Highlights, Sri Lanka vs Australia, ICC World Cup 2019 Match at The Oval, Full Cricket Score: Finch, Starc star in defending champions' win over SL

Finch, Australia captain: We thought we were a touch short with the new ball, Kusal and Dimuth were superb. You want to bowl top-of-off and when they kept hitting there, we had to change plans. It was nice to see Maxwell bowl well. It is hard to get 10 overs out of him in every game. We have been improving each game. Our game in the middle overs was impressive. Starc is going the business again in an ICC tournament.

Dimuth Karunaratne, Sri Lanka captain: It was a pretty good wicket. We bowled really well. Then Smith and Finch batted really well, but we came back strongly in the death overs.  We got off to a good start with myself, but we could not capitalise and keep momentum going. Even when the middle order came in, they could not capitalise and could not handle the pressure. The Aussies are top-class bowlers, but we were missing a game pla to be honest.

Aaron Finch: Nice to get a couple of drives early in the innings, which is a good sign for my batting It was a nice wicket.  I’ve been working on keeping my balance from the start.  Was trying to take the game on a little bit. Smith is really good at finding the gap and rotating the strike. Absolutely he can get off the strike when you need to, finds a boundary when you need to. Credit to Sri Lanka, they executed superbly under pressure at the end.

Unsurprisingly the Player of the Match is Aaron Finch

Most losses in ODI cricket:

417 – India/Sri Lanka *
412 – Pakistan
370 – New Zealand/West Indies

Australia win by 87 runs!

ALL OUT! Pradeep finally edges one to Carey off Cummins’ bowling as Sri Lankan innings comes to a close. Pradeep was backing away towards leg side and Cummins followed him, he swings down the ground but gets an outside edge to the wicket-keeper. Big win for Australia.

Pradeep c Carey b Pat Cummins 0(7)

After 45 overs,Sri Lanka 246/9 ( Dhananjaya de Silva 15 , Nuwan Pradeep 0)

Gosh! Even the TV umpire has been referred for a close catch to fine leg and he too has given it not out. Rightly so as far the catch is but not so right on the restless commentators (text and others) The soft signal was not out as well as the ball just seemed to bounce ahead of the fielder at short fine leg. The next ball goes above Behrendorff at short fine leg for a boundary. The game now spills in the 46th over.

FOUR! De Silva just trying some shots here now! He was lining up for the scoop, but Richardson bowls it wide, and even though he isn’t able to walk across the ball, he has managed to reverse scoop this over Behrendorff at short fine leg.

After 44 overs,Sri Lanka 240/9 ( Dhananjaya de Silva 10 , Nuwan Pradeep 0)

The crowd just getting a little restless with another over passing by with no wicket. The match is now forced into the 45th over. Cummins gets a couple to go over the stumps as Pradeep swings and misses for the final two balls after De Silva pulled to deep square leg for a single.

After 43 overs,Sri Lanka 238/9 ( Dhananjaya de Silva 9 , Nuwan Pradeep 0)

No five-for for Mitchell Starc. Dhananjaya de Silva makes Starc run in for his final over. He keeps out the short ball then forces Starc to change his angle. De Silva even connects a couple but refuses to take the single. He edges one off the penultimate delivery to third man and then changes the end. Bluffing not just the batsmen but everyone in the world, sorry I am answering on behalf of everyone, by bowling a short ball to Pradeep for the final ball of the over. He finishes his day with 4 wickets for 55 runs.

After 42 overs,Sri Lanka 237/9 ( Dhananjaya de Silva 8 , Nuwan Pradeep 0)

Malinga becomes Richardson’s third victim with Australia just needing one wicket. Number 11 batsman Nuwan Pradeep keeps out two Richardson yorkers, extending the game

OUT! Malinga looks to create some room and jam out the yorkers on the off side, but this time around it is not quite the yorker length, a rather tame chip to covers. Richardson has his third.

Malinga c Khawaja b K Richardson 1(5)

After 41 overs,Sri Lanka 237/8 ( Dhananjaya de Silva 8 , Lasith Malinga 1)

Dhanajaya successfully stonewalls the remainder of Starc’s over after Malinga squeezed out a single off the first ball. Starc might have to bowl his final over to claim another five-wicket haul.

