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Spinners help Sri Lanka stun South Africa in T20 WC opener
Chamari Athapaththu’s half-century and an excellent performance with the ball set up Sri Lanka’s thrilling three-run victory in the T20 WC opener against South Africa in Cape Town on Friday (February 10). Despite a slow first half, Sri Lanka managed to post 129 for 4 thanks to Athapaththu’s 50-ball 68 – which included 12 boundaries – and her 89-run association for the second wicket with Vishmi Gunaratne (35 off 34). The bowlers then got into the act as Inoka Ranaweera (3-18), Oshadi Ranasinghe (2-20) and Sugandika Kumari (2-28) delivered regular strikes, with the latter defending 12 in the final over to help Sri Lanka stun South Africa.
The South African openers got off to a steady start, scoring three boundaries between them in the first four overs. But the partnership came to an end in the fifth as Ranasinghe had Tazmin Brits slicing a catch to cover to dismiss her for 12 in her first over, and also gave away only two runs. Marizanne Kapp struck a boundary off Sugandika in the final over of the powerplay as South Africa got 38 in the first six overs. Kapp, however, fell in the eighth over attempting to hit Ranaweera over mid on and the bowler also bagged the wicket of Laura Wolvaardt to leave South Africa in a spot of bother at 53/3 in the 10th over.
South Africa found themselves in further trouble as Sugandika had Chloe Tryon caught at long on and Anneke Bosch bowled off an inside edge as they slipped to 72/5 in the 13th over. The required rate rose over 10 when the 16th over was completed, with skipper Sune Luus being the key for the hosts who found themselves under a lot of pressure. Luus struck a six off Ranasinghe but Nadine de Klerk fell in the same over, leaving South Africa with 33 to get off the last three overs.
A couple of boundaries for Sinalo Jafta off Kavisha Dilhari brought the equation to 20 off 12 deliveries. Sri Lanka missed a run-out opportunity in the penultimate over but Ranaweera got the big wicket of Luus, having the South African captain stumped for 28. Shabnim Ismail struck her first ball for a four but Jafta was run out soon after. Needing 13 to win off the last over, Ismail managed a couple off the first ball bowled by Sugandika but was run out the next ball attempting a couple. Sugandika, the experienced left-arm spinner, delivered an excellent over under pressure, giving away nine to deliver a winning start to Sri Lanka’s campaign.
Earlier, after being asked to bat, Athapaththu had an early reprieve as ‘keeper Sinalo Jafta put down a catch while driving across to an edge created by Ismail. Meanwhile, both the Sri Lankan openers did not find scoring easy, with Ismail even bowling a maiden to Harshitha Madavi. The boundary drought ended in the fourth over as Athapaththu slammed a cover drive off Kapp and also struck two successive boundaries off Nonkululeko Mlaba while Madavi played a scoop shot off Ayabonga Khaka for a four. But Sri Lanka could get only 28 in the powerplay and they also lost their first wicket soon after as de Klerk had Madavi caught at short mid-wicket.
The next batter, Gunaratne, also took some time to get going while Athapaththu had to shoulder the responsibility of getting the bulk of the runs. The Lankan skipper struck two fours off de Klerk but Sri Lanka managed only 45 in the first 10 overs, struggling to find any momentum. Athapaththu provided the much-needed impetus with three fours in a row off de Klerk in the 11th over, driving a couple through cover before pulling one over mid-wicket. Gunaratne played a paddle shot off Mlaba for her first four and followed it up with three fours in succession off Ismail to bring up the half-century stand off 36 balls.
Athapaththu got to a 42-ball fifty and then struck another hat-trick of boundaries off de Klerk as Sri Lanka went past 100 in the 16th over. The second wicket stand came to an end when a direct hit from Brits caught Gunaratne short of the crease. In the same over, Kapp got the wicket of Athapaththu thanks to a fine catch from de Klerk in the deep. The wicket of the set batters and tight bowling from South Africa meant that Sri Lanka could only manage 15 in the last three overs to finish with a sub-par total.
Brief scores:
Sri Lanka 129/5 in 20 overs (Chamari Athapaththu 68, Vishmi Gunaratne 35; Marizanne Kapp 1-15) beat South Africa 126/9 in 20 overs (Sune Luus 28; Inoka Ranaweera 3-18, Oshadi Ranasinghe 2-20) by 3 runs.
The first truly heavyweight clash of this expanded T20 World Cup format comes freighted with both history and subplots. A rematch of the 2010 World T20 final at Kensington Oval, the match pits Jos Buttler’s defending champions – who are aiming to become the first team to retain the trophy – against the Australian winning machine, victors at the 2021 edition and current world title-holders in Test and ODI cricket. And that’s before you throw in the Ashes for afters.
Already there is added pressure on England, after the rain in Bridgetown led to a share of the points in their opener against Scotland (and that having conceded 90 runs from 10 overs without taking a wicket in a tepid bowling display). Lose to their oldest rivals and it will leave their Super 8 prospects open to being waylaid by the perils of net run-rate calculations, or worse.
The Scotland match was the third abandonment in five suffered by England, after a rain-affected home series against Pakistan, which has clearly hampered their readiness for this campaign after almost six months without playing T20 together. It does not take much for a side to click in this format – and England looked in decent shape when they did get on the field against Pakistan – but Buttler will be anxious for things to go their way on Saturday, if only to avoid further questions referencing the team’s disastrous ODI World Cup defence last year.
Australia, under the laidback leadership of Mitchell Marsh would love nothing more than to add to the English sense of jeopardy – having helped bundle them out of the tournament in India on the way to taking the crown. Their head to head record is less impressive in T20 however, with England having won six of the last seven completed encounters, as well as that 2010 final.
