Sat, 08 Aug 2011 - Sri Lanka vs Australia, Australia Tour of Sri Lanka 2011, 2nd T20- Bulletin

‘Mysterious’ Mendis spins SL to victory

Ajantha Mendis returned with the best ever Twenty20 figures to stop Australia from overhauling the target of 157 after Mahela Jayawardene had batted with lot of class to power his team to a good total in the second match. With this win, the Lankans took the series 2-0.

Chasing a decent total on the slow and low Pallekele surface was never going to be a cake-walk and that too when Dilshan had five quality spin bowling options. Thus, the Aussie openers decided to make most of the fielding restrictions and the new ball. Shane Watson, the mainstay of their top order surviving a huge LBW appeal in the very first over, hit six boundaries in the next two overs to give the chase some impetus very early. David Warner briefly interrupted with a switch-hit boundary before Watto launched Dilruwan Perera into orbit with two slog-sweeps. More violence followed in the next over bowled by Rangana Herath, two sixes a boundary meant that the visitors had raced to 64 for no loss after just five overs. Among all this carnage, Watson had also brought up a power-packed fifty.

The blazing start for Australia had propelled them to a position of domination but the end of fielding restrictions and introduction of Ajantha Mendis changed the game on its head. The mysterious carom-ball bowler had Watson caught in the deep for 57, David Warner was dismissed courtesy a stunning piece of fielding in the deep by Angelo Mathews, Shaun Marsh was beaten by a loopy googly as three wickets fell a span of eight balls bowled by Mendis. When Herath disturbed David Hussey’s furniture in the ninth over, the Australian chase was floundering at 75 for 4 even after a rollicking start.

With the spinners all over the batsmen, runs dried up and the run rate climbed. Though Craig White valiantly tried to keep the run chase on track with a couple of maximums, their tormentor Mendis returned in the sixteenth over to remove Steve Smith and Brad Haddin on successive deliveries to take the first fifer in T20 cricket by a Sri Lankan. He managed to get one more in the next over to walk away with the best figures in the shortest format of cricket, 6 for 16 in four overs.

White kept the crowd interested in the match bringing down the equation to fifteen in the last over but his dismissal signaled the end of the Australian innings falling short of the target by eight runs.

Earlier, Jayawardene held together the Sri Lankan innings with a classy 86 that pushed the total to157 even though wickets fell in a heap in latter half of the innings. At one stage, the hosts looked like running away with the show but Aussie pacer John Hastings picked up three crucial; wickets to limit the hosts to an achievable total.

After being asked to bowl first, Brett Lee bowled a tight first over as there was some movement on offer. Steve O’Keefe starting the proceedings from the other end was hit for two smartly placed boundaries by Jayawardene. Lee had failed to reach a caught and bowled chance in the first over against Dilshan but got his revenge next time around by trapping the centurion of the last match in front of the stumps for just 4. After a one over lull, the big shots resumed as Jayawardene hit six boundaries in seven deliveries off Lee and Mitchell Johnson.

With Mahela going great guns, exit of Chandimal and Perera did not slow down the Lankan run rate. Kumar Sangakkara came into bat at number five and combined with the well-set Mahela for 46 run partnership that set the stage for a late flourish. Unlike the last match, the last stage fireworks did not happen as Australia fought back with regular strikes with Hastings in the lead.

From 121 for 3, the hosts stuttered to 137 for 7 in space of 15 deliveries, the wickets included that of big-hitting Angelo Mathews. Even though it was a virtual procession form one end, Mahela kept the score board moving. Lee started the last over of the innings with Mahela needing 18 for a ton. A no-ball followed by a boundary brought back memories of Dilshan’s last over carnage two days back against the same bowler, but the batsman holed out in the deep for a crucial knock of 86 laced with 12 boundaries and a maximum. The fact that only 36 runs were scored the Sri Lankan batsmen in the last six overs limited them to a total that could well be chased by a batting line-up full of natural hitters but that was not to be.