After 40 overs,Sri Lanka 236/8 ( Dhananjaya de Silva 8 , Lasith Malinga 0)

Sri Lanka need just a shade under 100 from the final 10 overs, but it is the wickets that they do not have in hands. Richardson just took his second wicket with Lanka losing their eighth. Australia now two wickets away.

OUT! Short of a length delivery from Richardson and Udana aims to go down the ground with a horizontal bat. Comes off from the top half, slicing it high in the air. Aaron Finch, at mid-off, back pedals to take a neat catch in the end.

Udana c Finch b K Richardson 8(8)

FOUR! Udana has hit that alright. It was short and wide outside off from Richardson and Udana has slashed this over leaping backward point for a boundary.

After 39 overs,Sri Lanka 229/7 ( Dhananjaya de Silva 8 , Isuru Udana 2)

Starc is doing what he does best. Attack and run through lower-middle order. He claims his fourth wicket at the start of his eighth over and De Silva ends the over with a boundary.

Starc running through the lower order of Sri Lanka. Australia might be touted as ’two bowlers’ team, but Cummins and Starc are so good that they can carry the others. Once again Australia has shown why they are one of the teams to beat.

FOUR! Full, outside off and De Silva drives it handsomely down the ground, beating te diving mid off fielder for a boundary.

Most four-wicket hauls in ICC ODI World Cups:

4 – Imran Tahir
4 – Muttiah Muralitharan
4 – Shahid Afridi
4 – Shane Warne
4 – Mitchell Starc*

OUT! And another one! Sri Lankan middle order has yet again successfully managed to complete the hara-kiri. Starc bowls it fast and full, outside off, Mendis looks to hoick it across the line, gets an outside edge to Alex Carey. Starc claims his fourth.

Kusal Mendis c Carey b Starc 30(37)

After 38 overs,Sri Lanka 222/6 ( Kusal Mendis 30 , Dhananjaya de Silva 3)

Behrendorff is brought into the attack. He bowls a decent penultimate over of his spell, giving away just five runs. Dhananjaya de Silva has joined Mendis in the middle.

After 37 overs,Sri Lanka 217/6 ( Kusal Mendis 28 , )

The Sri Lankans have imploded. Their middle order has once again disappointed and virtually throwing in the towel much before the match could even enter in the slog overs. Siriwardana and Perera’s wicket seperated by a six and couple of singles. Starc adds two more wickets to his tally.

Angelo Mathews in this World Cup:

0 v New Zealand
0 v Afghanistan
9 v Australia

OUT! More trouble! Thisara Perera, what have you done? Starc goes straight and full and Thisara Perera looking to go hard down the ground doesn’t really get the elevation for the shot and ends up skewing it straight to mid on where David Warner hangs on to a good catch.

 Perera c Warner b Starc 7(3)

SIX! Gee, that is some shot! Short ball from Starc, directed towards Thisara Perera’s neck and he has pulled it powerfully over long leg for a six off the first ball he is facing! Wow!

OUT! Starc cleans Siriwardana up! Length ball on middle and leg, slanting into Siriwardana’s pads that ricochets into the leg stump. He was beaten for pace. Sri Lanka tumbling rather quickly now.

Siriwardana b Starc 3(4)

After 36 overs,Sri Lanka 209/4 ( Kusal Mendis 27 , Milinda Siriwardana 3)

Mathews’ dreadful World Cup continues as he departs just when his side need him the most. Siriwardana, who was brought in for Lakmal starts with a couple and a single. The Lankans will have to play really out of their skins to make a match out of this. Cummins picks his first wicket.

OUT! Oh dear! Another wicket has fell to what was never intended by the bowler to buy him a wicket, but funny old game cricket doesn’t go that way. Cummins tried to dig in a cross-seamed short ball, but got the line horribly wrong. It was down the leg side and seems like Mathews took a little longer to realise he could score of that delivery. A belated pull turns out to be fatal as he gets an faint edge to the keeper down the leg side. Sri Lanka in trouble.

Mathews c Carey b Pat Cummins 9(11)

Excellent captaincy by Finch again. He is turning out to be one of the best captains in the tournament. He let the pressure build and then introduced Starc and Cummins at the same time. How many times has the short ball got Australia the wicket at this World Cup. Teams just aren’t learning that the short ball is the most attacking delivery for the Australian quicks.

