Sri Lanka 267 for 4 (Sangakkara 86, Mathews 51*) beat England 265 (Taylor 90, Morgan 62, Herath 3-36) by six wickets
Sri
Lanka edged the fourth ODI in Colombo with a six-wicket victory despite a
courageous display from England who took the game to the wire.
James Taylor made 90 in his first game for
England in over a year and stand-in captain Eoin Morgan added a brisk fifty at
the end of the innings to set the hosts a target of 266.
Despite winning with only two balls to
spare, Sri Lanka were always in control of their run-chase thanks to Kumar
Sangakkara (86) who made his third consecutive half-century and shared a vital
partnership with Mahela Jayawardene worth 96.
The dangerous duo antogonised England in
the middle overs and, without James Tredwell, the visitors were lacking a
front-line spin option to restrict the flow of runs in Sri Lanka’s innings.
England were always just off the pace but
managed to take the game to the final over with some impressive seam bowling
from Chris Jordan. But, in truth, conditions were better suited to spin and
Moeen Ali and Joe Root were unable to match-up to their Sri Lankan
counterparts.
The cool head of Angelo Mathews ensured
that the hosts would take a 3-1 lead in this seven-match series as he reached
his fifty with the boundary which won his side the game.
It was another game where England, as
valiant as they appeared, were always playing second fiddle to their hosts.
Another batting masterclass from Sangakkara and Jayawardene in the middle overs
was complimented by three of Sri Lanka’s spinners claiming three wickets apiece
and, in the end, England didn’t have enough runs to play with.
Morgan, standing in as captain for Alastair
Cook due to a suspension for slow over rates, decided to bat first in Colombo
in the hope that England might give a good account of themselves.
However, both of England’s openers were
swiftly back in the pavilion with the score at 29/2 after Alex Hales was
removed without scoring and Moeen (19) had fallen to Tilikaratne Dilshan.
This left a weighted responsibility on the
shoulders of Taylor, playing in only his third ODI, but those who have seen him
play for Nottinghamshire will know that he can be a destructive batsman.
Initially the 5ft 6in batsman led a
recovery with Joe Root and the pair went on to add 93 runs for England’s third-wicket
stand to put the innings back on track. Taylor brought up his maiden ODI fifty
in patient fashion, taking 69 balls to reach this important milestone in his
career.
The Nottinghamshire batsman had been able
to settle and share responsibility with the more experienced Root as both
batsmen ensured that the scoreboard kept ticking over.
England began to accelerate with a steady
base now set but the introduction of Ranagana Herath proved vital for Sri Lanka
as the left-arm spinner struck with the third ball of his second spell to
dismiss Root for 36.
This breakthrough showed no initial signs
of damage with Ravi Bopara picking up from where Root had left off. The Essex
all-rounder looked in good touch and rotated the strike well in his innings of
22.
He and Taylor had nearly added a fifty
partnership but the latter was denied a well deserved century when he was dismissed
by Ajantha Mendis at 170/4. With just two more runs on the scoreboard Bopara
handed the advantage back to Sri Lanka when he was bowled by Dilshan.
 |
| Morgan added 62 in 47 balls. |
England went on to lose their final six
wickets for 92 runs, with Morgan adding the bulk of these in his innings of 62.
Contributions were far and few between with Jos Buttler (15) and Ben Stokes (6)
failing to offer long-term support to Morgan’s search for a more impressive
total.
Herath proved to be Sri Lanka’s most
destructive bowler, finishing with figures of 3-36 with the wicket of Chris
Woakes (6) coming in his final over at 238/8. Mendis (3-56) followed his
example, also returning with three wickets as he removed Jordan for one.
England’s total at this stage was
inadequate and Morgan assumed responsibility, as captain, for enhancing the
total. His form has been a concern of late but perhaps the added responsibility
of being captain allowed him to thrive as he reached his 22nd ODI
half-century in 42 balls.
Morgan’s innings was instrumental as he
took the visitors total to 265, adding 18 runs in the concluding over of the
innings before he was out off the final ball to Dilshan (3-64).
Sri Lanka’s positive start with the bat was
haulted when a swipe from Dilshan was top-edged and caught well by Morgan to
reward Woakes with a wicket at 28/1.
Against most teams the first breakthrough
is usually a cause for celebration, but with Sangakkara walking to the middle
you could sense dismay amongst England’s early elation.
Kushal Perera (31) led a progressive start
to the Sri Lankan run-chase before he found an edge off Moeen at 69/2. Once
again, a wicket brought with it concern as the deadly combination of Sangakkara
and Jayawardene assumed control of proceedings.
It was testimony to Jordan’s efforts with
the ball today that he went on to claim both of their wickets, eventually
finishing with economical figures of 2-35 from his ten overs, but not before
the pair had taken the game away from the tourists.
With no Tredwell in the England line-up
spin options were exhausted fast and Moeen did a steady job, although he has
been forced to act as England’s front-line spinner, rather than being picked on
such a basis.
England’s bowling was erratic at times and
the 12 wides they conceded should be criticized in a game with such fine
margins, as well as the selection of Stokes, who leaked 21 runs in the only two
overs he was entrusted with.
The visitors struggled to take wickets and
when wickets did come they were rather fortunate. Jayawardene (44) played-on
with a bottom-edge at 165/3 and Sanagakkara picked out Woakes on the fence as
he was denied a 20th ODI hundred.
But Sangakkara had already played his part, passing 1,000 ODI runs for 2014 with his 90th fifty in this
format and, even at the age of 37, shows no signs of wavering in class.
The responsibility for securing victory
fell to a new Sri Lankan hero and Mathews continued a superb calendar year with
another vital innings for his side.
Mathews relished the responsibility of
knocking-off the remaining runs alongside Lahiru Thirimmane (19) as the pair
added an unbeaten partnership worth 53 for the fifth wicket.
If Wednesday’s victory was one step forward
then today was, unfortunately, two steps back. England could very well have won
this game if their bowling had been more disciplined and if the right players
had been selected for the conditions.
As promising as Taylor and Morgan were with
the bat, several other England players continue to underwhelm in One-Day
cricket, something which has to change rapidly before the World Cup.
The series continues on Wednesday in Pallekele.
