Rex Clementine at Suriyawewa
Sri Lanka will be heading to the World Cup Qualifiers that will get underway in Zimbabwe shortly with full of confidence after a comprehensive series win over Afghanistan at Suriyawewa yesterday.
Sri Lanka had lost the first ODI by six wickets but were clinical in the remainder of the series winning the second game by 132 runs and then sealing the series yesterday with a nine wicket win with 34 overs to spare.
It was Dushmantha Chameera who fired Sri Lanka to victory bowling two nasty spells in which he picked up four wickets. The quick playing his first series since undergoing ankle surgery and missing eight months of cricket was on the money picking up two wickets apiece in his two spells.
Lahiru Kumara also was spectacular returning to the side having limped off hallway through the first game with a hamstring strain. Kumara had Rahmanullah Gurbaz caught at fine leg having pitched one short and then cleaned up the dangerous Ibrahim Zadran bowling him through the gate.
Leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga polished up the tail finishing with three wickets.
Chameera walked away with Man of the Match award and his six wickets in the series fetched him the Player of the Series award as well. Chameera didn’t play in the first ODI.
The run chase didn’t bother the Sri Lankans as Pathum Nissanka and Dimuth Karunaratne added 84 runs for the first wicket in just 61 balls.
Nissanka posted his seventh fifty reaching the milestone in just 32 balls with eight fours and two sixes.
The highlight during the partnership was Dimuth Karunaratne scoring less than a run a ball half-century. The Test captain was unbeaten on 56 when Sri Lanka finished things off in style with plenty to spare.
Back-to-back half-centuries by Karunaratne has justified his recalling with the team suffering too many batting collapses in recent months not able to bat out the 50 overs.
Karunaratne is expected to play the anchor role in Zimbabwe while the others bat around him.
Sri Lanka will head straight to Zimbabwe to secure one of the two remaining spots for the World Cup later this year in India. No such issues for the Afghans as they are already through to the sport’s showpiece event.
Sri Lanka will feel that they have ticked all the boxes ahead of their trip to Zimbabwe and only thing that is worrying is the lack of left-arm option in their attack.
