SL vs WI : Kusal Mendis & Kusal Perera Hammer Caribbean Bowlers & Clinch The T20I Series Convincingly

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Kusal Mendis powered Sri Lanka to their first-ever T20I series win against the West Indies with a convincing nine-wicket triumph in the third and final match on Thursday. The hosts chased down a target of 163 with 12 balls to spare, sending the packed Dambulla crowd into jubilation.

Kusal Mendis was the hero of the night, scoring an unbeaten 68 off 48 balls, which included five boundaries and three sixes. “Happy to get the team over the line,” Kusal Mendis said after the match. Kusal Mendis had a brief scare when he was on 44, but Roston Chase failed to hold onto a challenging return catch, allowing the Sri Lankan opener to continue his masterful innings.

Pitch and Toss

Pitch Report : The weather is absolutely glorious. The conditions are perfect. We saw both games being played on pitch no. 6. We are playing on pitch no.4 today. It is very dry. The grass has been cut very low. There are cracks on the good length spot. The ball will turn as the game progresses. 145-150 is what Powell thinks is a good score here and if West Indies can get that then they have a very good chance reckons  Tino Mawayo

West Indies skipper Rovman Powell won the toss and chose to bat with two changes in the playing XI . Sri Lanka skipper Charith Asalanka bowling first made no changes in the playing XI.

Gudakesh Motie and Rovman Powell guides WI to 162 for 8 after horrifying start

On a dry Dambulla surface, West Indies opted to bat and suffered an instant setback when Maheesh Theekshana cleaned up Evin Lewis with a delivery that pitched on middle and leg stump and straightened to hit his back pad on the way to the stumps. Brandon King plotted a quick move on the company of Shai Hope, even as the other spin tormentor Dunith Wellalage was brought into the attack early. That push however, lasted only till the sixth over when Theekshana struck once more – his carrom ball befuddling King to hit the middle-stump.

West Indies lost two more by the half-way stage, not helped by a soft dismissal of Roston Chase who offered Kamindu Mendis a tame return-catch. Shai Hope fell to a sharp catch by Pathum Nissanka at first slip – one that needed third umpire’s affirmation to send the West Indian packing. There was doubt regarding the catch being clean but the TV umpire saw enough in the replays to rule in favour of the bowling side.

West Indies Batting Line Up. Pic Credits: ESPNcricinfo
West Indies Batting Line Up. Pic Credits: ESPNcricinfo

With spin once again being West Indies’ Achilles heel, Charith Asalanka brought himself on and struck first ball – in the 12th over – to remove Sherfane Rutherford and leave the visitors down to 83/5. Skipper Rovman Powell and Gudakesh Motie pushed back with a show of resurgence that included a 25-run 15th over off Wellalage, where the latter hit one four and three sixes.

In just the next over, Hasaranga got the better of Motie with a googly, getting him stumped for 32 off 15. West Indies smashed 39 off the last three overs through Powell and Romario Shepherd to take the team to 162/8, which seemed a reasonable total at the halfway stage.

Sri Lanka Bowling Line Up. Pic Credits: ESPNcricinfo
Sri Lanka Bowling Line Up. Pic Credits: ESPNcricinfo

The West Indies, opting to bat first, faced early trouble as they slumped to 68-5. However, a crucial 54-run partnership off 26 balls between captain Rovman Powell and Gudakesh Motie lifted the tourists. Motie was aggressive, smashing three consecutive sixes and a four off Dunith Wellalage in the 15th over, but he was eventually stumped by Mendis off Wanindu Hasaranga. Sri Lanka’s spin department once again proved to be their trump card, with Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga each picking up two wickets.

The high-point of West Indies’ innings, was the 15th over of the match, in which they reaped 25 runs. Their innings had been flagging at 86 for 5 after 14 overs, with plenty of spin to come from Sri Lanka. But Motie would lay into left-arm spinner Wellalage to revive the innings. His first boundary came off the outside edge, but the next three were towering, successive sixes – the first down the ground, the next two over deep midwicket. He was out soon after, but set West Indies on a better course.

Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera set up Sri Lanka’s series victory over WI

West Indies bolstered their spin attack by bringing Fabian Allen into the side for this match, but Nissanka ensured Sri Lanka’s batters established their dominance early. He cracked three fours off the first over, bowled by Allen, before launching seamer Alzarri Joseph for two sixes and a four next over – the runs coming all around the ground, though he did favour the square region on the offside. By the time Nissanka was bowled by a Motie slider after 5.2 overs, Sri Lanka had already sped to 60.

The early middle overs were quieter than what had come before. But soon, Perera began to find the boundary particularly off his legs, and the Sri Lanka run rate was off again, before West Indies could apply serious pressure. Kusal Mendis, who had begun to score rapidly towards the end of the powerplay, continued to strike regular boundaries as he strode to a 15th T20I fifty. Perera reached his half century – also his 15th – in what became the final over of the game.

Sri Lanka Batting Line Up. Pic Credits: ESPNCricinfo 1st
Sri Lanka Batting Line Up. Pic Credits: ESPNCricinfo 1st

West Indies had chances to dent the chase. Rovman Powell could have caught the dangerous Nissanka in the first over, but misjudged the high ball and palmed it into the rope instead. Later, Roston Chase dropped a straightforward return chance off Kusal Mendis on 44 – though Sri Lanka were well en route to victory by then. Shai Hope could have run out Kusal Mendis on 34 too, had he hit the stumps with a throw in the ninth over.

