Zimbabwe secure historic first win over Sri Lanka

• Ervine, Jongwe the heroes

By Sa’adi Thawfeeq

Zimbabwe, who was at the receiving end of Sri Lanka in the first T20I, turned things around to win the second game by four wickets with a ball to spare and level the three-match series one-all at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium yesterday.

Hero for Zimbabwe was Player of the Match Luke Jongwe who did the impossible for his team, rising to the occasion to smack a match-winning 25* off 12 balls to help them plunder 24 off the final over and get over the line. It was Zimbabwe’s first win against Sri Lanka in the shortest format of the game in five attempts.

Playing the support role with Jongwe was Clive Madande who hit the winning six in a five-ball cameo of 15. The pair put on a crucial 35 runs off 13 balls when at one time it looked as if Zimbabwe was never going to make losing six wickets for 143 in the 18th over. The hapless bowler was Angelo Mathews who suffered the agony of seeing Maheesh Theekshana spill an easy catch given by Jongwe in the fourth ball of the final over, which sealed Sri Lanka’s fate. Before Jongwe’s heroics, it was Craig Ervine who kept the Zimbabwe innings afloat with a 54-ball 70 (6 fours, 2 sixes).

Until that dropped catch, Theekshana had bowled brilliantly and fielded well to keep Sri Lanka in the game with two wickets for 25 runs, at a time when his captain Wanindu Hasaranga had an off day conceding 41 runs off his four overs for the wicket of Ervine. Seamers Dilshan Madushanka (who replaced Nuwan Thushara) and Dushmantha Chameera bowled tight lengths to strangle the Zimbabwe scoring rate, but eventually to no avail. 

Sri Lanka’s top order once again gave a pathetic display of batting losing four wickets for 31 in the first power play. They were 43-3 in the first T20I. This has been a long-standing problem which the Sri Lankan coaching staff has not yet addressed.

It was left to Charith Asalanka and Mathews to rescue the innings with a record breaking fifth wicket partnership of 118 off 79 balls. Asalanka scored his first T20I fifty in front of his home fans, an authoritative knock of 69 off 39 balls (5 fours, 3 sixes).

Mathews followed his 46 in the first T20I with another pleasing innings of 66* off 51 balls (6 fours, 2 sixes) to lay the foundation for Sri Lanka’s final total of 173-6 after being invited to bat first. To some extent the total seemed somewhat below par on a good batting surface. But Sri Lanka bowled and fielded well to make Zimbabwe fight for every run and they had the game in their hands until the final three overs when Zimbabwe pillaged 46.

The two sides will front up again on Thursday at the same venue for the series decider.