Going down despite a strong fight in the opening one-dayer, the Proteas came roaring back into the ODI series with a fantastic victory in the 2nd match played on Saturday and levelled up 1-1 with hosts Sri Lanka.
The tourists clinched a win by 67 runs on the DLS method in what was a game marred by bad weather at the R Premadasa. With their win, Proteas set up the summit clash for the three-match series on Tuesday and earned themselves some crucial points in the ICC Super League.
The victory gave South Africa 10 important points in the leagu,e which determines direct qualification spots towards the 2023 World Cup in India.
The defeat will have pained badly for Sri Lanka, for whom this was a reminder of their long-standing issues with the bat and ball. But as shown earlier in the home season against India and even in the first ODI, which they won by 14 runs, they do know how to make a surprising punch above their weight despite all their problems.
Key Players
Aiden Markram missed out with a 21 off 29 balls in the previous game, but the elegant right-hander showed excellent form in the opening one-dayer. Markram produced arguably one of the better innings seen from a South African in a run-chase in Asian conditions.
He blazed a 96 off 90 balls with Proteas chasing a target of 301. Unfortunately for the batter, his knock couldn’t propel his team to the victory post. But nevertheless, Markram will be pleased with the way he is batting and will be eyeing another big score as series honours are at stake.
Charith Asalanka is Sri Lanka’s top run-getter for the series after the first two matches. The middle-order batsman is averaging 74.50 for the series so far with 149 runs. He batted really well for his knock of 77 from 69 deliveries in the last game, where he was the only Sri Lankan batsman to come out of the failed run-chase with his reputation enhanced.
Asalanka also batted brilliantly for his 72 off 62 deliveries in the first game. Sri Lanka will hope that he can continue his rich vein of form and this time produce a giant score that tilts the scales in the home team’s favour in the decider.
Janneman Malan batted magnificently for his hundred in the second ODI. The South African opening batsman played a major role in his team’s win, scoring 121 runs off 135 deliveries. This was his third century in ODIs for South Africa in only nine games in what is still a young international career for the 25-year-old.
Malan was also looking in decent rhythm for his knock of 23 in the first match in Colombo. His show of great form augurs well for the Proteas as they eye what would be a series win to savour for the in-transition South Africa in alien conditions.
Tabraiz Shamsi has been in the pink of health with his bowling in the last year or so. Shamsi has felt inspired by the tag of being Proteas’ first-choice limited-overs spinner and has produced excellent performances in both ODIs & T20Is.
In the ongoing series, the skiddy left-arm wrist-spinner is now at the top of the wicket-taking charts, following a five-fer in the previous game, with six wickets from last two ODIs at an average of just 17.33 and an economy rate of 5.89. South Africa will need Shamsi to remain active in the wickets column in the decider as well if they are to keep the Sri Lankans at bay.
Wanindu Hasaranga has very quickly become an integral part of Sri Lanka’s bowling unit. The young, incisive spinner has been a difficult prospect to handle, with his variations and indecipherable mix of googlies making life difficult for most batsmen.
Hasaranga has had a quiet series by his standards and has taken only 2 wickets from the two games while averaging a poor 57.50 with an economy rate of 5.75. But South Africa will do well to still be wary of the threat Hasaranga poses as he is expected to get back to his best in the deciding one-dayer.
Prediction
South Africa seemed to have regained momentum their way with a handsome victory in the previous game. They outbatted the hosts and drowned them further by outbowling them in the latter half. Captain Temba Bavuma and his team will be heading into the decider feeling very optimistic after exploiting the hosts’ longstanding weaknesses.
On the other hand, Sri Lankans will take confidence from their win in the first game, which will remind them that they can beat this South African side at their best. The key for them will be to produce a better batting performance than the last game.
However, South Africa does the look the stronger of the two teams at this point and can come out triumphant to take the series title.
