Sri Lanka v West Indies 2024/25 SL v WI ​​2nd ODI Match Report 23 Oct 2024

Sri Lanka 190 for 5 (Asalanka 62*, Joseph 2-30) beaten West Indies 189 all out (Rutherford 80, Moti 50, Hasaranga 4-40, Tekshana 3-25, Fernando 3-35) for five wickets

Although the pitch for this 44-over match (rain delayed the start by two hours) was extremely favorable (it was the same track used for Sunday’s game), 190 was always going to be a challenge to defend. Where Sri Lanka’s spinners were capable of being a consistent threat, often getting substantial deflections even from faster deliveries, West Indies’ slow bowlers did not have the same impact.

Moti was their best slow bowler, conceding just 18 in nine overs and taking the wicket of Kusal Mendis. But headspinner Hayden Walsh was unhappy, guilty of bowling too short, and was picked out – he went for 41 runs after his five overs. Roston Chase was also moderately effective. It was actually Schwimmer Alzarri Joseph who compiled a career-best 2-for-30 innings.

Although Hasaranga took more wickets, Tekshana was the best of Sri Lanka’s slow bowlers, and Tekshana started the collapse with a superb offbreak that beat left-hander Alik Athanazi’s bat and clipped the stumps. . The afbreak proved to be big on this surface, and he threatened it for both righties and lefties, coming out on the carromball only occasionally. Tekshana’s lines were mostly flawless.

Later, a big offbreak would sneak between the bat and pad of Kisi Carty and rattle his stumps as well, before a slider beat the wild reverse that Walsh attempted off Texhana in the 15th over. He collected figures of 3 for 25 from nine overs.

Hasaranga googlies did their usual damage, and Chase was pulled by one that flew beautifully. Hasaranza had to work less on the wickets of Romario Shepherd and Alzarri Joseph who did not want to pick him. He would also take the final wicket of the innings with Jaden Seals caught and bowled to take home game-best figures of 4 for 40.

Fernando’s 3-for-35 was particularly impressive on a track that didn’t favor him. He dismissed Brandon King with a catch which King played too early, before bowling Shai Hope with a slightly backward delivery that the batsman pulled onto his stumps. That he broke Rutherford-Moti’s big stand was also important, even if Rutherford’s wicket came from a low full toss.

In fact, Rutherford was in dire straits before Moti joined him at the start of the 16th over and gave their partnership a boost. The number 10 hit important milestones, particularly near Hasaranga, and by the end of the 25th over had 35 runs to Rutherford’s 33, even though Rutherford had been there longer and faced more balls.

That’s when Rutherford started to attack, having earlier seemed to be flummoxed by every spinner Sri Lanka used against him. Sixes on the ground and on the side came from Rutherford out of nowhere – one over deep square leg off the bowling of Asalanka, which took him to his half-century, off 57 balls. He continued to bat until he was caught at deep square leg boundary in the 35th over, hitting four sixes and seven fours. His 80 off 82 was the highest score of the game.

Later, after Samarawickrama and Madushka – both of whom scored 38 – took Sri Lanka out of immediate danger, the introduction of Asalanka smoothly steered them to a five-wicket win in 34 balls, which remained

A hallmark of Asalanka’s good innings is his early ability to hit from the boundary, and that was the case here, spotting a full delivery beyond the opponent’s best second ball, Asalanka bowled it for a point for four. In the next over, Joseph Asalanka punched it through square leg and drilled it through cover for two more fours and smashed Roston Chase over the boundary in between. Instantly he was 20 out of 14.

Although the pace slowed, he reached his half-century off the 48th ball he faced and went home to Sri Lanka not out on 62 off 61 balls.