After 35 overs,Sri Lanka 204/3 ( Kusal Mendis 26 , Angelo Mathews 9)

Couple of super shots in the over – one each from Mendis and Mathews – as Sri Lanka look to step on the gas. Only 15 overs left after this. Starc’s over costs 11 runs, Sri Lanka go past the 200-run mark

FOUR! Pulled away to backward square leg boundary from Mathews. It was at a comfortable chest high short ball from Starc and Mathews has no problems in putting it away.

SIX! Starc bowls a full ball on middle and Kusal Mendis stands firmly to simply thwack it down the ground for a straight six. Stand and deliver! Some hit!

After 34 overs,Sri Lanka 193/3 ( Kusal Mendis 19 , Angelo Mathews 5)

Maxwell comes on for the final over of his spell with the run rate soaring over 8.5 runs an over. He ends his quota with just threew singles and he might not have picked a wicket but being the lone spinner he has done really well to not bowl so tight. 10-0-46-0 are certainly figures that Finch and Australia would take from him.

After 33 overs,Sri Lanka 190/3 ( Kusal Mendis 17 , Angelo Mathews 4)

Karunaratne falls against the run of play and just when Sri Lanka wanted him to lift the scoring, he has played a false stroke. He makes a slow walk to the pavilion. Mathews starts off with a boundary. Lanka now need 145 runs in 102 balls.

Captains to get dismissed in nervous 90s in an ODI WC match:

Mohammad Azharuddin v Australia, Brisbane, 1992
Martin Crowe v Pakistan, Auckland, 1992
Graeme Smith v Scotland, Basseterre, 2007
Ricky Ponting v South Africa, Basseterre, 2007
Kumar Sangakkara v Canada, Hambantota, 2011
AB de Villiers v U.A.E., Wellington, 2015
Dimuth Karunaratne v Australia, The Oval, 2019*

FOUR! What a start for Mathews! He has couple of ducks in his first two games before SL’s third game was washed out, so these are his first runs of the World Cup 2019 – a really good shot too. On middle and off from Richardson angled into him and Mathews has punched it down the ground, beating the diving mid on fielder for a boundary to get off the blocks

That boundary by Kushal Mendis was the first in seven overs. The asking rate has climbed above 8, Australia has done really well to pull this back. The wicket of Karuanratne also means Richardson can bowl a.lot of his overs now rather than later.

It  would have been only the third hundred by a Sri Lankan against Australia in World Cups. Aravinda de Silva scored the first one in the 1996 final and Kumar Sangakkara scored the other in the last edition. Well played Dimuth Karunaratne. This has been a tough year for him. Copped one on the head against Australia during the Canberra Test and  spent a night in the hospital. Before that he was charged for drunk driving in Colombo. He has played well here. Can Sri Lanka finish this off?

OUT! Blimey! What has Karunaratne done here! An innocuous looking delivery that was angled across him by Richardson leads to his wicket. He goes back and cuts it in the air and straight to Glenn Maxwell at point. He is dismissed three runs short of what would have benen a well-deserved century.

Karunaratne c Maxwell b K Richardson 97(108)

After 32 overs,Sri Lanka 186/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 97 , Kusal Mendis 17)

It took exactly 50 balls since the last boundary was scored. Mendis hasn’t hit a four off his 23 balls but pumps a biggie to end Maxwell’s ninth over. Eight runs came from it.

SIX! There’s the big shot! Kusal Mendis finally breaks the shackles with a good-looking lofted straight drive for a six down the ground. Made good use of the feet to reach to the pitch of the ball before sending down the ground.

After 31 overs,Sri Lanka 178/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 96 , Kusal Mendis 10)

Kusal Mendis goes for a pull but didn’t get the timing right as the ball falls short of the fine leg fielder, allowing a single from the final ball. Another two-run over, this time from Kane Richardson as the wait for boundary among SL fans prolongs…

After 30 overs,Sri Lanka 176/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 95 , Kusal Mendis 9)

Glenn Maxwell returns to the attack. A binary of 0 and 1 completes the over. Karunaratne, Mendis continue to play the waiting game. SL need 159 off 120 balls.

After 29 overs,Sri Lanka 173/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 93 , Kusal Mendis 8)

Kane Richardson is recalled into the attack. Karunaratne happy to play few aerial shots but is still unable to find the fence. He moves into the nineties with a couple early in the over. Five runs taken from the over. SL need 162 off 126 balls with the run rate inching towards 8-run an over.

