Filed under: Cricket, England Cricket, ODIs, Sri Lanka Cricket
Second ODI, Headingley: Sri Lanka 309-5 (Mahela Jayawardene 144, Kumar Sangakkara 69, Graeme Swann 2-42) England 240 (Eoin Morgan 52, Alastair Cook 48, Suranga Lakmal 3-43, Suraj Randiv 3-43). Sri Lanka won by 69 runsAlastair Cook suffered his first defeat as England's one-day captain after Mahela Jayawardene's century at Headingley set up victory for Sri Lanka to level the series.
Jayawardene's 144 meant the hosts needed their biggest successful run-chase to win, then a combination of tight fielding and bowling meant Tillakaratne Dilshan's team took the second of their five-match series.
It was also a welcome result after the tourists appeared in turmoil behind the scenes. Sri Lanka Cricket sacked their board and during their win it was announced there would be a new interim committee.
England v Sri Lanka Scorecard
Cook had won the toss and had a tricky decision. He chose to field, arguing that the pitch would be consistent throughout the day but it gave Sri Lanka first go on a terrific batting wicket.
Jayawardene offered a half-chance when he was on seven runs, with Graeme Swann leaping in the slips and doing well to get a hand on the edge.
Cook also got his fingertips on a chance later in Jayawardene's innings but aside from that it was a classy knock showing the full range of his strokes.
He lost his first two partners to needless run-outs, both prodding to mid-on and calling for a run. The first to go was Dilshan when Stuart Broad was on target with a direct hit. Then Dinesh Chandimal, who had replaced Sanath Jayasuriya, was dismissed in the same fashion by James Anderson.
It was a wasted opportunity for Dilshan and Chandimal, given the fine pitch, but Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara seized their chance and shared a stand of 159 runs.
Swann broke the partnership when he had Sangakkara stumped for 69 with a delivery full of drift, dip and spin. Then the off-spinner claimed Jayawardene identically in the first ball of his final over. Angelo Mathews smashed 46 from 30 balls to get Sri Lanka over the 300-run mark, setting England the toughest of targets.
England started their chase at a blistering pace but Craig Kieswetter was desperately unlucky to be caught in the deep when he pulled away. Nuwan Kulasekara took the catch, impressively diving forward and pouching.
Cook had tried expansive shots, even executing a "Dilshan Scoop" over his head, but he fell two runs short of his half-century, with Mathews taking the catch at deep extra-cover.
Kevin Pietersen also fell to a catch on the boundary, this time Lasith Malinga at full stretch and on the run. When Jonathan Trott was yorked by Suranga Lakmal, the pressure was on the hosts.
Eoin Morgan's half-century was a mix of touch and power, including sixes off consecutive balls, and kept England in contention and up with the run-rate, but his dismissal sparked a dramatic collapse of six wickets for 39. Suraj Randiv had him stumped, with Sangakkara producing sharp glovework to send him back to the dressing room.
REACTION:
England captain Cook admitted his team were second best on the day:
"We didn't play as well as we did at The Oval and that was one of the reasons why we lost. It was a gettable target but a lot of our batsmen got in and didn't go on to get a hundred like Mahela did, which effectively won them the game."
On his team's bowling performance:
"Probably in the powerplays we didn't hit our straps and that cost us dearly, they scored 100 runs in that last 10 overs and made it a really difficult target to get. The challenge is to bounce back quickly for Sunday and I'm fully confident with the characters in our side can do that."
On team selection:
"You'd always like more bowling options but it was good enough for the other day, unfortunately we came up short this time."
On his team's batting:
"I think we were in a really good position but none of us took the responsibility to get the match-winning hundred. You can't rely on the bottom order to win games with the bat, one of the top six has to but we didn't manage to do that."
On his team facing spin:
"We've improved immensely against spin in the last few years but improvement is never ending. You can always get better."
Sri Lanka skipper Dilshan was pleased with his team's response after falling behind in the series:
"We spoke about what went wrong and we came back with a great performance, I'm really happy."
On batting first:
"We knew the wicket was really good and it was possible to get 260 or 270, the two batsmen did really well and then the bowlers did their job. It was a good all-round performance."
Man-of-match Jayawardene felt it was important to respond after defeat in the first match of the series:
"It was important after what happened to us last time. We were outplayed and had to go back to the drawing board and really pull ourselves up. It was a really good response from the boys and hopefully we can continue that."
On his batting performance:
"Obviously 310 was a bonus at the end, we thought 270 or 280 was a good score but tried to consolidate and keep wickets for the end, then have a go in the last 10 overs. We pushed the run-rate up and getting that score was a bonus."
On his partnership with Sangakkara:
"We knew the initial 15 or 20 overs was crucial and once the ball got older we knew we could attack certain bowlers. We rode our luck but enjoy batting together and that is the most important thing."
On opening the batting:
"I'm enjoying it because it's more relaxing, I don't have to be attacking but can when I want to be."
MEMORABLE MOMENT: Malinga's catch, while running and then diving, dismissed England's dangerman Pietersen. It sparked wild celebrations.
PLAY OF THE DAY: Sri Lanka used their third batting powerplay intelligently but the play that made the difference was Dilshan bringing on spinners and slowing down England when they looked like they may pull off a memorable run-chase.
WHAT IT MEANS: There is everything to play for in the remaining three ODIs. Both teams have played well so far, so it could go either way.
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