Sri Lanka stunned hosts England by 20 runs at Headingley to keep their hopes of reaching the semi-finals of the 2019 ICC World Cup alive and put doubts on England’s credentials as tournament favourites.
The islanders surprised many by opting to bat first after winning the toss. Their decision seemed even more incorrect when they laboured to 232/9 in their 50 overs.
Angelo Mathews top scored with an unbeaten 85 off 115 balls but their innings never found any kind of rhythm.
However, it was to be the Lasith Malinga show in the second innings. The pacer dismissed the openers Johnny Bairstow and James Vince inside the first seven overs. The early blows forced England to adopt a more subdued approach with Eoin Morgan and Joe Root at the crease.
However, Malinga sruck again in his second spell leaving the hosts reeling at 144/5. Just when Moeen Ali and Ben Stokes appeared to be building a partnership Dhananjaya de Silva picked up three quick wickets to have England staring down the barrel.
Some late fireworks from Stokes gave England hope but Nuwan Pardeep found the outside edge of Mark Wood’s bat as Kusal Perera completed the catch to give the Lankans their fourth straight win over England at World Cups.
Here are the highlights of the match:
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