After 28 overs,Sri Lanka 168/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 89 , Kusal Mendis 7)

Still no signs of aggression from Lanka. Karunaratne begins the over with a flick for a brace behind square leg and ends with a outside edge for a single to third man. Mendis too taking his time to settle down. They want to perhaps take the game deep and hope their lower order comes to the party when they need the acceleration. Australia might look ahead at this stage but won’t be very difficult to restore balance if the Lankans have wickets in the hand towards the backend.

After 27 overs,Sri Lanka 163/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 85 , Kusal Mendis 6)

Karunaratne, too seemed to have slowed down since Perera’s wicket. He ramps a short ball nicely but can muster only a single to third man. Mendis too flicking off his hips to fine leg for one. Four runs from the over.

After 26 overs,Sri Lanka 159/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 83 , Kusal Mendis 4)

Behrendorff runs in to bowl his seventh over. Sri Lanka need to find some intensity back into this innings as the asking rate inches towards 7.5. Three singles worked around from the over. SL need 176 off 144 balls.

After 25 overs,Sri Lanka 156/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 82 , Kusal Mendis 2)

Cummins is brought back into the attack with the new man out in the middle. Australia have clawed back into the game after that blistering start from Sri Lanka. Cummins’ bouncer to Mendis is called a wide for height. He gets to the other end with a single to third man.

Behrendorff used his height to great effect in the dismissal of Thirimane.  He needs to show that he can take wickets through the middle overs if he is to find a place in the playing XI. Good move by Finch to go back to Cummins, he got rid of Kushal Mendis three out of four times in the Test series earlier in the year.

After 24 overs,Sri Lanka 154/2 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 82 , Kusal Mendis 1)

There is some reckless running at the start of the over between Karunaratne and Thirimanne before Behrendorff gets one to rise and hit Thirimanne on right elbow which doesn’t have a protective gear and causes a stoppage in play. The physio attends him before the restart. The knock seems to have ~woken him up~ as he collects his first boundary only to fall the next ball. Kusal Mendis comes to the middle and opens his account with a single.

OUT! GONE! Back of a length delivery, angled in from outside off stump, Thirimanne arches back and looks to slice it behind point, gets a genuine nick to the keeper. Behrendorff picks his first wicket of the tournament.

Thirimanne c Carey b Behrendorff 16(26)

FOUR! Thirimanne is is able to free his arms with some width on offer outside off and he is able to cut this square behind point fielder. It has enough on it to beat the sweeper cover as well.

The umpires are checking whether Lahiru Thirimanne is guilty of obstructing the field and the physio is out with the magic spray attending to Thirimanne, who copped one on his arm. Risky run. The batsman was ball watching while non-striker was half-way down the pitch. All good in the end.

After 23 overs,Sri Lanka 145/1 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 81 , Lahiru Thirimanne 10)

Karunaratne for some odd reason fancied a reverse sweep off the first ball of Maxwell’s over, he got an inside edge that was heading for his stumps if not for his back leg to come in its way. However, on a sidenote, not really sure if the bails would have fallen. The Big Show keeps sending down those good boy four-run overs

After 22 overs,Sri Lanka 141/1 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 79 , Lahiru Thirimanne 8)

Thirimanne will soon need to start finding the boundaries and not let the pressure of boundaries start piling on. The attaking start from his teammates allowed him to borrow few ball to get his eye in but 8 off 19 balls isn’t ideal when your team is chasing 335. Only two singles from Behrendorff’s over.

Sri Lanka need to play Glenn Maxwell better. He is Australia’s fifth bowler and has already bowled seven overs and conceded just 32 . He is bowling at the left-handers here. Sri Lanka should have been better off sending a right-handed batsman. Kusal Mendis maybe.  Mistake.

After 21 overs,Sri Lanka 139/1 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 78 , Lahiru Thirimanne 7)

Maxwell continues into his sixth over. The offie is adjusting his length  on seeing the batsmen use their feet to him. Two singles to each batsmen – four from the over.

