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

It was a dramatic turnaround of things for Australia, who after having lost the Test series miserably, came back strong in the ODI setup. Having taken an unassailable lead of 3-1 in the 5 match series, Australia had the freedom to test a few new faces and experiment a bit in the final ODI. On the other hand, Sri Lanka had their pride at stake and had to play with a stable eleven when they took on the visitors at Pallekele.

Coming into the match, Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to bat first. Australia went with an unchanged eleven and had a total dominion on their mind. Sri Lanka made as many as 4 changes – drafting in Danushka Gunathilaka, Upul Tharanga, Dasun Shanaka and Suranga Lakmal and leaving out Avishka Fernando, Angelo Perera, Seekkuge Prasanna and Thisara Perera.

Sri Lankan openers Dhananjaya de Silva and Danushka Gunathilaka walked to the crease to start the proceedings as John Hastings shared the new ball with Mitchell Starc. For the first time ever in the series, the openers managed to see the new ball through and escaped the wrath of Starc. The openers played with caution and managed to keep pace in the run scoring as well. By the end of 10 overs, Sri Lanka were poised comfortably at 58/0.

However, the partnership didn’t last long after that. The opening stand worth 73 runs was broken as James Faulkner got the first breakthrough in the 14th over when he dismissed de Silva on 34 off 47 balls (4 fours). The very next over saw his partner Gunathilaka cleaned by Adam Zampa on 39 off 40 (2 fours, 1 six).

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Dinesh Chandimal’s wicket fell in the over that followed as Starc sent him packing on just 1. Sri Lanka were in a spot of bother after losing 3 wickets for 5 runs. Kusal Mendis and Upul Tharanga were the two batsmen at the crease, trying to rebuild the innings. Mendis’ quick 33 off 36 balls with 5 fours and a six gave some impetus to the Sri Lankan batting. It was in the 23rd over when Hastings got his first wicket of the day as he managed to get an outside edge off Mendis’ bat.

Travis Head turned out to be raw gold for Australia on the occasion as he soon dismissed Tharanga’s (15 off 25 balls) and Kusal Perera (14 off 27 balls) to leave Sri Lanka reeling on 145/6. This had been the story of the series so far for Sri Lanka. They have had starts but have ended up losing half their side when they reach the 140s.

Wickets kept tumbling from thereon as Aussie bowlers shared wickets among themselves. Sachith Pathirana’s fighting 32 off 38 balls with 4 fours down the order boosted the lowly score of the hosts. Sri Lanka could manage to post only 195 runs on the board being bowled out in 40.2 overs.

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After having played safe for the most part of the match, Australia sprung a surprise when they sent in Matthew Wade to open the innings with David Warner. The move backfired as Wade could score only 3 before being dismissed by Dilruwan Perera in the 4th over. In walked Usman Khawaja, whose poor form continued to dip as he became Perera’s 2nd scalp in the 6th over to leave Australia jolted at 25/2.

The man of the previous match, George Bailey joined David Warner at the crease. The two experienced players took their time to settle in on a wicket that looked tricky and viciously spun on odd occasions. All that Australia could manage in the first 10 overs was 31 runs for the loss of 2 wickets. Warner curbed his natural instincts and played an uncharacteristic slow knock. As the partnership grew, Warner steadily reached his half-century in the 23rd over.

Warner then stepped on the accelerator and picked up pace. Just when Australia looked cruising past the target, Dilruwan Perera struck again to send Bailey back to the pavilion after a fighting 73-ball 44. Travis Head was the new man in. The departure of Bailey did not bother Warner too much and he eased past his 3rd ODI ton against Sri Lanka. Head’s stay was cut short when de Silva dismissed him on 13. Australia still needed 17 to win and James Faulkner was the next batsman in.

Some anti-climax followed as Warner became de Silva’s second victim, being caught and bowled on 106 off 126 balls (9 fours) to bring in John Hastings at the crease. Australia chased down the target with 5 wickets in hand and 7 overs to spare. Faulkner and Hastings remained unbeaten on identical scores of 8 to see Australia clinch the series 4-1.

Indeed, it was a much-improved performance by Australia in the ODIs. Starc took his good form in to the ODIs. Hastings was a good addition to the unit and so was George Bailey. They lost Steve Smith midway through the series but did not let that affect their game. A clinical outing saw them outplay the favorites Sri Lanka at home. Australia’s next assignment is in South Africa in September, where they play one ODI each against South Africa and Ireland. Sri Lanka’s next assignment is in South Africa as well in December.

Brief Scores:

Sri Lanka 195/10 in 40.2 overs (Gunathilaka 39, D de Silva 34, Starc 3/40, Head 2/22)

Australia 199/5 in 43 overs (Warner 106, Bailey 44, D Perera 3/51, de Silva 2/35)