Sri Lanka v Australia, 2016
Wisden's review of the first ODI, Sri Lanka v Australia, 2016
Adam Collins
15-Apr-2017
At Colombo (RPS), August 21, 2016 (day/night). Australia won by three wickets. Toss: Australia.
One-day international debuts: M. A. Aponso, P. A. D. L. R. Sandakan. For Australia's batsmen, further trial by spin was predictable, but they displayed considerable patience to counter a turning pitch and earn a battling victory. Predictable too was Starc's excellence: following 24 wickets in the Tests, he crashed into Kusal Perera's stumps in the opening over. Then, after patient fifties from Mendis and Chandimal, he deceived de Silva with a neat slower ball to become the fastest to 100 one-day international scalps, in his 52nd game, one fewer than Saqlain Mushtaq of Pakistan; 37 of his victims had been bowled. Faulkner's four for 38, his best ODI return, restricted the target to 228. After dark, Sri Lanka spun the ball markedly, not least debutant slow leftarmer Amila Aponso, who also bowled with impressive control. But Australia's batsmen did not panic as they had in the Tests, and fifties for Finch and Smith, who faced 92 balls, brought them a much-needed fillip. Kusal Perera kept wicket after Chandimal was hit in the ribs by Henriques.
Man of the Match: J. P. Faulkner.
One-day international debuts: M. A. Aponso, P. A. D. L. R. Sandakan. For Australia's batsmen, further trial by spin was predictable, but they displayed considerable patience to counter a turning pitch and earn a battling victory. Predictable too was Starc's excellence: following 24 wickets in the Tests, he crashed into Kusal Perera's stumps in the opening over. Then, after patient fifties from Mendis and Chandimal, he deceived de Silva with a neat slower ball to become the fastest to 100 one-day international scalps, in his 52nd game, one fewer than Saqlain Mushtaq of Pakistan; 37 of his victims had been bowled. Faulkner's four for 38, his best ODI return, restricted the target to 228. After dark, Sri Lanka spun the ball markedly, not least debutant slow leftarmer Amila Aponso, who also bowled with impressive control. But Australia's batsmen did not panic as they had in the Tests, and fifties for Finch and Smith, who faced 92 balls, brought them a much-needed fillip. Kusal Perera kept wicket after Chandimal was hit in the ribs by Henriques.
Man of the Match: J. P. Faulkner.