Gunathilaka, Mendis power Sri Lanka in record chase
Mendis and Gunathilaka have batted together four times in ODIs, each time for the second wicket, adding 128, 57, 4 and 159.
ESPNcricinfo staff
09-Jun-2017
Gunathilaka's 72-ball 76 was his highest ODI score, and his fourth half-century in 19 innings • ICC
Danushka Gunathilaka and Kusal Mendis powered the highest successful run chase in Champion's Trophy history as their 159-run stand for the second wicket helped Sri Lanka edge past India, who had posted a mammoth 321, by seven wickets at Kennington Oval on Thursday.
India, put in to bat first on a lively surface, were off to a solid start with openers, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan, adding a 138-run stand upfront. The platform propelled India to a massive target, which if Sri Lanka faltered against, would put them out of the competition. They didn't, and Gunathilaka, Mendis ensured that they provided a platform which made it possible to scale the heights of their opponents. Gunathilaka played aggressor and drove imperiously down the ground, while Mendis scored rotated the strike.
Their 159-run stand for the second wicket wasn't quite chanceless - both saw difficult chances go down but they made the most of the reprieve and capitalized. Gunathilaka finally departed in the 28th over, for a 72-ball 76, while Mendis followed five-overs later for a 93-ball 89. The duo scored at 6.86 runs in the 23.1 overs that they batted together. Their heroics gave Sri Lanka the momentum required to seal the deal with 8 balls to spare.