Kusal Mendis and Kusal Perera however, proceeded to make a mockery of that effort with a series-winning partnership of 106* as Sri Lanka completed the chase in just 18 overs. Sri Lanka continued to be devastating in the PowerPlay as openers Pathum Nissanka and Mendis brought up the 50 in just 4.1 overs.

West Indies Bowling Line Up. Pic Credits: ESPNcricinfo
West Indies Bowling Line Up. Pic Credits: ESPNcricinfo

West Indies started off with spin in Fabien Allen in the hope of making similarly early inroads, only to be smashed for three fours. The ball flew to all parts of the ground as Alzarri Joseph conceded 15 in the second over. Motie earned the first – and only – breakthrough with the wicket of Nissanka but the carnage didn’t stop.

Perera joined Kusal Mendis in the sixth over to keep the team well on course. They took the team to 98 by the halfway stage as West Indies looked bereft of ideas with the ball. The only push back from West Indies came through three overs between Roston Chase and Romario Shepherd where they conceded just 14 runs.

But there were no missteps from the two Sri Lankan batters as they took charge and shifted gears at the death. After Mendis got to a 37-ball half-century in the 14th over, Perera got to his off 34 in the 18th over. In that same over, he sealed the chase with a four. Opening with Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis helped Sri Lanka get off to a blazing start. The duo put on a 60-run partnership in just 5.2 overs, with Nissanka smashing 39 from 22 balls, including seven fours and a six, before falling to a low delivery from Gudakesh Motie.

After Nissanka’s departure, Kusal Mendis was joined by Kusal Perera, who delivered an exceptional performance despite battling cramps. Perera scored an unbeaten 55 off 36 balls, registering his 15th T20I half-century. Together, Kusal Mendis and Perera crafted an unbroken 106-run stand, guiding Sri Lanka to a historic series win against the higher-ranked West Indies.

Presentations and Road Ahead

Charith Asalanka the winning skipper said : Top-order batted really well. Thus, team performed really well. Throughout the series, I am talking about India series also. We have played well. We needed some momentum and we got the momentum in the second game of the series. I wasn’t worried much. I thought our top-order batted well. Nissanka and Mendis made a plan and it worked. I am very happy. It is good to win a series. I want to thank every fan of Sri Lankan cricket.

Rovman Powell the losing skipper said : To be honest, we had enough runs. We would have taken 160 on a turning wicket at the start of the game. If we would have controlled the powerplay better, we could have made a come back. SL spinners completely out bowled our spinners. I think it is a lot of positives. My guys gave good efforts in these conditions. Our batters did well. Thanks to the people of Sri Lanka. They have been very good to us. They have been very welcoming.

Kusal Mendis Player of the Match for 68 runs said : I played really well. Nissanka played well in the first six overs. I could plan better. Little bit slow wicket. I knew how to play in these conditions. We tried to play normal cricket in the first 6 overs. It is hard to play the spinners on this deck.

Pathum Nissanka Player of the Series said : He had a plan going in. The powerplays were vital. It is about keeping a clear head while playing 3 formats. (translated from Sinhalese by Roshan Abeysinghe).

Pathum Nissanka sent Sri Lanka’s chase screaming out of the blocks, before Kusal Mendis and Kusal Perera put on a clinical and unbeaten 106-run stand for the second wicket. For a team that had never before beaten West Indies in a T20I series, this chase was almost too effortless to believe. Each of the top three produced sparkling innings, as the hosts galloped to the target of 163 with 12 balls remaining, in front of a packed Poya-day crowd in Dambulla.

West Indies had earlier done well to get to 162 themselves, though they largely have a late assault from Gudakesh Motie – who bludgeoned 32 off 15 – for getting to what was perhaps a higher-than-par score on a spin-friendly track. Though Dunith Wellalage went for runs, Sri Lanka’s remaining spinners kept a lid on the scoring. This too, was a key difference between the teams.

Kusal Mendis went on to register the game’s highest score, with 68 not out off 50. Perera crashed 55 off 36. Nissanka had played the most aggressive innings, plundering 39 off 22. A dark horse, which had never been thought of, has rushed past the grandstand in sweeping triumph. SL were identified as the dark horses after the loss in the first game. They were seen through similar prisms in the ODI series against India.

And against England in the Tests. But this team knows how to come back and how! Not to forget they blanked the Kiwis in Tests at home. They are on a roll. They haven’t had a great time at home but 2024 seems to be a different fairytale for them. This is their fifth series win at home in this format.

Windies would be disappointed. They showed a lot of fight with the bat. But were clueless with the ball as Nissanka and Mendis took charge in the powerplay. Once they had peeled off 60 inside the powerplay, the rest of the chase was never going to be much of a headache.

SL are on the rise. True, most wins have come at home. But in recent past, they have struggled at home as well. So, they will certainly take a lot of confidence from this series win. They have the momentum and they are making good use of it. A good and healthy Lankan cricket side augurs well for international cricket as they play a very attractive brand of cricket.

Just like their opponents who have lost the series despite winning the first game. Their spinners were out muscled by Hasaranga and co. That I guess made most of the difference. But that’s some learning as well for a West Indian side which is also pretty young.

The 2-1 result is a further sign of resurgence from Sri Lanka, in the format in which they have arguably struggled the most in the last two years. They have this year won five Test matches, and had in July beaten India in a bilateral ODI series as well. This win also sees new coach Sanath Jayasuriya’s stock rise further.

Also Read: IND vs ENG: “Side Arm Specialists In India Need To Work Hard To Prepare Batters For Tough Times”- Abhishek Jain Gives His Invaluable Insights


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