Sri Lanka beat Zimbabwe with a comprehensive margin of 9 wickets to clinch the series in the third and final T20I played today at R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo.
Having won the toss, Sri Lanka captain Wanindu Hasaranga decided to bowl first as they brought Dhananjaya De Silva for Kusal Perera while Kamindu Mendis replaced Charith Asalanka who missed out due to an illness. Zimbabwe on the other hand made one change, replacing Tony Munyonga for Ryan Burl.
In the very first over, Sadeera Samarawickrama held onto another stunning catch at backward point as Angelo Mathews dismissed Craig Ervine for a golden duck. Brian Bennett looked to bat aggressively, smashing four consecutive boundaries off Dilshan Madushanka in the second over.
However, His stay at the crease did not last long as Mathews dismissed him for a 12-ball 29 in the next over. Maheesh Theekshana removed Tinashe Kamunhukamwe in the final over of the powerplay and since then, it was about a flurry of wickets in Zimbabwe innings.
Accordingly, the visitors bundled out for 82 runs, losing their last 8 wickets for 31 runs. Skipper Hasaranga, who ripped through Zimbabwean batting order, secured his second-best T20I figures of 4/15 while Theekshana and Mathews each bagged a couple of wickets.
Chasing 83 to win, Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis eased the chase by adding 64 runs in 7.4 overs. Sean Williams provided the solitary wicket for Zimbabwe as he cleaned up Mendis for 33.
Nissanka sealed the victory as well as the series with a six off Sikandar Raza over long-on as Sri Lanka cruised to a 9-wicket win in 10.5 overs. He remained unbeaten on 39 in 23 balls, compiling 5 fours and a six while Dhananjaya De Silva stayed unbeaten with a run-a-ball 15.
Sri Lanka secured a 2-1 win in the series as skipper Hasaranga named player of the match for his excellent bowling while Mathews was adjudged as the player of the series after his brilliant all-round performance.
Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tinashe Kamunhukamwe | c Kusal Mendis b Maheesh Theekshana | 12 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 85.71 |
| Craig Ervine | c Sadeera Samarawickrama b Angelo Mathews | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Brian Bennett | c Wanidu Hasaranga b Angelo Mathews | 29 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 241.67 |
| Sean Williams | c & b Dhananjaya de Silva | 15 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 88.24 |
| Sikandar Raza | c Maheesh Theekshana b Dilshan Madushanka | 10 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 83.33 |
| Tony Munyonga | c Dhananjaya de Silva b Wanidu Hasaranga | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 66.67 |
| Clive Madande | c Dasun Shanaka b Maheesh Theekshana | 5 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Luke Jongwe | c Dilshan Madushanka b Wanidu Hasaranga | 2 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 28.57 |
| Wellington Masakadza | lbw b Wanidu Hasaranga | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 60.00 |
| Richard Ngarava | b Wanidu Hasaranga | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Blessing Muzarabani | not out | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | 2 (b 0 , lb 2 , nb 0, w 0, pen 0) |
| Total | 82/10 (14.1 Overs, RR: 5.79) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Angelo Mathews | 2 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 7.50 | |
| Dilshan Madushanka | 2 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 11.00 | |
| Maheesh Theekshana | 3.1 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 4.52 | |
| Dushmantha Chameera | 2 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 6.50 | |
| Wanidu Hasaranga | 4 | 0 | 15 | 4 | 3.75 | |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1.00 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pathum Nissanka | not out | 39 | 23 | 5 | 1 | 169.57 |
| Kusal Mendis | b Sean Williams | 33 | 27 | 4 | 1 | 122.22 |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | not out | 15 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Extras | 1 (b 0 , lb 1 , nb 0, w 0, pen 0) |
| Total | 88/1 (10.5 Overs, RR: 8.12) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Ngarava | 3 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 7.33 | |
| Blessing Muzarabani | 2 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 8.00 | |
| Wellington Masakadza | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 11.00 | |
| Sikandar Raza | 2.5 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 10.00 | |
| Sean Williams | 2 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 6.50 | |