After 20 overs,Sri Lanka 135/1 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 76 , Lahiru Thirimanne 5)

As Thirimanne looks to get his eye in, Finch sees an opportunity to bring back Jason Behrendorff, who had been taken for 32 off his first three overs. The start the second spell has been a neat four runs. Sri Lanka need exactly 200 in the next 30 overs.

After 19 overs,Sri Lanka 131/1 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 73 , Lahiru Thirimanne 4)

Karunaratne carries on after Perera’s wicket. He ends Maxwell’s over with an excellent cut to point fence. Eight came from the over.

FOUR! Just the enough amount of room that Karunaratne required. He rocks back and uses the pace of Maxwell to play the late cut bissecting the narrow gap between backward point and short third man.

After 18 overs,Sri Lanka 123/1 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 67 , Lahiru Thirimanne 2)

Khawaja sinks his face in his palms after missing to hit the stumps from 10 yards or so. A definite chance for Autralia. Karunaratne tucks towards the leg side and sets off for a risky single Thirimanne responds to captain’s call and has to hurry in the end and even has to put in a dive to make his ground. Fortunately for the Islanders no harm done. Only a single by Starc.

Where will Australia be if it wasn’t for Mitch Starc. Another delightful yorker and he provides Australia the much needed break through. Maxwell will continue to bowl until the left-handers are at the crease. It will be interesting to see how Finch juggles his bowlers today,because Behrendorff and Richardson have leaked runs.

After 17 overs,Sri Lanka 122/1 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 66 , Lahiru Thirimanne 2)

Maxwell doing a good job being the lone spinner, holding his end with discipline bowling. He hasn’t given any boundary so far when the Sri Lanka have scored above 7 runs an over so far. Lankans couldn’t have asked for a better start. Can they carry on? Time for a beverage.

After 16 overs,Sri Lanka 120/1 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 65 , Lahiru Thirimanne 1)

Mitchell Starc responds to his captain’s demand by delivering the first wicket. Perera heads back after an enterprising half-century. Karunaratne collects another four in the over after Lahiru Thirimanne has joined him in the middle.

Most wickets for Starc against an opponent in ODIs:

24 v Sri Lanka*
23 v Pakistan
21 v England
21 v West Indies

FOUR! Short and outside off, Karunaratne chases the ball, gets a thickish outside edge and directs it wide of the keeper through vacant first slip region, it is played fine of the third man too.

OUT! Timber! That is an absoulte joy to behold if you’re a fast bowler. Starc pitches it up on middle and off with the ball tailing back into the left-hander a touch and Perera who was lining up for a big swing across the line finds his middle stump cannoned. Big breakthrough for Australia.

Kusal Perera b Starc 52(36)

After 15 overs,Sri Lanka 112/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 58 , Kusal Perera (W) 52)

Karunaratne with those supple wrists flicks it off his pads towards wide long on boundary but the fielder from deep mid wicket is able to get around and push the ball back in play. Six runs from Maxwell’s third over.

After 14 overs,Sri Lanka 106/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 54 , Kusal Perera (W) 50)

Finch has to return to his strike bowler. Mitchell Starc comes back with some accurate bowling at high pace but Karunaratne and Perera are able to work around singles, four of them came from the over with the latter completing his half-century.

FIFTY! Perera gets his turn to soak in the appaulse after reaching his half-century. He completes it with a single of the final ball of Starc’s over. Superb innings.

Both Sri Lankan openers scoring 50-plus runs in a same ODI WC match:

v Zimbabwe, Plymouth, 1992
v Bangladesh, Pietermaritzburg, 2003
v Zimbabwe, Pallekele, 2011
v England, Colombo (RPS), 2011
v Bangladesh, Melbourne, 2015
v Australia, The Oval, 2019

After 13 overs,Sri Lanka 102/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 52 , Kusal Perera (W) 48)

Maxwell once again applying the brake on the boundaries. He has a leg before shout that is being down by the umpire against Karunaratne, who advanced down the track, but the replays revealed the ball would have gone onto crash into the leg stump. Australia and Finch must rue the awful DRS they took couple of overs ago. Meanwhile 100-up for the Lankans.

Good comeback by Dimuth Karunaratne for white ball cricket. Since making his return last month, he has made three fifties in four games. He had not played an ODI for four long years and suddenly was called up ahead of the World Cup. There was an opportunity for him to be recalled for the ODI side in 2017 when he finished the Test series as Man of the Series in UAE. The selectors argued that an ODI recall would upset his Test momentum. They had forgotten that he had made his ODI debut more than a year before making his first appearance in a Test match.

