It took a gritty tie for Sri Lanka to register their first points in the CB Series, but they walked away from their game with India knowing the fight to remain in the tournament had just begun after a poor showing in the first half. Australia's cruise through the group stage had been checked first by a defeat to India, and then by the news that in-form captain Michael Clarke would have to sit out a couple of games with an injury. This brought Ricky Ponting back to the driver's seat as Australia faced Sri Lanka in the 6th game of the series.
Tight Fielding and Bowling Limit Australia
Batting first, David Warner's start was quick, but brief, as his was the first wicket to fall at 21/1. The Sri Lankan pace attack kept a tight leash on the scoring, and were backed up by sharp fielding which got rid of Ricky Ponting and Matthew Wade in consecutive overs. 37/3, with Michael Hussey and Peter Forrest offering some resistance before they fell in quick succession to leave Australia in the lurch at 74/5.
The hosts received some respite when Lasith Malinga dropped a straightforward catch off David Hussey, and it started raining to pause the game after Daniel Christian had gone at 88/6. When the game, now 41 overs a side, resumed, Clint McKay and Brett Lee went to make it a perilous 104/8, but Hussey and Mitchell Starc came together to put up the first respectable partnership of the innings. Hussey reached his half-century off just 58 balls, but fell in the penultimate over. Starc was run out with one ball of the innings remain as the hosts managed just 158 runs in total.
Sangakkara Reaches 10,000 Runs as Sri Lanka Coast
The Duckworth-Lewis calculation meant Sri Lanka had a target of 152 runs to win in 41 overs. With the out-of-form Upul Tharanga benched for the game, openers Mahela Jayawardene and Tillekeratne Dilshan had little trouble taking the attack to Australia, Dilshan hitting Mitchell Starc for 6 as early as the 4th over, then hitting Brett Lee for three consecutive 4s the next over.
The openers raced to 72 in just the 11th over before Australia made their first breakthrough, Dilshan edging Clint McKay to slip after a rapid 45. Kumar Sangakkara and Jayawardene ensured Sri Lanka lost no momentum, never letting the run rate dip below 6.00 as Sangakkara became the newest member of the 10,000 run ODI club. He eventually departed for a breezy 30, but by then Sri Lanka needed just 19 runs from 20 overs. The only remaining formality was for Jayawardene to reach his half-century as Sri Lanka completed a dominating victory by 8 wickets, with 101 balls remaining.
Back in the Game
Such was the potency of Sri Lanka's victory that not only did they pick up the bonus point to put them back into contention for the best-of-three finals, but their net run rate is now higher than that of India and Australia. They still need to win their next games, of course, but this performance has significantly eased the pressure that was building up after a poor start to the tournament.
Trouble Down Under
Now Australia will have to look over both shoulders, but also wonder how the Sri Lankan pace attack dictated such authoritative terms. Only David Hussey seemed to be sure of himself out there, and the run rate never stayed above 4.00. Ricky Ponting's form continues to be a question, as his heroics of the Test series against India recede further into the distance. Australia will be without Michael Clarke for their next game, against India; and if the uncertainty over Ponting's form, his captaincy and Australia's batting persists, then the CB Series will be split wide open.
2012 Commonwealth Bank Series, Australia vs. Sri Lanka:
- Australia 158 all out (David Hussey 58, Thissara Perera 7-1-29-2) in 40.5 overs, at 3.86 runs an over
- Sri Lanka [Duckworth-Lewis target: 152 runs from 41 overs] 152/2 (Mahela Jayawardene 61*, Clint McKay 6-1-23-1) in 24.2 overs, at 6.28 runs an over
- Sri Lanka win by 8 wickets; India 10 points, Australia 9 points, Sri Lanka 7 points
- Man of the Match: Thissara Perera
Michael Perera - The only rule in writing is honesty. If you're honest, the words will write themselves.
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