Sri Lanka chase 313 in tense finish at Wanderers
Sri Lanka won the final ODI in exhilarating fashion at the Wanderers when SMSM Senanayake smashed Robin Petersen into the stands with one ball to secure victory with one ball remaining. The visitors needed six runs off the final over with four wickets in hand, but Senenayake saved his side after two wickets fell for only run in the first three balls of the over.
In baseball when a series is won then they do not bother to play the dead-rubber fixtures. In cricket they do. That’s not to say that it hasn’t been enjoyable watching South Africa go 3-0 up and then tinker with their team selection and fail to defend 300 at Kimberley and 313 in Johannesburg, but it was of course a pity that Sri Lanka only turned up in the series once it had been lost.
Graeme Smith, a flat-track bully who scores ugly runs through sheer determination knocked up a doughty hundred (125, 134b) to lay the foundation for a blitzkrieg innings from AB de Villiers (125, 98b), which give South Africa a substantial target. But it was Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakarra who stole the man-of-the-match award as he beautifully guided his side to a position (275/3, 44 overs) from which losing seemed virtually impossible.
A rain delay early in the Sri Lankan chase saw a fair number of the capacity –crowd make their way home prematurely but those who stayed were handsomely rewarded with a scintillating rollercoaster of a climax as the Bull Ring found its voice and the stadium erupted. Some of those who stayed would have had memories of South Africa’s extraordinary 438-run chase against Australia fresh in their minds.
South Africa’s bowling was pedestrian at best as Morne Morkel returned the side’s most economical figures as he went at 5.5 runs per over in vain. While it was fantastic for Graeme Smith and his team that he quashed his critics with a good hundred, it must be noted that in these times, and indeed on this flat pitch, 312 isn’t necessarily a winning score.
Sri Lanka’s chase marked the first occasion since New Zealand in 2007, that a side has chased 300 in consecutive matches. Sangakarra was ably assisted in the middle by Tharanga (46, 39b), Dilshan (41, 39b) and Thirimanne (69, 63b). But they could not have done it without Senanayake’s crackerjack of a six.
Damn, it must feel good to win a match for your county by smashing one into the crowd.
South Africa will name their squad for New Zealand this coming Wednesday and the team will travel there for three T20 I’s, three ODI’s and three Tests. They leave on the 10th of January.
Thanks Sri Lanka, it was a pleasure having your team of good men on these shores.