After 12 overs,Sri Lanka 98/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 50 , Kusal Perera (W) 46)

Karunratne raises his half-century in quicktime, giving his side a brilliant start. These two are taking on the pace bowlers and Australia are playing with four of them. Lots of problems for Finch.

FIFTY! Back of a length delivery and Karunaratne brings up his half-century with a pull to mid wicket fence. The skipper leading from the front. What a start!

After 11 overs,Sri Lanka 91/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 46 , Kusal Perera (W) 43)

Spin for the first time. Glenn Maxwell has been called into the attack and the taking the pace of the ball has worked as far as this over is concerened. Maxwell has Perera in two minds at the start of the over as he was looking for the big shot. Four runs came from Maxwell’s first.

Close to 90% of Kane Richardson’s balls have pitched on leg-stump for both of the left-handers. Not sure how he can get a wicket bowling such lines. The brief shower has also made the ball wet, meaning it is difficult to grip the ball. Add to all that this is Australia’s 4th match in 10 days, so fatigue could also be an issue.

After 10 overs,Sri Lanka 87/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 44 , Kusal Perera (W) 42)

Sri Lankan openers have scored at 8.7 runs an over in the first powerplay without losing a wicket setting the chase perfectly. There is a review taken by Finch which seemed more out of desparation than anything. The referral was for a caught behind which the keeper wasn’t really convinced about, but bowler Richardson was, the ball passes the outside edge as Perera looks to run it down to third man but there is flatline on UltraEdge all the way through. Australia lose thier review and have clearly lost the battle in the first powerplay.

A flying start for the Sri Lankans this is. Some superb stroke play by Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Janith Perera. They are at the end of ten overs. Can they pull this off. It will be the highest run chase at The Oval and their semi-final dreams truly alive after two washouts. The middle order lacks runs though. These two need to go on. Aussies are running out of ideas it looks like. They have opted for all seam attack and will have to depend heavily on their part-time spinners. And they have lost a review too.

The last time when a Sri Lankan opening pair had a century stand against Australia in ODIs was back in 2012 when Tillakarante Dilshan and Mahela Jayawardene added 179 runs at Adelaide.

FOUR! Richardson drops it short and Perera has banished this away to mid wicket fence. Another top shot from Perera, who wil cut and pull all day.

After 9 overs,Sri Lanka 79/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 43 , Kusal Perera (W) 35)

Sri Lankan openers have put the pressure back on Australia and you can tell from the noise made by the fans. Perera starts the over with a mighty six to set the tone. They hare for a quick single and Finch takes a shy at the stumps, misses and the ball runs away to for five overthrows. If it had hit, Perera would have been short. Perera ends the over with a boundary as well, Behrendorff clearly hasn’t got it right after his first over.

FOUR! Behrendorff slips it on the legs and Perera tickles it past short fine leg. This is smart batting from the left-hander.

SIX! That has been dispatched with disdain. Behrendorff pays a huge price of giving Perera the width. He has hacked it over extra cover fence.

After 8 overs,Sri Lanka 61/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 42 , Kusal Perera (W) 18)

Tell you what, this is an excellent start from Sri Lanka. Their aggressive approach has been paid off really. Almost collecting boundaries every over. Finch must think on his feet to first apply the brakes on the boundary flow.

This is Sri Lanka’s third fifty-plus opening stand in the last four ODIs. Dimuth Karunaratne is involved in each of them.

FOUR! Ont he pads and Karunaratne has flicked this uppishly over and even wide of the short fine leg fielder. Another boundary in that region behind square.

After 7 overs,Sri Lanka 53/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 37 , Kusal Perera (W) 15)

Karunaratne collects two more fours off successive deliveries as he and Perera bring up the 50-run opening stand. This is a solid platform already. It has come at a quick clip too. There have been some supreb stroke along with few inside edges as well, the Islanders have gleefully accepted them all.

FOUR! Karunaratne picks up his second boundary via an inside edge. This time he was pressing forward and played it just down the wrong line. Behrendorff rues his luck

FOUR! Slightly short angled into the hips and Karunaratne swivels and pulls it around the corner, he beats the short fine-leg fielder to his right to pick a boundary.

