ICC World Cup 2019 - Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan

Sri Lanka fended off a stiff battle against minnows Afghanistan to win a rain truncated match by 34 runs, in D/L method.

Put into bat first the Lankans were off to a flier, with the opening pair of Karunaratne & wicketkeeper Kusal Perera blasting off 92 runs in just 13 overs, before Karunaratne holed out to long on. At that stage, the Lankans were looking good to pile up a huge total, as Thirimane joined Perera at the crease. But the merry run making took a serious jolt in the 22nd over, when Nabi spun a web to snare up three wickets, as the Lankans stuttered at 146 for 4, all taken up by Nabi. Amidst showers, Perera got his fifty & eventually got out for a well made 78, before snicking Rashid behind the wicket, as Lankans slumped to 180 for 8 in the 32nd over, & rains came down hard to stop the play, much to the relief of the batsmen. After resumption of play, the Lankans who expected a score of 300+, were finally bowled out for a paltry 201, in just 37 overs. 

The revised target for Afghanistan in D/L method was set for 187 runs in 41 overs, & at that stage, it looked curtains for the Lankans & advantage Afghanistan. 

However, more drama followed as the Afghani batsmen made a mess of the rather easy run chase, & were reduced to 60 for 5 in just 14 overs, as the Lankans sensed a turnaround. The sixth wicket pair of capt Gulbadin & Najibullah, restored parity & took the score to 121, raising hopes of an upset victory for Afghanistan. But once Gulbadin departed, LBW to a scorcher from Pradeep & Rashid followed bowled out almost immediately, it was curtains for them. The innings folded up for 152 runs in the 33rd over, as Malinga fired a yorker to finish the chase. 

For the Lankans, it was their first ever victory at Cardiff, in seven attempts, & for Lasith Malinga, it was a win after 22 ODI matches, playing for his country - a bogey, he would be relieved to remove. 

For Afghanistan it was too near & yet too far, as MoM, Nuwan Pradeep took away the game from them with career best figures of 4 for 31, ably assisted by old warhorse Malinga. Afghanistan gave away as many as 35 runs in extras, which eventually turned out to be the decisive.
It was a well-contested game, though both the teams made a lot of mistakes & have a lot to improve.