Malinga foxes Warner with a ball that doesn't arrive
Plays of the Day from the sixth ODI of the CB series, between Australia and Sri Lanka in Sydney
Daniel Brettig at the SCG
17-Feb-2012
The ball that dismissed David Warner was not the first change of pace from Lasith Malinga, but it was the least detected • Getty Images
The slower ball
Plenty of interest in Sydney before the match had surrounded Lasith Malinga - all slinging pace, late swing, and blond tips. But he demonstrated that his art also encompasses subtlety by accounting for David Warner with crafty variation. The ball that dismissed Warner was not the first change of pace Malinga had whirred down, but it was certainly the least detected, catching the batsman in the middle of a dance down the pitch. Into the shot far too early, Warner could only watch it sail gently into the hands of mid-on.
Plenty of interest in Sydney before the match had surrounded Lasith Malinga - all slinging pace, late swing, and blond tips. But he demonstrated that his art also encompasses subtlety by accounting for David Warner with crafty variation. The ball that dismissed Warner was not the first change of pace Malinga had whirred down, but it was certainly the least detected, catching the batsman in the middle of a dance down the pitch. Into the shot far too early, Warner could only watch it sail gently into the hands of mid-on.
The drops
Australia's total of 158 was meagre enough without imagining what it might have been without David Hussey's 58. But Sri Lanka might have been chasing even fewer had Malinga, then Angelo Mathews, held on to chances offered by the only batsman to come to grips with the afternoon. Hussey had only eight when Malinga spilled a perfectly catchable opportunity at third man, and 33 when Mathews grassed a sharper one at short extra cover. Sri Lanka's fielding was otherwise sharp, but Hussey's lives will give the visitors' coaching staff something to point to when searching for areas to improve upon.
Australia's total of 158 was meagre enough without imagining what it might have been without David Hussey's 58. But Sri Lanka might have been chasing even fewer had Malinga, then Angelo Mathews, held on to chances offered by the only batsman to come to grips with the afternoon. Hussey had only eight when Malinga spilled a perfectly catchable opportunity at third man, and 33 when Mathews grassed a sharper one at short extra cover. Sri Lanka's fielding was otherwise sharp, but Hussey's lives will give the visitors' coaching staff something to point to when searching for areas to improve upon.
The dead ball
The first ball of the ninth over, delivered by Mitchell Starc, swung down the legside and brushed Tillakaratne Dilshan's pads as he aimed to glance. The movement of the ball caused Dilshan's bat to miss making contact by a distance, but there was little hint of leaving the ball alone as it scuttled down to the fence for an apparent four leg byes. The umpire Billy Bowden thought differently however, signalling dead ball and causing Mahela Jayawardene to react with irritation to the four runs his side had just lost.
The first ball of the ninth over, delivered by Mitchell Starc, swung down the legside and brushed Tillakaratne Dilshan's pads as he aimed to glance. The movement of the ball caused Dilshan's bat to miss making contact by a distance, but there was little hint of leaving the ball alone as it scuttled down to the fence for an apparent four leg byes. The umpire Billy Bowden thought differently however, signalling dead ball and causing Mahela Jayawardene to react with irritation to the four runs his side had just lost.
The straight drive
Even on a damp, Duckworth-Lewis-modified night, a shot can be played with all the beauty and simplicity of a Test match masterstroke. In the 13th over, Kumar Sangakkara duly provided one such moment, punching Brett Lee down the ground with the kind of command demonstrated by Sri Lanka across this match. Dilshan may have hit harder and further earlier in the innings, but Sangakkara's shot was one for the purists.
Even on a damp, Duckworth-Lewis-modified night, a shot can be played with all the beauty and simplicity of a Test match masterstroke. In the 13th over, Kumar Sangakkara duly provided one such moment, punching Brett Lee down the ground with the kind of command demonstrated by Sri Lanka across this match. Dilshan may have hit harder and further earlier in the innings, but Sangakkara's shot was one for the purists.
Daniel Brettig is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. He tweets here