lofts the ball just in front of long-off, the throw is fired to Dhoni and this time he hits the stumps firmly enough to dislodge both the bails, there's no need for the third umpire as Mendis is well short of his ground
Sri Lanka vs India, 2nd ODI at Colombo, Jan 31 2009 - Match Result
Very valiant effort by Kandamby and it could have been a different story had he received a bit more support. Sri Lanka were in with a good chance in the 3rd Powerplay but lost a couple of wickets too many. Despite scoring 93, things didn't entirely go to plan for Kandamby as several swings either found thin air or the fielders. Perhaps he ran out of energy quickly. Still though, he went down fighting and Sri Lanka should be proud of the way they fought in this chase.
As for India, they make it seven in a row. They held their nerve after the third Powerplay and set good standards in the field. The bowling wasn't at its best in the third Powerplay but Ishant made up for it with his yorkers and slower balls. Here's the presentation.
Jayawardene: "The Indians played better cricket but credit to our guys as well. It was a bit too much for Kandamby to finish the game off. We had to be a bit cautious, we knew we couldn't lose too many wickets. We played good cricket and but we need to be even better when playing a team like India."
Dhoni: "We made a few mistakes in the field. The bowlers lost their line in the middle overs. It is tough to be cool always, I wasn't always myself in the 2nd Powerplay. We have to be careful, sometimes we relax a bit. Overall a good effort."
Ishant is the Man of the Match for his 4 for 57. "Not really my best performance. I had decided exactly where to bowl in my last over. I knew the slower ball was my strength."
I wonder why Ishant was being so modest. If I'm not wrong he used the word 'depressing' somewhere in the middle. Anyway the excitement may sink in later tonight.
Thanks for your company. Do join us for the third ODI, at the same venue, on Tuesday. It's another day-nighter. Thanks for the mails.
This has been a joint effort from Cricinfo. Thank you and good night!
another bizarre incident with the bails, the throw it fired to Dhoni from long-off, he strikes the stumps firmly but the stubborn bails refuse to move! Anyway the batsman was just in
comes round the wicket and bowls the slower ball down the leg side, he sweeps but misses
20 needed off six balls
very easy for Dhoni, Kandamby makes room to swing but he misses it completely, Kulasekara takes off for the run but Dhoni under-arms ball onto the stumps and catches him well short of his crease
Kandamby's attempt at improvisation fails as he walks across all three stumps to glance it away but misses it completely, Ishant deserves credit for taking the pace off the ball
the agony increases for Sri Lanka as Kulasekara drives firmly only for Yusuf to dive and intercept it at cover
full outside off and he swings and misses
Kulasekara fails to put away a low full toss and Ishant does well to fling himself to his right and intercepts it
pitches outside off, he goes for a waft and misses
Murali first makes room and places it straight to Yusuf at midwicket who spills the catch, he fires the throw to Zaheer who whips off the bails, Murali didnt take off for the run but Kandamby was already at his end, Murali was caught ball watching and in the end sacrificed his wicket
excellent save by Gambhir, Murali slashes it hard and beats point, Gambhir does well to slide to his left and cuts it off
comes round the wicket, he fires in another yorker and he squeezes it wide of point
nice inswinging yorker, he clips it wide of midwicket and Gambhir fires the throw
slightly slower in pace and Murali intelligently dabs it to third man for a single and gives Kandamby the strike
He makes a bit of room but he can't pierce the covers
Trust me you can never underestimate Murali in a situation like this. Ask Bangladesh.
that's a cracker of a shot, he makes room and cuts a good length ball just outside off and cuts wide of deep point and third man
another excellent slower ball and Kandamby is forced to check his shot, Murali sets off but quickly darts back
the slower ball this time and Thushara doesn't read it at all, he shapes to scoop it over the bowler's head but gets into the stroke too early, Yusuf runs across to his right from mid-on and takes an easy catch
fires it outside off and he punches it firmly past the covers, Gambhir runs across and mops up
Short fine leg in place
fires a yorker down the leg side and the ball creeps between his legs as he makes room to whip it away
R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo | |
Toss | India, elected to bat first |
Series | |
Season | 2008/09 |
Player Of The Match | |
Series result | India led the 5-match series 2-0 |
Match number | ODI no. 2810 |
Hours of play (local time) | 14.30 start, First Session 14.30-18.00 Interval 18.00-18.45, Second Session 18.45-22.15 |
Match days | 31 January 2009 - daynight (50-over match) |
Umpires | |
TV Umpire | |
Reserve Umpire | |
Match Referee |