got him with a big spinning delivery. Landed this just outside off, Malinga went for a big swipe, but could only connect with the humid evening air. Nowhere near the pitch of the ball and lost his middle stump. The plug has been pulled finally. This is Sri Lanka's biggest defeat at home in terms of runs.
Sri Lanka vs India, 4th ODI at Colombo, Aug 31 2017 - Match Result
9.50pm Sri Lanka have come up with a timid batting performance to succumb to their sixth successive ODI defeat. India are 4-0 up. Where urgency was the need of the hour in chase of a mammoth target, batsmen came out swinging blindly without purpose or a plan. Angelo Mathews offered some resistance, but that was no consolation, for it simply delayed the inevitable. As for India, who rode magnificent tons from Rohit and Kohli earlier in the day, this was another proper workout. Shardul Thakur, on ODI debut, was zippy and impressive with the new ball. Axar Patel had a rough day, but with little pressure on the bowlers, India didn't need to look for a Plan B. For fans who demand better from Sri Lanka, this will be another bitter pill to swallow. Where next? I don't think anyone has an answer to that at the moment.
Virat Kohli is the Man of the match for his 29th ODI century. "We spoke about not being complacent at any stage, today was a clinical performance," he says. "We wanted to bat first because we hadn't batted first in the three games. The surface was amazing. It was a good toss to win. We've given opportunities to three new guys. They will get another opportunity. Batting order will depend on the situation of the game."
Lasith Malinga hasn't had a great first ODI as captain. "300th wicket is just a number," he says. " I'm happy, but we lost which is very unfortunate. It's not easy. Last five matches, we didn't post 250. Young players want to perform well, they're all excited but we haven't been able to come up with our best. They need the experience. Hopefully they will do their best over the next few months.
Here's something for the boxing fans out there: India's Gaurav Bidhuri takes on USA's Duke Ragan, looking for a historic silver medal at the World Boxing Championships in Hamburg. You can follow the bout live on our sister site.
Meanwhile, a county championship game has been stopped at The Oval for a reason you can't imagine: A projectile, thought to be an arrow or crossbow bolt, has landed on the pitch.
Right, guys. That brings us to the end of our coverage. This is Shashank Kishore saying goodbye on behalf of Karthik Krishnaswamy. Be well. Cheers! I'll leave you with Karthik Krishnaswamy's match bulletin
Any prizes for guessing who the Man of the match is going to be?
Malinga is the last man to walk out.
simple return catch. Kuldeep has deceived him in flight. Fernando looked for a big, booming drive but could only hit it back off a thick inside edge.
worked with the spin to square leg
tossed up outside off and bang. Got right to the pitch of the ball and belted this over the infield
swung away towards deep midwicket. Dhawan runs across from mid-on to cut that off. Didn't get hold of it
slaps this past the bowler. Looks like he expended all his energy behind that. He must have a sore shoulder. The ball just trickles past the boundary
swing and a miss. Looked to play a flat-batted pull but the ball got too big on him
that is a rip roaring bouncer. Snaking in towards his arm pit, Fernando was ducking for cover, awkwardly hit on bat handle. Ball lobs wide of Dhoni
helped to third man. This was a short ball, not a very threatening one though. Milinda swayed inside the line of the delivery and simply directed this straight to Hardik Pandya. As easy as they come. The end is near.
fends this skiddy bouncer towards square leg
too short, he makes room and crunches this into the gap at cover. Work for KL Rahul and he is up to the task
wrong'un on middle, squeezed back to the bowler
swept uppishly but straight to square leg
rocks back and cuts this short delivery to deep point
squeezes a drive to point
tossed up on middle, defended off the backfoot
Batting PP time. Just a formality, you'd imagine
thick inside edge to square leg.
Nikhil: "I am quite confused with the Sri Lankan sratergy in this game. When you face a target as high as 376, at least try to win the game.. The focus seems to be on saving themselves from being all out" Net session gone wrong.
sways out of the way of that short ball. This was angled in towards the body
Niraj Kheria: "I still cant get over the fact that Thakur is wearing jersey number 10. Just does not make sense." Why outrage over a small issue? It's not like Thakur is staking claim for Tendulkar's properties in Mumbai.
looks for a yorker, slips in a full toss, worked to square leg
hits the pad, but this didn't do enough to come back. Pushpakumara was playing a shot, so can't be given out. This was a length ball just outside off.
1W | ||||
1W | ||||
1W | 1W |
R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo | |
Toss | India, elected to bat first |
Series | |
Season | 2017 |
Player Of The Match | |
Series result | India led the 5-match series 4-0 |
Match number | ODI no. 3908 |
Hours of play (local time) | 14:30 start, First Session 14:30-18:00, Interval 18:00-18:45, Second Session 18:45-22:15 |
Match days | 31 August 2017 - daynight (50-over match) |
ODI debut | |
Umpires | |
TV Umpire | |
Reserve Umpire | |
Match Referee |