England was crushed for 156, the lowest all-out total ever recorded in men’s ODIs at the Chinnaswamy, with precisely 100 balls remaining while Sri Lanka easily chased down this target with eight wickets in hands and they are still in the running for the top four spots.
England had won the toss and decided to bat first. If Matheesha Pathirana hadn’t sustained an injury that ended the tournament, Mathews would not have been included in their side, but at the age of 36, his first over in an ODI in three and a half years was replete with nagging intent.
His second ball, to Malan, bounced off a perfect line and length to glide past the splice. He then followed up with a similar delivery to Malan, but this time there was a slight scuff on the ultra-edge, and Sri Lanka quickly reviewed the on-field not-out decision.
After six overs, England was 44 for 0, and they were now 2 for 15 in their remaining power play. And since Lahiru Kumara’s arrival gave Sri Lanka’s performance an extra boost, Bairstow decided that his team’s only line of defense should be attack. His next angry attempt was a clumsy drag over a length ball from Kasun Rajitha, and Dhanajaya de Silva didn’t have to move because the opportunity was wedged into his breadbasket at mid-on.
Jos Buttler enters the game at 68 for 3. He is having trouble with his form and his side is once again experiencing panic. After six balls, he was out for a third time in five nervous games after snicking another ball to the keeper.
At least this time, it wasn’t a timid attempt to replicate his failures against South Africa and New Zealand. However, Kusal Mendis jumped dramatically to his right to cling on after his aggressive cut to Kumara’s extra pace had the same impact.
Unfortunately, Livingstone hardly qualifies as such at the moment; after his sixth ball from Kumara screamed into another awkwardly planted front pad, he was dismissed for just one run, earning a tournament total of 31 runs in four innings. After 17 overs, his departure put England five down, and the race to the bottom was well and truly on.
For a little period, Stokes and Moeen stopped the bleeding and added 37 runs in 46 balls, with wealth by standards plummeting all around them.
England continued to believe that their miracle man had another epic up his sleeve as long as Stokes was saving his moments for moments of pure aggression, which he did with four pulls of varied power through the legside and a bullet drive through the covers.
With a clumsy cut to point on a run-a-ball 15, Moeen dashed this short sense of permanence. Mathews then returned for his fourth over, using his cunning and lack of pace to pry out his second crucial wicket of a devastating comeback.
A fourth-ball duck, a powerful cut to point off Rajitha, well-achieved by a diving Sadeera Samarawickrama, took Woakes’ miserable campaign to a new low one over later. Samarawickrama’s confidence was enough to persuade the third umpire, despite the replay appearing blurry, that the chance had been carried.
Stokes was 34 not out from 58 balls by now, but at 123 for 7, even he was unsure whether to stick or twist. After under-edging a reverse sweep against Theekshana, he had already survived an overturned review for lbw and one soaring edge to the gully, where Samarawickrama had not been able to hold on this time.
However, Kumara’s head-hunting strategy found him on 43, with precisely 20 overs left in the innings. Dushan Hemantha, the substitute, didn’t have to move when another full-blooded pull hit a top edge to deep midwicket.
England was crushed for 156, the lowest all-out total ever recorded in men’s ODIs at the Chinnaswamy, with precisely 100 balls remaining, when Mark Wood gave the charge to the great Theekshana to be stumped for 5.
The run-chase was never guaranteed due to Sri Lanka’s inherent weaknesses, particularly after Willey (one of England’s few consistent competitors) removed Mendis and Kusal Perera in his opening three overs.
However, England’s white-ball attack maestro Woakes failed to penetrate once more, and without any more power play steals, neither Rashid nor Wood could offer the X-factor that this rigorous scenario required.
Nissanka displayed a level of bravery against his opponent’s main danger that the English team was unable to muster, as Rashid’s fifth ball was smoked onto the roof at long-on. The two points that his innings guaranteed would be added to Sri Lanka’s qualification campaign were the figures that counted most.
He secured his fourth half-century in consecutive World Cup knocks with a magnificent drive through the covers off Wood. They are still in the running for the top four spots.
However, Sri Lanka will play their match against Afghanistan next week with the belief that they can immediately return to the mix, unlike England, who are fully prepared for impact as they take on table-toppers India in Lucknow on Sunday.
Kusal Mendis:
“The net run rate going up is great for us. We did well in the first few overs and then just continued. Everyone did well today. We have another four games left, I think if we can string more performances together we have a chance of making the semifinals. [Lahiru Kumara] He knows his role, he’s our main fast-bowling weapon and he bowled well to control the game today. [Angelo Mathews?] He has so much experience; he helps so much in the middle overs. He can bat and bowl and he also enjoys the game. He also knows how to handle pressure situations, so it’s good to have him around. The fielding was also excellent today; we need to do the same thing over the next couple of matches.”
Jos Buttler:
“It’s been an incredibly tough and incredibly disappointing tournament. Disappointed in myself and all the boys that we haven’t shown a good account of ourselves. There’s no clear answer at the moment [as to why that’s the case]. Can’t really fault the boy’s efforts but we’re playing a long way short of our best. It starts from the front, as Captain you want to lead from the front and play well and I’ve been a long way short of my best. [Confidence drained away?] Not really, to be honest, there are a lot of experienced cricketers in the room, who’ve been through a lot – confident people. You don’t become a bad player overnight; you don’t become a bad team overnight. I think that’s probably the biggest frustration that we’ve been so far short of our best and for no obvious reason. Just can’t put my finger on it at the moment. [Uncertainty over strategy?] Selection is something you want to be consistent, with to build that trust. But selection isn’t a problem at the moment, performance is. Whoever has been on the field so far has been short of the standards we set ourselves. The kind of mistakes we’re all making, you don’t see that usually. We haven’t been doing the basic things well. [What to cling to?] The biggest thing is personal pride, whatever happens in the rest of the tournament we want to give a good account of ourselves going forward.”
Lahiru Kumara, the Player of the Match:
“I’m very happy with my performance; I’ve worked hard for it. I didn’t do much different from the Australia game was an off-day, I just worked hard and it worked out today. As for Angelo, he has a lot of experience; he helped me a lot at mid-off. It was great to have him back. The plan was to hit the middle overs with discipline; we stuck to the plan and were rewarded with wickets.”