Sports
I believed 310 was a bit too much: Mathews
Wellington, March 1
An elated Sri Lankan
skipper Angelo Mathews praised two of his star batsmen and said he
initially believed the 310-run target was out of reach as his side beat
England comprehensively by nine wickets at the Westpac Stadium here
Sunday.
Chasing a formidable 310-run target set by England, Sri
Lanka looked at ease in the run chase. They were jolted just once when
Tillakaratne Dilshan (44) was dismissed with the score at 100. But
veteran Kumar Sangakkara (117) and left-handed opener Lahiru Thirimanne
(139) put on a match-winning unbeaten partnership of 212 runs to
overhaul the target with nine wickets to spare.
"It was a
brilliant performance as 310 was a bit too much. But brilliant batting
by Sangakkara and Thirimanne helped us through, two of the greatest
knocks I have seen,†Mathews said at the post-match presentation
ceremony.
The Sri Lankan bowlers were a touch expensive in the
match, as England middle-order bat Joe Root clobbered them to all parts
of the ground enroute to his 121.
Mathews said he wanted the batsmen to step up especially after the bowlers failed to deliver the goods.
“If
the bowlers fail, the batters need to step up. That's what we want. Two
of the areas we need to improve on is the fielding and bowling at the
death," added the 27-year-old who picked up figures of 1/43 from his 10
overs.
With this win, 1996 World Cup champions Sri Lanka recorded
their third straight victory in the World Cup, closing on a
quarterfinal berth. England crumbled to their third loss in the
tournament.