Sri Lanka staged the biggest upset of the tournament last night, 21st June, at Headingly, Leeds, claiming an unforgettable match for the Lions against the mighty English pack. It was undoubtedly a heartening win for the nation. What else does that mean? Let’s get to the numbers.
Head-to-head
England has faced Sri Lanka 11 times in World Cups and has won 6 games against Sri Lankas’ 5. But, their last win against the Lions in a World Cup fixture came 20 years back.
Sri Lanka is also catching up with the Englishmen in the head-to-head tally leveling it with last night’s win. Both teams have played 75 international one-dayers against each other and has won 36 matches each. One game was tied and two saw no results.
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It’s been a roller coaster ride for Sri Lanka in this World Cup. They were hammered…….
CWC19-run
- Strike rate
The English have set a trend in World Cricket by making the 300-run mark, a walk in the park. How did they manage that? Simply by giving more prominence to the strike-rate in preparations. The top five are given targets based on strike-rates over the runs and the time they spend at the center. As a whole, England were striking at 117.29 in the tournament thus far.
The speed in which the Englishmen struck, read as 103.66, 111.33, 128.66, 107.03 and 132.33 in their previous outings. But, Sri Lanka managed to have them tottering at a 75.17 runs per 100 balls.
As per the plan they had at least one batsman from the top-five whose strike rate was over a hundred in all their games but against Sri Lanka.
- All-out
The English were also a team which was yet to be bowled out in the tournament. The Sri Lankans ended that streak too. This was the lowest score that they were bowled out for in the tournament. In fact, the last time Sri Lanka managed to pick up 10 wickets against England was back in 2014.
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- Venue
Not just that, England has never been bowled out for cheaper than this at Headingly, Leeds since June 2001 when they were uprooted by Pakistan for 156 runs.
- Partnerships
Another aspect of the game that home team executed to perfection was, the partnerships. The English have scored sixty five 100-plus partnerships since the 2015 World Cup, which is the most by any team during that period. They have had at least one, 100-run partnership in their past 11 outings consecutively. If Sri Lanka were to keep them below 300 in this game, it was a must that they did not allow the hosts to build up vital partnerships. That’s exactly what they did. The highest they managed against Sri Lanka was a 54-run stand between Joe Root and Ben Stokes.
- Powerplay
England has used the fielding restrictions exceptionally well in the recent past. But, Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Pradeep were magical in that crucial first 10 overs of the game where they only allowed the English to put 38 runs on the board. Even worse with both the openers back in the hut.
This was the lowest powerplay score for England since October 2018. At the end of the 15th over England were bothered at 53 for 2, which is the lowest at that stage of an innings for England since 2015.
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As Sri Lanka stunned England to record the ‘upset of the tournament’ and split the ICC Cricket……..
DDS defying the odds
Housing only 3 overs in One-day Internationals in England to vouch for experience, Dhananjaya de Silva was picked as the frontline off-spinner for Sri Lanka. Well, didn’t he join the party atHeadingly, with career best figures of 3 for 32 in what went on to be one of the more historic wins for Sri Lanka.
Malinga again!
The magician reached another rare milestone by joining the 50-wicket club in World Cups. This was also his best performance against a Test playing nation in World Cups. Not just that, his best figures versus England in England. It also turned out to be his best since October 2018 when he last picked up a 5 wicket-haul, that too against England.
Nuwan Pradeep’s redo
Pradeep who is usually a favourite for the English, leaking runs at over 6 runs per over and averages 45 against them, showed an entirely different version of himself during this game. Neat, nippy and tidy. He recorded his best economy against the English with brilliant figures of 3.80 runs an over. He was a vital cog in last night’s triumph.
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Angelo Mathews find form
Mathews required a special knock of this sort to find himself back and he grabbed the opportunity with double hands. This is the longest time he has spent at the crease against the Englishmen and also his career best score against them. That’s exactly what he required, time in the center. He faced 115 balls to get to his unbeaten 85. Thanks to Mathews Sri Lanka also batted out their quota of 50 overs for only the second time this year.
Kusal Perera’s sharp takes
Kusal Perera had a busy day behind the stumps. Right from convincing his skipper to a superb review after collecting a faint edge down the legside from Joe Root, to the final ball of the match. The pocket-rocket was on the game. His four catches are the most dismissals by a wicket-keeper against England since December 2014. He also joins Sangakkara as the all-time best performer with the gloves against the British.
