West Indies takes on Sri Lanka for place in the final
A place in the final of the triangular series beckons for the winner of the clash between West Indies and Sri Lanka in Bulawayo on Wednesday (November 23).
West Indies leads the table with seven points from two games, having won one with a bonus point in the opener against Sri Lanka and tied the other against Zimbabwe. Sri Lanka is second, with seven points from three games, having beaten Zimbabwe with a bonus point before its second face-off was washed out on Monday.
When Sri Lanka and West Indies clashed earlier in the series, it turned out to be a one-sided affair. West Indies won that by 62 runs, restricting Sri Lanka to 165 after setting it a target of 227. However, West Indies head into this game after the thrilling tie against Zimbabwe last week, itself largely thanks to Shai Hope’s fine century. Sri Lanka, however, hasn’t hit its highs since the eight-wicket victory against Zimbabwe in the series-opener.
Heading into the game on Wednesday, it’s the West Indies batsmen who are amongst the runs. Apart from Hope, who leads the run charts with 148 in two games, Kraigg Brathwaite is also in the top three, with 92 runs in two matches. In contrast, Sri Lanka’s highest scorer is Dhananjaya de Silva, whose 81 runs in two innings just about puts him in the top five.
Sri Lanka needs its batsmen to step up. While it was powered by Dhananjaya and Niroshan Dickwella in the opener against Zimbabwe, the middle order let it down in the subsequent clash against West Indies, when Sachith Pathirana’s late, counter-attacking 45 was the top score in chase of 228.
As far as the bowling is concerned, the two sides are fairly well matched. Shannon Gabriel and Carlos Brathwaite, the West Indies pacemen, and Nuwan Kulasekara lead the bowling charts, all with five wickets apiece. Asela Gunaratne, with four wickets in two outings, has also shored up Sri Lanka.
Suranga Lakmal is one Sri Lanka paceman who will have to reel it in a bit, though, having been pulled up by the International Cricket Council with a 50% fine on his match fee after throwing the ball dangerously at Chamu Chibhabha, the Zimbabwe opener, during the washed out match on Monday. Chibhabha had merely poked the ball back to the bowler, but Lakmal hurled the ball back at the batsman’s head, even though he had stayed in his crease and was not even attempting a run.
But with a place in the final on the line on Wednesday, more of that sort of intensity but ideally without unpleasant scenes, can be expected.
Teams (from)
Sri Lanka: Dhananjaya de Silva, Kusal Perera, Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Upul Tharanga (capt), Kusal Mendis, Shehan Jayasuriya, Asela Gunaratne, Sachith Pathirana, Nuwan Kulasekara, Dasun Shanaka, Nuwan Pradeep, Lahiru Kumara, Suranga Lakmal, Lakshan Sandakan, Jeffery Vandersay.
West Indies: Jason Holder (capt), Sulieman Benn, Devendra Bishoo, Carlos Brathwaite, Kraigg Brathwaite, Jonathan Carter, Johnson Charles, Miguel Cummins, Shane Dowrich (wk), Shannon Gabriel, Shai Hope, Evin Lewis, Jason Mohammed, Ashley Nurse, Rovman Powell.