Howsoever deadly the skirmishes of the Australian Cricket Team might have been during the ongoing Sri Lankan tour, their turnaround in the limited-overs leg of the series has been impressive. The rank turners that were put in place during the Tests have continued making their appearances felt in the ODIs as well, something that hasn’t pleased the Australian makeshift captain, David Warner.
Nonetheless, with an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series, Australia have managed to salvage some pride before leaving the unfamiliar shores and gearing up for the more-than-familiar homely comforts. After ruining Tillakaratne Dilshan’s farewell party, through a nervy three-wicket victory in the first of the two scheduled fixtures in Dambulla, a surprise six-wicket-haul by the new Australian workhorse, John Hastings, bowled the Lankans out for a paltry yet challenging total of 212.
Given the approach that the visitors had applied during the first three games, one would have expected them to resort to a safe approach towards the total, given the extended strength of the home side’s spin arsenal – that was extended to its limits due to Angelo Mathews’ injury while batting – and their perceived frailties against it. However, even the Australians would have kidded themselves if they had told one another that they’d reach the target with 19 overs to spare.
All out attack on the Lankans
Aaron Finch had had a decent series thus far. A fifty in the opening game in Colombo was followed by a single digit score and a 30 in the next two games. However, one thing that stood out for him was his approach towards the Lankan bowling. On a tour where there have been more talks about batting methodology, Finch had walked the talk to some extent.
After Thisara Perera bowled a maiden over first up to David Warner, it felt that something was going to give. What the home side would have expected, however, that it would be the morale of their bowlers after the assault that was about to ensue.
The first two fours that the right-hander hit off Amila Aponso – who was given the new ball in the absence of the regular captain, Mathews –were scratchy, to say the least. Finch tried to sweep the first one from outside off, but the ball somehow took a trickle off his bat and squirted towards the third man for a boundary, while the Aponso and others were busy appealing for a leg before.
A leg-before appeal on the very first ball that he faces should rein a batsman in. Well, on most occasions barring this one. Finch came down the track on the next one, that was pitched full and on middle and leg, and just got enough bat on it to take it over the man at mid-on who was well inside the circle. Aponso had no reason to worry after the first two shots were played, but he had every reason to do so thereafter.
The next two were nailed over the cover region for two more boundaries – the first, a backfoot punch through extra, while the second, a full-blooded loft over it that landed just inside the ropes. 17 came off the over. There was more to follow.
Thisara Perera had started off with a maiden and had beaten Warner’s outside edge as well. But last night, Finch was no Warner. He may not have been Finch either. The first four balls of the 3rd over read 2, 4, 4, 6. The first boundary came off an outside edge, but Finch didn’t mind. The next two were hammered down the ground. By the time the 4th over was done, Finch was batting on 43 off 14.
Misses one record, gets the other
With Aponso being hammered for four fours in his second over, Dilruwan Perera was handed the ball. AB de Villiers’ record for the fastest ODI fifty (16 balls) was there for the taking. The first ball that Finch faced from Perera was carved over long off for another maximum. Finch was on 49 off 15. The next one was pitched on a length, just on off-stump and turned in. Finch switched onto the backfoot and looked to cut.
He got a run for the team, but not the record. The ball missed the bat as well as the keeper's gloves. Australia had a bye. Finch, however, was unperturbed.
Sachith Pathirana was the latest inductee to the mushrooming list of Sri Lankan spinners. The left-arm orthodox bowler made sure that Finch and Hastings weren’t the only talking points of the game, by being almost unplayable for a brief moment of time.
But that was not before Finch had slammed his second delivery over square leg for six to equal the record of the fastest fifty by an Australian batsman in ODI cricket. He drew level with Simon O’Donnell and Glenn Maxwell who achieved it against Pakistan (1990) and India (2013) respectively, off just 18 balls. The assault finally came to an end on the very next ball, when a fuller one – that would have just kissed the leg stump had Finch’s pads not come in the way – was adjudged good enough to dismiss him from the crease.
Pathirana struck twice in the over, to dismiss Finch and Usman Khawaja, within the space of three deliveries. But the damage was already done. Australia needed 138 more runs from thereon, but they had 44 overs at their disposal.
George Bailey, whose Michael Hussey-esque performance in limited-overs cricket in the subcontinent have made him a permanent member of the team, shepherded Australia to a series-clinching win with his well-timed knock of 90, in the 31st over itself.
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