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Dambulla: After being humbled in the first one-day international, Sri Lanka will be eager to level terms in the day-nighter at Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium in the second ODI on Wednesday.
The change of formats brought with it good tidings for South Africa as they brushed their Test disappointments aside and won the first ODI quite comprehensively, by five wickets.
Kagiso Rabada (4/41) and Tabraiz Shamsi (4/33) set it up for them as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 193, and JP Duminy's whirlwind half-century (53* in 32 balls) sealed the match for the visitors in just 31 overs.
Sri Lanka, who were 36/5 at one stage, were helped by Kusal Perera and Thisara Perera as they added 92 runs for the sixth wicket to revive the innings and helped give their bowlers something to defend. However, it was far from enough as Quinton de Kock and Faf du Plessis added 86 runs for the third wicket to make light work of the chase.
Kusal's innings of 81 off 71 balls was the highlight of the Sri Lankan innings and Thisara's 49 off 30 also helped them up the scoring rate, and a lot will depend on these two should Sri Lanka find themselves in a spot of bother again.
Niroshan Dickwella, Upul Tharanga, Kusal Mendis and captain Angelo Mathews form a formidable line-up and they must click as a unit. Among the bowlers, barring Akila Dananjaya, who picked up 3/50 in his 10, the others looked ineffective and the hosts will have to give their ace white-ball spinner some support.
Despite the debacle, Sri Lanka are unlikely to change their top five. With Thisara Perera batting at seven, Shehan Jayasuriya at one batsman too many. Dhananjaya de Silva may be a better option.
Suranga Lakmal and Lahiru Kumara had precious little to do in the first ODI. With Thisara already playing, a fourth fast bowler (Kasun Rajitha or Dasun Shanaka) will probably be redundant. Prabath Jayasuriya’s debut is also likely to be delayed, as Sri Lanka will stick to Akila Dananjaya and Lakshan Sandakan.
Hashim Amla has been in poor form this year (173 runs at 24.71), but there is obviously little doubt over his inclusion at the top alongside Quinton de Kock. In fact, with JP Duminy as the sixth bowler, the South African unit looks reasonably well-rounded. The only likely replacement may be of David Miller (117 runs at 19.50 this year), who may be replaced by Heinrich Klaasen.
Teams from
Sri Lanka: Angelo Mathews (c), Dasun Shanaka, Kusal Perera, Dhananjaya de Silva, Upul Tharanga, Kusal Mendis, Thisara Perera, Niroshan Dickwella, Suranga Lakmal, Lahiru Kumara, Kasun Rajitha, Akila Dananjaya, Prabath Jayasuriya, Lakshan Sandakan, Shehan Jayasuriya
South Africa: Faf du Plessis (c), Hashim Amla, Junior Dala, Quinton de Kock, Jean-Paul Duminy, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Willem Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi
Pitch and condition
It is expected to be a hot day in Dambulla with temperatures ranging between 24 and 32 degree Celsius, and the expected humidity is 64 per cent. But the chances of rain are low.
Match facts
Wednesday 1 August 2018
Start time: 14:30 Local (09:00 GMT)
