World Cup: Sri Lankan bowlers defend modest target against England to win by 20 runs
Malinga, Mathews keep Sri Lanka's World Cup semifinal hopes alive
Leeds, Jun 21: Angelo Mathews hit a patient fifty before veteran pacer Lasith Malinga returned with a sensational four-wicket haul as Sri Lanka stunned hosts England by 20 runs in a low-scoring thriller to keep their World Cup semifinal hopes alive, here Friday.
Electing to bat, Sri Lanka managed a modest 232 for nine, riding on an unbeaten 115-ball 85 by Mathews.
The 1996 champions then returned to dismiss England for 212 in 47 overs to register only their second win in this World Cup.
Malinga (4/43) emerged as the star for Sri Lanka as he dismissed the top three -- James Vince (14), Jonny Bairstow (0) and Joe Root (57) and also accounted for Jos Buttler (10).
Off-spinner Dhananjaya de Silva (3/32) then mopped up the tail with a quick three-wicket burst.
After Root's 89-ball fifty, Ben Stokes kept England in the hunt with a 89-ball 82 but he ran out of partners.
The win took Sri Lanka to fifth spot with six points from six matches, while England remained in third spot with eight points from six games.
Earlier, Mathews added 71 and 57 runs with Kusal Mendis (46) and Dhananjaya de Silva (29) for the fourth and sixth wickets, respectively, as Sri Lanka recovered from three for 2.
Playing his first World Cup game, Avishka Fernando, too, contributed with a 39-ball 49.
Chasing the total, England could not recover from the twin strike by Malinga and could score only 38 for two in the powerplay.
Root and Eoin Morgan (21) added 47 runs for the third wicket before Isuru Udana (2/41) produced a stunning caught-and-bowled effort to remove the skipper as England slipped to 73 for 3 in 18.4 overs.
Root completed his fifty off 78 balls and soon new man Stokes brought up the team hundred with a boundary off Pradeep.
Malinga then brought Sri Lanka back in the match when he had Root caught behind off a ball drifting down the leg side.
De Silva then had Moeen Ali holed out to long-off, while Chris Woakes' thin edge was caught by the keeper and another edge sent Adil Rashid back to the hut as England slipped to 178 for 8.
Earlier, Sri Lanka lost Dimuth Karunaratne (1) and Kusal Perera (2) in three balls to be reduced to three for 2.
Fernando then blasted six fours and two sixes, sharing some valuable runs with Mendis. But an upper cut gone wrong saw Sri Lanka lose Fernando and slip to 62 for three.
Leg-spinner Rashid struck twice on successive balls, removing Kusal Mendis and new man Jeevan Mendis (0), as Sri Lanka slumped to 133 for five in the 30th over.
Mathews and Dhananjaya then took the team close to the 200-mark.
Once Dhananjaya was removed by Archer in the 44th over, it was a lonely battle for Mathews.
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Riyan Parag likely to be fined 25 percent of match fees for vaping inside dressing room
New Delhi (PTI): Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag is set to be fined 25 per cent of his match fee for bringing the game into "disrepute" after being caught vaping on camera during the IPL game against Punjab Kings in Mullanpur.
Parag's actions during the Royals' chase on Tuesday night drew condemnation on social media.
PTI has learned that on field umpires Tanmay Srivastava and Nitin Menon had not reported the matter to match referee Amit Sharma right after the game. They only did that after seeing visual proof and Sharma found Parag guilty for a code of conduct breach as per the IPL guidelines.
The Level 1 offences carries 25 per cent deduction from match fees and one demerit point.
"He is set to be fined a portion of his match fees and a demerit point for a Level 1 offence," said an IPL source.
The Indian government had banned e-cigarettes back in 2019, prohibiting their production, sale and distribution. As per the law, the offender faces imprisonment up to one year and/or a Rs one lakh fine for a first time offence.
"Article 2.21 of IPL Code of Conduct is intended to cover all types of conduct that bring the game into disrepute and which is not specifically and adequately covered by the specific offences set out elsewhere in this Code of Conduct, including Article 2.20," the IPL Code of Conduct states.
"By way of example, Article 2.21 may (depending upon the seriousness and context of the breach) prohibit, without limitation, the following: (a) public acts of misconduct; (b) unruly public behaviour; and (c) inappropriate comments which are detrimental to the interests of the game.
"When assessing the seriousness of the offence, the context of the particular situation, and whether it was deliberate, reckless, negligent, avoidable and/or accidental, shall be considered.
"Further, the person lodging the Report shall determine where on the range of severity the conduct lays (with the range of severity starting at conduct of a minor nature (and hence a Level 1 Offence) up to conduct of an extremely serious nature (and hence a Level 4 Offence)."
Since it is a Level 1 offence there was no need for a hearing.
Parag, who has not had the best of times with the bat this IPL, was seen inhaling an e-cigarette, also known as vaping, in the dressing room during the live broadcast of their game against Punjab Kings. Royals won the game to end Kings' unbeaten run in the tournament.
This is not the first controversy to hit the Royals this season. Earlier this month, team manager Romi Bhinder was fined Rs one lakh for breaching PMOA protocol after being found using his phone in the dugout.
IPL and BCCI officials involved in the conduct of the IPL termed it as a careless act in the age of social media and prying TV cameras.
Royals next host Delhi Capitals at home on Friday night.
