Adam Milne starred with bat and ball to lead New Zealand A to a crushing 177 run victory over Sri Lanka A at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval in Lincoln, as the Kiwis took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series.
New Zealand A 302/9 (Will Young 85, Adam Milne 45, George Worker 40, Shehan Jayasuriya 3/52) beat Sri Lanka A 185 All Out (Niroshan Dickwella 50, Ish Sodhi 3/39, George Worker 2/29, Adam Milne 2/32) by 177 runs.
The Kiwi batters were in sublime form once again in the 3rd Unofficial ODI against Sri Lanka A as they notched up their second successive 300 plus score of the series. Having been put into bat by the visitors, NZ A began well, bringing up their 50 in just the 9th over. The Lankan fast bowling brigade did themselves no favours with their wayward bowling and the extras piled up. Skipper Priyanjan was forced to introduce spin into the attack in the form of Shehan Jayasuriya in just the 7th over and he did not disappoint, picking up Michael Bracewell in his first over. Geaorge Worker fell soon after, yet again to Jayasuriya’s golden arm.
A period of consolidation followed with Will Young and Henry Nicholls adding just 37 runs between the 10th and 20th over. The pressure created by the bowlers during this period contributed to the fall of Nicholls who was soon followed by Colin Munro as part-time off spinner Dhananjaya De Silva struck twice in quick succession. At 111 for 4 the home team’s batting looked uncomfortable for perhaps the 1st time in the series. However, Young and Mitchell Santner quickly dispelled any such feelings as they put together 66 runs for the 5th wicket. Young fell for a valuable 85 just as they began to pick up the pace. However the platform was laid for a good finish and Adam Milne provided it with a better than a run a ball 45 while Ish Sodhi chipped in with a whirlwind 20 off 12 deliveries. Jayasuriya and De Silva were the pick of the bowlers for the visitors, picking up 5 of the 9 wickets that fell.
Chasing a big total once again, the Lankan openers were looking for quick runs but were blown away by speedster Milne instead, both being caught behind. Sri Lanka’s hopes were pinned on Kithruwan Vithanage and he showed glimpses of his exquisite hitting ability once again, racing to 22 off 15 balls but his dismissal saw SL A slump to 38 for 3. Niroshan Dickwella and Shehan Jayasuriya, both promoted up the order ahead of Skipper Priyanjan put up some resistance with a partnership of 54 runs for the 4th wicket but it was never going to be enough as the spinners Santner, Worker and Sodhi took control of the proceedings in the middle. The lower order was left with too much to do in too little time and despite a cameo from Chamara Kapugedara, SL A were bowled out for 185 runs.
The win gives NZ A a 3-0 lead in the 4 match ODI series. The final ODI is scheduled to be played on the 13th of October and with the series already decided, both teams will probably look to experiment with their line ups.
