Dwaine Pretorius felt like an outsider, stuck on the sidelines as South Africa's World Cup went wrong but he was integral again on Friday as they claimed a morale-boosting win over Sri Lanka. The all-rounder had not featured for the Proteas since their tournament opener almost a month ago at the Oval, where he finished wicketless and ran himself out for a duck in their defeat to England.
Former champions Sri Lanka are all but out of the tournament after the Islanders produced a dismal batting show to manage a modest 203, a target which the Proteas overhauled with 76 balls in hand.
Tom Latham produced another masterful innings of patience and concentration as New Zealand turned the screw on Sri Lanka on the third day of the second Test at Hagley Oval, in Christchurch, on Friday.
Sri Lanka, the 1996 winners, kick-started their bid for a place in the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup semi-finals in dramatic fashion with a 20-run win against hosts England at Headingley. It took them to six points and off-spinner Dhananjaya de Silva insists they can still finish in the top four of the group despite suffering a pair of washouts in Bristol.
Sri Lanka stunned tournament hosts England by completing a 20-run victory at Headingley. Lasith Malinga was player of the match after taking 4/43 to rip through England's batting attack.
With the series already in their pocket, India will look to give some of the bench players a chance but there will be no let-up in the intensity as they eye a complete whitewash against Sri Lanka in the third and final T20I in Mumbai on Sunday.
Tom Latham finished 264 not out -- a world's best for an opener carrying their bat through a completed innings -- as New Zealand were bowled out for 578, and holding a 296-run first innings lead.
"It was tough up front, the Sri Lanka bowlers didn't give us much to work with," Markram told reporters.
Rangana Herath picked four wickets in the second innings to spin Sri Lanka to a 106 win over Australia in the first Test in Pallekele on Saturday.
Earlier, resuming on 3-0 and with an overall lead of 99, England lost Keaton Jennings leg before wicket for one off the first delivery of the day from Dilruwan Perera (5-88), which seemed to unhinge their top order.
Mushfiqur Rahim's superb hundred complemented by a collective effort from the bowlers saw Bangladesh thrash Sri Lanka by 137 runs despite Lasith Malinga's brilliant international comeback in the Asia Cup opener, in Dubai, on Saturday.
Cricketers from the team of the Emirald Isle are under suspicion following their dismal performance in the recently concluded New Zealand tour
Sri Lanka all-rounder and former skipper Angelo Mathews has been ruled out of the first Test against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi next week with a calf injury, but the uncapped Sadeera Samarawickrama, Roshen Silva and Lahiru Gamage are in the squad.
The veteran Sri Lanka fast bowler rattled Bangladesh with a fiery spell in his final ODI, signing off in style with figures of 3/38 in front of his home crowd in Colombo.
In the bowlers list, Bumrah achieved a career-high ranking of 28 while fellow teammate Mohammad Shami moved two places to 24th.
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Looking for a proper tune-up before the three-match Test series against hosts Sri Lanka gets underway, India would be hoping that rain stays away from their one and only three-day practice game beginning at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, on Thursday.
Taskin Ahmed became the fifth Bangladesh bowler to claim a one-day hat-trick before incessant rain washed out the second match of the series against Sri Lanka in Dambulla on Tuesday.
IMAGES from the ICC World Cup match played between India and Sri Lanka at Headingley, Leeds, on Saturday
It was far from dominating batting show after the inspiring show by their young bowlers but India managed to outclass Sri Lanka by five wickets and complete a 3-0 series whitewash, in the third T20 International in Mumbai on Sunday.
Sri Lanka bowlers Rangana Herath and Shaminda Eranga will miss the rest of the Bangladesh tour through injury, the cricket board said on its website (www.srilankacricket.lk) on Monday.
India, who play three matches against Australia and five against New Zealand, could reach 125 points and within one point of England
The convincing win gave India an unassailable 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Sri Lanka will be sending middle order batsman Kithuruwan Vithanage and spinner Tharindu Kaushal as cover for the injured players ahead of the team's final round robin World Cup game against Scotland, scheduled to be played on March 11.
Sri Lanka have dropped Test spinners Rangana Herath and Tharindu Kaushal from their One-day squad for the five-match series against Pakistan starting on Saturday.
At stumps on day four, with an hour's play lost because of the weather, Sri Lanka were 109 for three, requiring a further 296 runs to pull off an epic victory.
Usman Khawaja found his scoring touch and fast bowler Mitchell Starc returned to his fiery best as Australia moved within sight of victory in the second Test against Sri Lanka at the Manuka Oval on Sunday.
Moeen Ali scored a majestic century as England amassed an impressive first-innings total by lunch on Day Two of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Durham.
Sri Lanka took three wickets in the last three overs to snatch a thrilling one-run victory over West Indies in the triangular one-day series on Wednesday. Niroshan Dickwella and Kusal Mendis both scored 94 runs as Sri Lanka posted 330 for seven from their 50 overs but for the second game running, West Indies worked themselves into a winning position before falling agonisingly short of their target as they finished on 329 for nine.
Sri Lanka suffered a stunning batting collapse as they suffered a crushing 226-run defeat in the first Test against West Indies in Port of Spain.
Sri Lanka retained their status as the world's top Twenty20 team by beating Pakistan by 24 runs in a thrilling finish in the second game in Dubai on Friday.
Sri Lanka has named its 15-member squad for the five-match ODI series against India next month, with notable omissions being former T20 captain Dinesh Chandimal and Lahiru Thirimanne.
Shikhar Dhawan continued his love affair with the ICC Champions Trophy with yet another elegant hundred, guiding India to an imposing 321 for six.
Fired four years ago following allegations of match-fixing, Ejaz Ahmed junior has been controversially appointed head coach of the Pakistan squad for the Asian Emerging Nations Cup, to be held in Karachi and Colombo in December.
Thisara admitted his side were far from perfect after another batting disaster, he insisted they always knew they had a chance of success if their bowlers stepped up.
The turning point of the match has Kumar Sangakkara's wicket.
Roshen Silva struck a combative fifty and expertly guided Sri Lanka's lower order to help the hosts gain a first-innings lead of 46 against England on the second day of the second Test on Thursday.
Babar Azam scored an impressive hundred while Shoaib Malik smashed a quickfire half century to help Pakistan thump Sri Lanka by 83 runs in the first one-day international in Dubai on Friday.
Kohli promoting Pandya ahead of Dhoni is an indication that the skipper is looking to use his former captain more as an accumulator -- in Javed Miandad mould who would rotate strike, frustrate bowlers and launch a furious counter-attack after getting his eye in.
Opener Rohit Sharma smashed an unbeaten 124 to help India overcome a top-order wobble and register a series-clinching six-wicket victory in the third one-day international against Sri Lanka in Pallekele on Sunday.
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