World Cup 2019: Sri Lanka upset England in a low scoring thriller
World Cup 2019, Eng vs SL: The dark horse, Lasith Malinga shines as Sri Lanka upset England in a low scoring thriller.
ENGLAND VS SRI LANKA SCORECARD
Sri Lanka: 232-9 in 50 overs | Winner
Angelo Mathews: 85(115) | Jofra Archer: 3-52 | Mark Wood: 3-40
England: 212-10 in 47 overs | Lost the match by 20 runs
Ben Stokes: 82(89) | Lasith Malinga: 4-43 | Dhananjaya de Silva: 3-32
Player of the Match: Lasith Malinga
MATCH SUMMARY:
If you were thinking World Cup 2019 has been going boring and unpredictable, then you are wrong.
We have just witnessed probably the best game of the tournament so far as Sri Lanka cause a magical upset by defeating England by 20 runs
The champion, the dark horse, Lasith Malinga bowled an amazing spell of 4-43 for that inspired Sri Lanka to a magical win vs England at World Cup 2019.
Batting first, Sri Lanka had a horror start as the openers were sent back too early. Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Perera, who literally toyed the Australian bowling line-up scored just 1 run and 2 runs respectively.
On the other hand, the World Cup debutant, Avishka Fernando played a fantastic cameo of 49(39). Some of the shots played by him were pure class, but he has ultimately dismissed off a horrible shot.
Angelo Mathews, who had a rather poor tournament so far finally played a sensible knock of 85(115), which lifted Sri Lanka from a dire state to a decent 232-9 in 50 overs.
For England, the pace of Jofra Archer and Mark Wood proved too hot for Sri Lanka as the duo took 3 wickets each.
THE CHASE:
233 looked like a walk in a park for England as the low score shouldn’t have bothered them. However, Sri Lankan bowlers had different thoughts.
The champion, the dark horse, Lasith Malinga brought all his experience into the picture as his slower yorkers, slower loopers and perfect out-swingers proved very lethal.
He got Jonny Bairstow for a golden duck, then bowled a perfect out-swinger to set up James Vince, and a perfect swinging yorker to Jos Buttler, which was the turning point of the match.
Ben Stokes fought a lone battle till the end, but he was left strangled at one end as wickets kept crumbling at the other end.
In the end, Ben Stokes remained not-out on 82*(89) as England were bundled-out for 212 in 47 overs.
So, a sensational win for Sri Lanka has left the points table open. England now face Australia, India and New Zealand as their semi-final spot looks in disarray.
WHAT WENT WRONG FOR ENGLAND?
- The approach towards the chase. England looked very defensive with their shot selection that helped Sri Lanka to dominate.
- Lack of big partnerships. They should have had big partnerships in this tricky run chase.
- Poor shots in the end by Moeen Ali and Jofra Archer, when it was absolutely not necessary.
KEY MOMENTS:
- Adil Rashid’s 2 wickets in 2 balls in the 30th over.
- Jonny Bairstow getting dismissed for another golden duck.
- Isuru Udana’s excellent caught&bowled to dismiss Eoin Morgan.
- Lasith Malinga’s perfect swinging yorker to dismiss Jos Buttler.
NEXT MATCHES:
Match 28: INDIA VS AFGHANISTAN
Place: Southampton
Date: June 22, 2019
Time: 3 pm IST
The dominant Indian side would be looking to extend their unbeaten streak as they face Afghanistan.
Match 29: NEW ZEALAND VS WEST INDIES
Place: Manchester
Date: June 22, 2019
Time: 6 pm IST
West Indies looking for a revival as they run into the unbeaten New Zealand side.
ALSO READ: CWC19: Twitter bursts in joy after Sri Lanka’s magical upset over England
Adesh Kothari is the founder of AK4Tsay1 Cricalytics.
Cricket to him is like what ‘Football is to Lionel Messi’, ‘Singing is to Lata Mangeshkar’, ‘Dancing is to Michael Jackson’, and what ‘Acting is to Clint Eastwood’.
Besides his effervescent love for Cricket, Adesh is an MBA by qualification.
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