SL v AUS, 5th ODI: 5 Talking Points

The fifth SL v AUS ODI saw David Warner slam his authority on the encounter as his century powered the Australians to a five-wicket win. This win keeps the Australian winning streak over Sri Lanka in the subcontinent intact as well as consummates David Warner’s success as the stand-in skipper of the Australian side. Moreover, this result also saw some supremely important questions on the Sri Lankan fitness and selection panel raised. That said, here are five talking points from the recently concluded encounter.

1. Dinesh Chandimal takes over captaincy; ring in the changes

The biggest surprise as far as Sri Lanka was concerned was the handling of the captaincy. While Dinesh Chandimal was heavily tipped to take over the captaincy from the injured Angelo Mathews. The Lankan selectors made a plethora of simply shocking changes. Whether this was to guard those players suffering from fatigue, we will never know. Needless to say, Danushka Gunathilaka, Upul Tharanga, Suranga Lakmal, and Dasun Shanaka came into the side.

2. Mitchell Starc and co. tear Lankans apart

In spite of having been rather subdued in the previous ODI, Mitchell Starc re-found his confidence with an impressive spell of bowling. He picked up three wickets including the all-important wicket of Dinesh Chandimal. Starc was indeed well supported by his shadowing pace bowlers who picked a wicket apiece while the spin duo of Travis Head and Adam Zampa concluded with 2 wickets apiece.

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3. Dilruwan Perera strikes early

Dilruwan Perera has been subdued since his impressive performance in the second Test match against the Aussies in the recently concluded SL v AUS Test series. Perera however, struck early on in the innings and being the only spinner as well as the highest wicket-taker for the Lankans on the day, picking up three wickets that fell. He dismissed Matthew Wade, George Bailey, and Usman Khawaja before David Warner coasted to an impressive win. Dilruwan Perera was perhaps the only shining light for the Lankans on the day.

4. Warner and Bailey spare Aussies of early blushes

For the most part of this series, David Warner and George Bailey are the few batsmen who have managed to impress in the ongoing series against the Sri Lankans. While Bailey has been consistent thus far, it almost seems clear that David Warner has balanced his captaincy duties with some decent batting performances. However, the final ODI of the series saw Warner smash 106 of 126 deliveries as he weighed down the anchor for his side as he has done on numerous occasions. Moreover, he stitched a partnership in excess of 100 runs with George Bailey who chipped in with a useful 44.

Also read – SL v AUS, 5th ODI Review: Warner’s ton guides Australia to 4-1 series win

5. Aussies cruise to impressive series win

In spite of a few hiccups towards the end of the innings, the Aussies went ahead and clinched a win in the final ODI of the series, thus ensuring that they claimed a 4-1 win in the ODI series. This also means that David Warner remains unbeaten as the skipper of Australia. David Warner, the charismatic skipper was handed the man of the match courtesy of his 106.