Colombo: Sri Lanka scored 90 runs off the last 10 overs of their innings and defended 90 in the last 10 overs of South Africa’s to take the series lead and 10 points into the World Cup Super League table.Avishka Fernando’s 118 off 115 balls led Sri Lanka to 300.
Dasun Shanaka, Sri Lanka captain, said, ‘Very good win. They came into the game and our bowlers pulled it back. We started really well. Plan was to bat until 40 overs and then get the momentum going. It was turning in the first innings. We expected the ball to turn in second but it didn’t. Spinners did well despite that. It is hard to chase on this wicket, 300 is a good total. We are not allowed to get net bowlers because of the pandemic. Having not enough bowlers is a challenge’
Avishka Fernando, Player of the Match, said, ‘ I didn’t start the innings well but I wanted to stay in the middle and take it forward. In the build up to this series played some domestic cricket and had good preparation.’
SA spinner, Keshav Maharaj, said, ‘He’s (Bavuma) going for a scan. We’ll know shortly but he’s a fighter. The surface was really good. Small mistakes here and there. Positive signs to take forward. I just tried to hit my area and be as consistent as possible, luckily came off. We had good preparation in the build up. Turning point was Temba hurting finger and going off. Credit to Sri Lankan bowlers.’