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Australia
Aaron Finch - 2/10
Finch could not get Australia to a flying start as he usually does, but his presence in the crease for 24 balls made sure Australia didn’t lose two quick wickets early.
David Warner - 1/10
Warner was troubled by Malinga’s inswingers and yorkers early in his innings, but was then undone by a slower ball which he drove straight into the hands of short cover.
Steve Smith - 8/10
Coming in to bat during the fifth over and then seeing Finch get out in the 9th over, Smith had the huge responsibility of having to anchor Australia’s innings at number three, which he did brilliantly again. Smith scored 72 runs off 88 balls.
Michale Clarke - 8/10
Coming back from injury, Clarke was at his fluent best scoring a run-a-ball 68. He occupied the crease and set the platform for Maxwell to launch from.
Glen Maxwell - 10/10
Maxwell had missed out on reaching a ton in Australia’s second game of the World Cup but he made sure he didn’t miss out on another one as he brought up his first ODI century at the SCG on Sunday. The most important facet of his century was the number of balls he took to reach the milestone as he walloped 102 runs off just 53 balls.
Shane Watson - 7/10
Watson replaced Mitchell Marsh in this game and was asked to bat at number 5. The demotion seemed to work for him as he rushed to 67 runs off just 41 balls. With the ball, using his immense experience, the medium pacer priced out the wicket of Angelo Mathews which was a watershed moment in the match.
James Faulkner - 5/10
Faulkner got out for a duck, running himself out after facing a ball. But with the ball in hand, he slowed down Sri Lanka’s chase in the middle overs using his back-of-the-hand slower balls to good effect. He also picked up the all-important wicket of Dilshan.
Brad Haddin - 8/10
Batting at number 8, Haddin had the responsibility of finishing Australia’s innings after Maxwell got out just before the innings was done. Haddin smashed 25 runs off 9 balls and made sure Austalia got to a total of 370+ which proved crucial in the end.
Mitchell Johnson - 7/10
Johnson managed to break Sri Lanka’s opening partnership which was the migraine for oppositions in the last two matches. Despite being hit for 6 fours in an over, Johnson came back very well to bowl good spells during the powerplay and at the death.
Mitchell Starc - 9/10
He is, arguably, the best death overs bowler at the moment, bowling yorkers consistently. In a match in which both teams crossed 300 runs, Starc’s economy read 3.48. He also picked up two wickets towards the end.
Xavier Doherty - 2/10
Doherty getting his first game of the tournament failed to impress with the ball as the Sri Lankan batsmen, as expected, targeted him with big shots.
Sri Lanka
Lahiru Thirimanne - 1/10
After having two great games against Bangladesh and England, Thirimanne was caught between playing positively and settling in before he gloved a Johnson bouncer to Haddin.
Tillakaratne Dilshan - 7/10
Dilshan was at his aggressive best after being impelled to do so by a Mitchell Johnson sledge. He drove the ball well, cut the ball meticulously and even played a couple of Dilscoops. Though his innings gave Sri Lanka a good base, his dismissal came at the wrong time and set Sri Lanka back.
Kumar Sangakkara - 9/10
Sangakkara brought up his 3rd consecutive century in the tournament, but unlike the previous occasions failed to convert it into a match-winning one.
Mahela Jayawardene - 5/10
Just when things were starting to look good for the Lankans, Jayawardane ran himself out after scoring 19 off 22 balls which pushed Sri Lanka behind the pace of the game.
Angelo Mathews - 5/10
Despite scoring 35 runs off 31 balls, Mathews was extremely poor with his decision-making as a captain. His tactics in the field were ridiculous and was aptly punished by the batsmen. He also failed to make use of Tharanga in the batting order, making him to bat at number 8.
Dinesh Chandimal - 9/10
Chandimal was the best of the Sri Lankan batsmen, bringing momentary hope for Sri Lankan fans towards the end, striking 52 runs off 24 balls. An injury saw him retire hurt, which ultimately shattered Sri Lanka’s hopes.
Thisara Perera - 5/10
Perera was forced to bowl at the death and hence he ended up leaking 87 runs in his 9 overs. With the bat in hand, he was forced to go after each and every ball and ultimately perished paying the price for reckless batting.
Upul Tharanga - 0/10
There cannot be much written about Tharanga since clearly he was a misfit in the side. There cannot be much expected from an opening batsman batting at number 8.
Seekuge Prasanna - 6/10
Prasanna bowled well during the middle overs, but at the death, he became the ideal fodder for Maxwell.
Sachithra Senanayake - 2/10
Senanayake was quicker through the air which denied him any opportunity of getting any purchase off the track. Despite going at a little more than 6 an over, his spell can be considered as an expensive one given the fact that he bowled when the Australians were struggling for runs.
Lasith Malinga - 5/10
Lasith Malinga finally found his zipping yorkers and soaring inswingers in this game and went for only 59 runs in his 10 overs when Australia scored 376 in total. He also picked up the wickets of Clarke and Warner.