Despite a wobble with the bat, Australia avoided mishap against Oman earlier in the week, the experience of David Warner and Marcus Stoinis shining through in difficult batting conditions. Surfaces in the Caribbean – not to mention those games staged in the USA – have already had teams scratching their heads; rather than the “slug-fest” England had prepared for, following a high-scoring tour of the Caribbean in December, it looks as if boxing smart may be the way to go.
Speaking of Warner, this could be the last time he faces up against England in national colours – and another match-winning contribution would likely reduce the chances of them meeting again in the knockouts. On the other side of the card is Jofra Archer, fresh from an emotional maiden outing at Kensington Oval and ready to take on Australia for the first time in any format since 2020. Can Mark Wood fire up England’s campaign, as he did during last summer’s Ashes? Will Pat Cummins be back to harass the old enemy once again? Seconds out, it’s almost time to rumble.
Cummins is set to return after being rested for the Oman game, which saw Mitchell Starc leave the field with cramp. Starc is understood to be fine and could keep his place – which would likely see Nathan Ellis miss out. Marsh is still not fit to bowl, with Australia likely to continue with the allrounder combination of Stoinis and Maxwell to give them cover.
Australia (probable XI): David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh (capt), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Josh Inglis (wk), Tim David, Pat Cummins, Nathan Ellis/Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
The one change England may consider is Reece Topley coming in for Wood, with the expectation that there will be some rotation among the seamers through the course of the tournament.
England (probable XI): Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (capt & wk), Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley/Mark Wood
[Cricinfo]
Once is coincidence, twice is a clue, and three times is proof.
To paraphrase Agatha Christie, that is the narrative around South Africa’s meeting with Netherlands at this T20 World Cup.
The Dutch beat South Africa at the 2022 tournament and ended their semi-final hopes in a match where South Africa appeared to be sleep walking, and then beat them again at the 2023 ODI World Cup, where they exposed South Africa’s vulnerability in the chase. If they to do the treble, not only will Netherlands take the lead in Group D, but they will offer conclusive evidence of the threat they pose to Full Members, especially South Africa.
Of course, it will take some doing after South Africa’s opening performance against Sri Lanka, where they reduced their opposition to their lowest T20I total and chased it down in fairly straightforward fashion thanks to the most stable middle-order of their white-ball era. In Aiden Markram, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller, South Africa have bankers and big-hitters and, for this match, they also have the advantage of experience. They’ve already played at Eisenhower Park, and have first-hand knowledge that run-scoring doesn’t come easily;Klassen said they are prepared to use their “cricket brains” and play “smarter cricket”.
But the conditions could be good news for Netherlands, who are not naturally a line-up of big hitters and build their innings on a foundation of turning ones into twos. In other words, they tend to take a slightly more conservative approach to batting, which may work well here, but they’ll be wary of the uneven bounce of the surface and will have to come up with plans to counterattack especially against South Africa’s seamers. Their own bowlers were exemplary in Dallas and will look to build on that performance against a line-up that will likely be more proactive than Nepal’s, but who they have managed to keep quiet not once, but twice in the past. Third time’s the charm, they say.
Anrich Nortje’s stunning return to form against Sri Lanka means South Africa may not have to tinker with the bowling combination, and Gerald Coetzee and Tabraiz Shamsi may have to wait their turns to get a game. The batting line-up should be unchanged, with no space for Ryan Rickelton yet.
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markam, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Ottneil Baartman, Anrich Nortje
Conditions in New York may tempt Netherlands to include an extra seamer and they have Kyle Klein in their squad. But it could come at the expense of a shortened batting line-up and they may not want to risk that.
Netherlands: Michael Levitt, Max O’Dowd, Vikramjit Singh, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Scott Edwards (capt, wk), Bas de Leede, Teja Nidamanuru, Logan van Beek, Tim Pringle, Paul van Meekeren, Vivian Kingma
[Cricinfo]
Nuwan Thushara’s last over brought Sri Lanka screaming back into the match,as he first bowled Rishad Hossain, and then nailed Taskin Ahmed in front of the stumps with a pinpoint swinging yorker. This left Bangladesh eight wickets down, with 12 runs still to get.
However, the experienced Mahmudullah was at the crease for Bangladesh, and despite some further nervy moments, pushed Bangladesh across the line off the last ball of the 19th over.
But this was a match chiefly decided by Bangladesh’s own outstanding bowling. Mustafizur Rahman was the best among them, using shorter lengths and his cutters efficiently, to claim figures of 3 for 17. Rishad Hossain’s three-for through the middle overs also kept Sri Lanka quiet.
Mustafizur was instrumental in Sri Lanka’s downward spiral through the middle overs, which culminated in a crash-and-burn end. Ultimately, their inability to find boundaries, or even rotate strike against good Bangladesh bowling resulted in their downfall. A score of 125 for 9 always seemed poor on a decent pitch, even if their bowlers made a match of it in the end.
Brief scores:
Bangladesh 125 for 8 in 19 overs (Towhid Hridoy 40, Litton Das 36; Dhanajaya de Silva 1-11, Nuwan Thushara 4-18, Wanidu Hasaranga 2-32, Matheesha Pathirana 1-27) beat Sri Lanka124 for 9 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 47, Dhananjaya de Silva 21; Tanzim Hasan Sakib 1-24, Taskin Ahmed 2-25, Mustafizur Rahman 3-17, Rishad Hossain 3-22) by two wickets
[Cricinfo]
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