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by Sa'adi Thawfeeq

Sri Lanka threw away a golden chance of winning their LG Abans triangular one-day international match against West Indies through a series of loose shots which saw them succumb to a 49-run defeat under lights at the R. Premadasa Stadium yesterday.

Chasing a West Indies total of 250 for eight wickets off 50 overs, Sri Lanka who were on course to win at 184 for four in the 36th over, lost their last six wickets for 17 runs off 45 balls to be dismissed for 201 in 43.2 overs. It was the West Indies' first win in the tournament and also their first on the tour of Sri Lanka.

It was hard to guage how the Sri Lanka batting could crumble so quickly as they were at no point under any kind of pressure to accelerate. The asking rate always hovered under six runs an over and all that was required was common sense batting, which was lacking.

In the circumstances, fast bowler Corey Collymore, who had gone for 22 runs in his first spell of three overs when Sanath Jayasuriya hammered him for four fours, came back to bowl a superb second spell that brought him figures of five for 29 off 6.2 overs.

Collymore finished with final figures of five for 51 and he couldn't have done it alone had it not been for the support he received from wicket-keeper Ridley Jacobs who held four catches off his bowling on his way to equalling the world record of six dismissals (5 ct, 1st) in one-day internationals.

Australia's Adam Gilchrist and England's Alec Stewart are the other wicket-keeper's who's had six dismissals in an innings in one-day internationals. Collymore took the man-of-the-match award.

Sri Lanka launched their run chase positively with Jayasuriya and Avishka Gunawardana posting 92 for the first wicket in 17.4 overs. Gunawardana became the first of Jacobs' victims when he came too far down the wicket to spinner Neil McGarrell and was stumped on the second attempt. He scored 38 off 47 balls witrh one six and four fours.

Jayasuriya would have regretted running out his deputy Marvan Atapattu for 11 when he called him for a sharp single and Atapattu could not make his ground in time to beat Hooper's throw from point.

From that point onwards Sri Lanka's innings lost any purpose. Jayasuriya finally perished for 83 top edging a sweep to backward square leg. He batted for 86 balls and hit two sixes and ten fours. Apart from Kumar Sangakkara who hit three fours in his knock of 27, the West Indies bowlers dried out the free scoring batsmen of any boundaries.

Jayasuriya having a close call at 48 when he swept Gayle and Sarwan at deep square leg caught the ball but threw it back onto the playing area as he lost his balance and went over the line. The decision was referred to the third umpire to determine the fairness of the catch and he ruled in favour of the batsman because in his opinion the fielder was not in control of the ball. The batsman in the meantime ran a single and was credited with it.

Daren Ganga and Brian Lara hit contrasting half-centuries after West Indies won the toss and chsoe to bat first on a dry batting pitch. An opening stand of 50 off ten overs between Chris Gayle (21) and Ganga (50) set West Indies towards a big total.

Gayle fell to a fine running catch by Avishka Gunawardana at mid wicket and Ganga survived a catch behind the wicket at 34 by Kumar Sangakkara off Nuwan Zoysa in the 14th over to go and score his sixth one-day fifty. Ganga edged the ball to Sangakkara and walked off thinking that he was out. But halfway to the pavilion he was persuaded to stay on the field by signals from the West Indies dressing room as television replays were inconclusive as to whether Sangakkara had taken the catch cleanly. The onfield umpires put the decision to the third umpire who confirmed it. The water break taken at that stage confused the issue and the scoreboard for some time had Ganga out before it was eventually corrected.

Ganga made exactly 50 off 68 balls with five fours and a six and shared in a further partnership of 74 off 72 balls with Lara who struck six fours and two successive sixes off Kumar Dharmasena in an exhilarating knock of 60 off 53 balls.

The West Indies run rate which was progressing at over five and a half an over, dipped after Lara's dismissal and Sri Lanka were able to pull back with Dharmasena clean bowling Ridley Jacobs (25) and Pedro Collins (0) off successive deliveries in his final over.

Dharmasena and skipper Sanath Jayasuriya were the pick of the bowlers each claiming three wickets for 50 runs, but off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was the most economical conceding just 35 runs in his ten overs for the wicket of Hooper. 

WEST INDIES

C. Gayle c Gunawardana b Dharmasena		21
D. Ganga run out				50
B. Lara lbw b Jayasuriya			60
R. Sarwan c Jayawardene b Jayasuriya		38
C. Hooper c Dharmasena b Muralitharan		29
R. Jacobs b Dharmasena				25
M. Samuels c Zoysa b Jayasuriya		 	 2
N. McGarrell not out			 	 7
P. Collins b Dharmasena		 	 	 0
C. Collymore not out			 	 1
Extras (b-4, lb-4, nb-2, w-7)			17
Total (8 wkts inns closed, 50 overs)  	        250
Fall of wickets: 1-50, 2-124, 3-151, 4-209, 
5-216, 6-225, 7-247, 8-247.

Did not bat: J. Lawson.

Bowling: Vaas 8-0-40-0 (4w, 2nb), Zoysa 6-1-34-0 (1w), Dharmasena 10-0-50-3 (1w), Perera 1-0-11-0, Muralitharan 10-1-35-1 (1w), Arnold 5-0-22-0, Jayasuriya 10-0-50-3. 

SRI LANKA

S. Jayasuriya c Gayle b McGarrell		83
A.Gunawardana st Jacobs b McGarrell		38
M. Atapattu run out				11
M. Jayawardene c Jacobs b Collins		 2
R. Arnold lbw b Gayle				19
K. Sangakkara c Jacobs b Collymore		27
S. Perera c Jacobs b Collymore		 	 4
K. Dharmasena c Jacobs b Collymore		 0
C. Vaas c Jacobs b Collymore		 	 4
N. Zoysa c Ganga b Collymore		 	 5
M. Muralitharan not out			 	 0
Extras (lb-2, nb-2, w-4)			 8
Total (all out, 43.2 overs)	               201

Fall of wickets: 1-92, 2-119, 3-134, 4-138, 5-184, 6-192, 7-192, 8-192, 9-201, 10-201.

Bowling: Collins 8-0-34-1 (1nb), Collymore 9.2-0-51-5 (1nb), Lawson 4-0-29-0 (1w), Hooper 8-0-20-0 (1w), Gale 7-1-32-1 (2w), McGarrell 7-0-33-2.

Umpires: E.A.R. de Silva and P. Manuel, TV Umpire: T.H. Wijewardene

Match Referee: Raman Subba Row (England).

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Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
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