Nuwan Kulasekara and Ajantha Mendis took three wickets each as Zimbabwe was dismissed for just 80 runs to hand Sri Lanka a 130-run victory in a triangular limited-overs international match today.
Nuwan Kulasekara and Ajantha Mendis took three wickets each as Zimbabwe was dismissed for just 80 runs to hand Sri Lanka a 130-run victory in a triangular limited-overs international match today.
Chasing Sri Lanka's total of 210-6, Zimbabwe lost its way early in its innings when it conceded three early wickets for just 27 runs. Kulasekara bowled Vusi Sibanda for 7 before trapping his opening partner Hamilton Masakadza lbw for 3 to reduce Zimbabwe to 16-2. He went on to claim the wicket of Tatenda Taibu (9), to return figures of 3-13.
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Stuart Matsikenyeri and Sean Williams lifted the innings to 47 before Thilan Thushara bowled Williams for 8. Ajantha Mendis then bowled Matsikenyeri (15) -- who was the only batsman to reach double figures -- and leave Zimbabwe struggling on 53. Sri Lanka skipper Mahela Jayawardene caught his counterpart Prosper Utseya off an Angelo Mathews ball, then caught Keith Dabengwa (6) off Muttiah Muralitharan, with Zimbabwe on 73-7.
Mendis had Ray Price (2) stumped by Kumar Sangakkara to get his 50th one-day wicket -- in his 19th match -- while Muralitharan had Elton Chigumbura stumped on 7, to end up with figures of 2-4. Mendis, who took 3-15, finally dismissed Tawanda Mupariwa without score to end Zimbabwe's innings in 28.2 overs.
It was the fourth time Sri Lanka managed to bowl Zimbabwe out for less than 100 runs. Earlier, man of the match Mathews hit an unbeaten half-century to guide Sri Lanka to a respectable 210 for six, after Zimbabwe seamer Ed Rainsford took three quick wickets.
Sri Lanka got off to a good start after Zimbabwe won the toss and opted to field first at Dhaka's Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, before Chigumbura had Sanath Jayasuriya caught by Masakadza at first slip for 22 to break a 51-run opening partnership.
Sri Lanka then lost the next three wickets for just 38 runs to Rainsford's bowling as they stumbled to 89-4. Rainsford trapped Kumar Sangakkara lbw for four and had captain Mahela Jayawardene caught behind for a duck before dismissing Chamara Kapugedera lbw for four to return figures of 3-41. Utseya dismissed opener Upul Tharanga lbw for 43 to leave Sri Lanka reeling at 97 in 20.2 overs.
Jehan Mubarak and Angelo Mathews added 69 more runs at the sixth wicket, but their partnership ended when Ray Price claimed Mubarak (31), who failed to clear the boundary and was caught by Sean Williams. Mathews and Thilan Thushara put on a 44-run stand to see out the allotted 50 overs.
Allrounder Mathews, who made his debut against Zimbabwe in November at Harare, got his maiden fifty off 94 balls -- with a boundary and two sixes. The Zimbabwe bowlers gave away 26 extras -- bowling 20 wides and six leg-bys, as Chigumbura, Utseya and Price took a wicket each. Zimbabwe beat host Bangladesh by 38 runs in Saturday's series opener to record its first win over a Test-playing nation since 2007.
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