundary giveaways – with the infielders in particular smothering the visiting batters and competing for every run. This was highlighted by an astonishing 157 dot balls being played out across the course of the innings – one that had already been shortened to 47 overs due to rain.
New Zealand’s best period of the innings came after they had stumbled to 98 for 4 in the 24th over. Here Chapman and Hay put in the time to rebuild the innings, but such was the strangle being exerted by the spinners during the early part of this stand, they scored just 13 runs in the first 41 deliveries faced. But by the end of it, though, the partnership had soared to 75 off 78, as both batters eventually began to take some risks.
Sixty-two runs were scored between the 30th and 36th over, as New Zealand might have been eyeing up a total in the region of 250. However on a spinner’s deck, it was Asitha who had the most decisive say, returning for a double-wicket strike to see the backs of Chapman and Bracewell.
From that point on, it was a trudge for the visitors as Hay sought to battle it out with the tail. He was the last batter to fall, one short of a maiden ODI fifty. A brilliant exhibition of catching had seen New Zealand bowled out for 209, a total that was heavily supplemented by Chapman’s 76 off 81 and Mitchell Hay’s 49 off 62 – they were two of just four New Zealand batters to make it to double digits.
Before his heroics with the bat, Maheesh Theekshana had done his part with the ball grabbing 3 for 31. Jeffrey Vandersay also picked up three, while the tireless Asitha Fernando finished with two scalps.
Kusal Mendis Defies Injury As Sri Lanka Beat New Zealand To Clinch ODI Series 2-0
Chasing 210 for a win in the rain-shortened 47-overs-a-side contest, the hosts found themselves in a tricky position at 132 for 6. A brisk partnership between Kusal Mendis and Dunith Wellalage helped Sri Lanka close in on the target before Michael Bracewell bagged his fourth wicket of the innings, having the latter caught at mid on with 47 runs still needed.
But on a surface where nearly every spinner proved threatening to some degree, it was always going to take a special batting effort to separate the two sides. And Kusal Mendis provided that in spades.
Having come into bat at the fall of the first wicket inside the fifth over, it wasn’t long before Kusal Mendis decided on a more conservative approach. The first ball he faced spun sharply past his forward defence, and then an attempt at his escape shot – the slog sweep – saw a top edge that looped safely over the keeper.
A couple of overs later Kusal Mendis was under the microscope once more, after a tight lbw shout went in his favour – a decision that was only upheld on review courtesy of an umpire’s call on impact. These nervy moments meant that Kusal wouldn’t get his first boundary until the 26th delivery he faced. In fact, in total across his innings he would score just the six boundaries; instead, this was an innings marked more by his grit, with 46 singles and two doubles – 67% of his runs – an abnormally high percentage of non-boundary runs for a Kusal Mendis innings.
That he did so while struggling with cramps, or quite possibly a groin strain, for most of his innings speaks volumes towards his effort on the night.
But this was not a match Kusal Mendis could have won on his own. Aside from five-run stand with Kamindu Mendis, Kusal Mendis put together meaningful contributions with each of his other partners – 18, 19, 28, 39, 31 and 47 – with each pushing Sri Lanka a little further towards the finish line.
One of the most important came with Janith Liyanage, as the pair came together in the 22nd over with Sri Lanka precariously poised on 93 for 5, and Kusal already being impacted by cramps. With New Zealand seeking further breakthroughs, and the pair of Glenn Phillips and Ish Sodhi bowling well in tandem, Liyanage proved the ideal partner to keep rotating the strike and the spin threat at bay.
This helped stabilize the innings, but when Liyanage fell, gloving a bouncer from Nathan Smith through to the keeper, Sri Lanka were still 78 off their target.
Dunith Wellalage then played his part to perfection, crashing three consecutive boundaries off Smith to shift the momentum decisively. But even so, New Zealand knew they were just one wicket away from entering the Sri Lankan tail. So when Wellalage miscued one to mid-on with still 47 left to get, Sri Lankan minds might have wandered to that second T20I defeat.
But Theekshana, who had been unable to see it through in that game, showed far more metal the second time, striking three boundaries in total including a critical six over deep backward point, to help see the game through.
However, Kusal Mendis and Theekshana ensured a smooth chase from thereon, guiding Sri Lanka to their sixth consecutive ODI win at home – their longest – as also their first series win over New Zealand in 12 years. The decisive moment came in the 41st over when Theekshana pulled Jacob Duffy’s short-pitched delivery for a six which was soon followed by Kusal Mendis glancing the pacer for a boundary.
Kusal Mendis, fresh off a century in the first ODI, led the chase with his composed 102-ball knock, studded with six boundaries. At one stage, Sri Lanka were tottering on 163 for seven but an unbroken 47-run partnership for the eighth wicket between Kusal Mendis and Theekshana saw them through.
Presentations and Road Ahead
Charith Asalanka the winning SL skipper said : It has been a journey and this is another series. We have a big goal as a team but we are going through a good process. I misread the pitch a little bit, I thought dew would play a part but didn’t happen that way.
(On promoting Theekshana up the order) I hope so, Maheesh also liked it. (Is batting a concern?) Not really, it is really tough to score against spin. Couple of batters need to get set and make big scores. We should try our bench in the next game.
Mitchell Santner the losing NZ skipper said : Always a challenge defending a low score. Kusal played the situation really well. We wanted to get the run rate up but they never let it go beyond 5 so we knew we would have to keep taking wickets. Was a bit surprised it spun so much.
If we are being really honest, we left a few runs out there, if we got 240 or so it would have been very difficult. It is always a challenge to be batting out here, and Sri Lanka bowled well with their spinners. We have another game in a couple of day’s time, we need to try and take it a bit deeper in that one with the bat.
Kusal Mendis Player of the Match for his 74 runs said : (On injury)I think it is okay now. It was very hard to bat with the new ball. Pathum started really well and his 28 runs were very important. I had to take some chances and Dunith and Maheesh batted really well to support me. The second half there was more spin and dew came in pretty late. I enjoyed playing in these conditions. It was a bit hard playing with my injury, I couldn’t run any doubles.
Kusal Mendis’ unbeaten 73 trumped Mark Chapman’s 76, as Sri Lanka secured a narrow three-wicket win in the second ODI in Pallekele, and with it sealed the series with an unassailable 2-0 lead. It was their first ODI series win against New Zealand since 2012.
Michael Bracewell was the pick of the bowlers for the visitors, picking up figures of 4 for 36 in 10 overs. He was one of two bowlers allocated for 10 overs in the innings, alongside Mitchell Santner who ended with miserly figures of 1 for 33, but Sri Lanka smartly recognized their threat and targeted the rest of the attack to sneak home.
Sri Lanka survived a real scare to continue their fine streak in white ball cricket, as they chase down 210 on a tricky surface here in Pallekele. Barring Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis, their top order failed to provide any noteworthy contributions as New Zealand choked them with their spin. Micheal Bracewell bowled an inspired spell in the powerplay and ended with four wickets, while Santner and Glenn Phillips claimed a wicket apiece.
The hosts were struggling at 93/5 at one stage, but Kusal Mendis anchored from one end, stitching crucial partnerships with Liyanage, Wellalage and finally Theekshana to get his side home. New Zealand bowled out their marquee spinners pretty early in the game and were forced to go with their pacers towards the end as Sri Lanka found that more comfortable.
Sri Lanka claim another home series, and they do so this time with an ODI to spare. The third and final match on Tuesday will now see what the bench strength of Sri Lanka can do against New Zealand who’d be desperate to try and avoid a whitewash.