The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Sri Lanka wraps up series

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Aug 26, 2004

Sport

Sport - Cricket

Sri Lanka wraps up series

DAMBULLA, AUG. 25. Sri Lanka took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match one-day International series against South Africa after it defeated the visitor by four wickets here on Wednesday.

Skipper Marvan Atapattu led the run chase with an unbeaten 97 while Lance Klusener was the best among South Africa bowlers with two wickets in nine overs.

Earlier, Jacques Kallis scored a patient half-century as South Africa set a modest 192-run target. South African skipper Graeme Smith won the toss and decided to bat first.

Out-of-form opener Herschelle Gibbs started the innings tentatively, surviving two close lbw appeals in the third over from left-arm seamer Chaminda Vaas.

He added 44 runs for the first wicket with Smith before Sanath Jayasuriya took a brilliant, diving catch running to his right from wide mid-on to dismiss the South African captain for 16 in the 11th over.

Gibbs failed to score in the first one-dayer and made seven runs in the second match last Sunday. South Africa promoted hard-hitting Lance Klusener to No. 3 to hasten the scoring rate in the initial overs but the left-hander faced just four balls before being bowled by a slow ball from seamer Nuwan Zoysa.

Kallis came to bat after South Africa lost two wickets with just 50 runs on the board. He carved a patient 52 in 108 balls, hitting three fours on a pitch which appeared to favour spinners and made strokeplay difficult. — AP

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport