At the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow, Sri Lanka and Australia squared off. After losing their first two games, both teams are looking for their first victory. After choosing to bat first after winning the toss, Sri Lanka made two changes to their lineup due to the absence of captain Dasun Shanaka from the competition. Matheesha Pathirana was replaced by Lahiru Kumara and Shanaka by Chamika Karunaratne. Sri Lanka scored 209 runs against Australia. Here is the recap of the first innings.
Sri Lanka dominates the first 20 overs
As soon as Mitchell Starc ran in to bowl against Pathum Nissanka, the action began. The Australians desperately attempted a review off the opening ball when Starc struck Nissanka in the line of the leg stump. Australia lost a review on the first ball of the game because the ball hit the bat first. Starc paused in his run-up just before the fourth ball and softly warned Kusal Perera for backing up at the non-striker’s end. Nissanka hit two straight fours to end the inning. Against Josh Hazlewood, Kusal Perera also hit two successive boundaries in the fourth over. Nissanka smashed another four in the fifth over and for the second time in the innings, Starc stopped in his run-up and saw Perera backing up.
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Early on, as Maxwell approached to bowl the eight over, spin was introduced. Nissanka’s bat received a sound outside edge from Maxwell in just his fourth delivery of the inning. Josh Inglis’ gloves diverted the ball away from Nissanka, saving him because there was no slip to catch it. In his second over, Maxwell successfully produced an edge that landed between the fine-leg fielder and the third man in a no-man’s-land. Although Maxwell nearly broke the first stand and trapped Perera in front of the stumps, the on-field umpire ruled that Perera was not out. Australia decided against the review but the replays showed that the umpire’s decision would have been overturned if Australia had taken the review. Sri Lanka ended with 51 runs at the end of the powerplay.
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Sri Lanka continues their domination after the powerplay
In the 14th over, Adam Zampa was introduced into the attack and received two fours as a greeting. After the powerplay, Sri Lanka increased their scoring rate by scoring 40 runs in six overs. Nissanka and Perera established the 100-run stand in the 18th over. In just 57 balls, Perera reached his half-century in the 18th over, scoring a four. Nissanka scored fifty in the next over, needing 58 balls. 114 runs have been scored by Sri Lanka at the conclusion of the 20 overs.
Australia back in the game with quick wickets
In the 22nd over, Pat Cummins re-entered the fray and dismissed Nissanka to end the 125-run partnership. Nissanka smashed eight fours in scoring 61 runs in 67 balls. Perera persisted in his assault, smashing Hazlewood for two fours in the next over. Cummins shifted his goals and fired Perera with immediate effect. Perera smashed 12 fours while scoring 78 runs in 82 balls. As Sri Lanka began to lose wickets quickly, Zampa returned to the attack and dismissed Kusal Mendis. Then, in his subsequent over, Zampa removed Samarawickrama and delivered a wicket-maiden.
The 33rd over was interrupted by rain, but thankfully it was a brief shower that only caused a 25-minute delay. Starc promptly dismissed Dhananjaya de Silva after the game had resumed in order to claim Sri Lanka’s sixth wicket. Dunith Wellalage was run out in Starc’s subsequent over thanks to some outstanding fielding from captain Pat Cummins. When Zampa dismissed Karunaratne in the 38th over, Sri Lanka gained its seventh wicket. Maheesh Theekshana was out after four balls, giving Zampa his fourth wicket.
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