Mahela Jayawardene's unbeaten innings of 84 guided Sri Lanka to 253 in their crucial Group A game againstAustralia at the ICC Champions Trophy 2013. Australia now need to chase 254 to win the game. However, if they are to qualify for the semi-finals, then they need to overhaul the target in 29.1 overs.
In a welcome change, the rains decided to stay away from The Oval on Monday as Australia skipper George Bailey won the toss and elected to field first. The defending champions need a big win to qualify and the think-tank would have thought that they would do better knowing what they have to chase.
The Sri Lankans, who just need a win to progress, were rocked early as Mitchell Johnson and Clint McKay accounted for the wickets of Kushal Perera (4) and Kumar Sangakkara (3), respectively, within the first four overs.
Jayawardene found a responsible partner in Dinesh Chandimal who put his hand up and aided his senior teammate. The pair slowly upped the run-rate to five, even as Jayawardene crossed the 11,000-run mark in One-Day Internationals (ODIs), becoming only the eighth batsman in the world to do so.
Chandimal, in a bid to slog in the death overs, holed out to mid-on after a mishit off Johnson's off-cutter, breaking a handsome 65-run stand and giving the left-handed pacer his third wicket.
The Lankans lost two more wickets in the last three overs, even as Jayawardene remained unbeaten on 84 off 81 balls — a responsible knock that included 11 boundaries. Jayawardene was prolific on the off-side, his wagon-wheel showing a flurry of lines in the cover and point region. In the end, the decision to demote him a spot worked in the Lankans' favour, as his stable and mature head shepherded their innings to a total his team's bowlers will consider defendable.
Brief scores:
Sri Lanka 253 for 8 in 50 overs (Mahela Jayawardene 84*, Lahiru Thirimanne 57; Mitchell Johnson 3 for 48) vs Australia.