After 6 overs,Sri Lanka 40/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 25 , Kusal Perera (W) 14)

Karunaratne seems to be hogging all the strike at this moment and he will continue to do so with a single off the final ball off Cummins’ over. He collects a boundary via a lucky inside edge. Cummins changes to round the stumps for the final two balls.

FOUR! That could have so easily gone back onto his stumps. Karunaratne gets an inside edge that just goes past his wickets and runs down to fine leg ropes.

FOUR! Short ball that was slanted across from Cummins, but Karunaratne had decided to drag it from outside the off stump and pull it across to mid wicket fence.

First time a team has gone hard at Cummins. It is a huge surprise that Behrendorff didn’t take the new ball with Starc. Bit of water on the pitch seems to have quickened it up a touch.

After 5 overs,Sri Lanka 31/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 16 , Kusal Perera (W) 14)

A very early bowling change by Australia. Strange tactics by Finch, though Starc was just about to rev up the pace. Jason Behrendorff on his World Cup debut marks his run up. He starts with disciplined lines, giving just a single that came off the last ball to Karunaratne.

After 4 overs,Sri Lanka 30/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 15 , Kusal Perera (W) 14)

Cummins, too has a better over compared to his opening six balls. Karunaratne ends the over with a lovely drive square of the wicket on the offside with the ball stopping just inside the boundary runs. The openers run three. Four runs from the over.

After 3 overs,Sri Lanka 26/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 12 , Kusal Perera (W) 13)

Starc tests Karunaratne with some really quick deliveries, he slips in the swinging yorker but instead of the ball curving back in, it slides with the angle into Karunaratne’s boot almost flooring the Sri Lankan captain. Mixes it up with some short stuff as well. Just two runs from it.

After 2 overs,Sri Lanka 24/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 10 , Kusal Perera (W) 13)

This ultra-attacking approach by Perera is setting a nice tone for Sri Lanka. Cummins like his opening bowling partner has been taken for 12 runs. Two boundaries and one that just stopped inside for three were sees both batsmen enter into double digits.

FOUR! And again! If anything Perera has pulled this one with more ferociously. Cummins didn’t do much wrong there. Simply good old agricultural scythe across the line but with really good timing.

Pat Cummins has atleast taken three wickets in six out of his last nine ODI matches before today.

FOUR! Perera has crashed that! Tad short from Cummins over middle and off stump and Perera has pulled in front of square with the ball skimming away to the boundary.

After 1 overs,Sri Lanka 12/0 ( Dimuth Karunaratne (C) 7 , Kusal Perera (W) 4)

Karunaratne pokes one off the first ball, getting a thick outside edge past the two slips for the first run. Perera and Karunratne both find boundaries in the first over, preferring the point region. Very positive start for SL.

FOUR! Nicely done! Short of a length outside off and Karunaratne climbs on the top of the bat and plays the cut shot through point to perfection

The highest target successfully chased in ODI WC,

Overall : 328 by Ireland v England, Bangalore, 2011
By Sri Lanka : 313 v Zimbabwe, New Plymouth, 1992
Against Australia : 274 by West Indies, Lord’s, 1983

FOUR! Perera will go after any width that will be on offer. It was around the 5th-6th stumps line outside off and Perera slices it past point for the first boundary of the innings.

Alright! Time for the chase. Sri Lankan openers Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Perera stride out to the middle. Two slips in place for Mitchell Starc, who will open the bowling for Australia.

Australia will be happy with this total. Not too sure whether they will like the way they finished things off, but their attack is good enough to defend 334. No team has chased that many here at The Oval. The highest successful run chase here is 322 during the Champions Trophy in 2017. Sri Lanka have to beat their own record if they were to win here. Watch out for Kusal Perera.

Glenn Maxwell flourish at the end ensures Australia get to 334 at the end. Fantastic innings by Aaron Finch and Smith was sublime as well for his 71. Australia will be extremely satisfied, they have defended targets brilliantly in the World Cup and are definitely in the box seat. The only concern was that could only manage 32 of the last four overs.  It is going to take a mighty effort from SL to pull this off.

Australia today:

First 35 overs : 195/2 (RR – 5.57)
Next 15 overs : 139/5 (RR – 9.27)

After 50 overs,Australia 334/7 ( Glenn Maxwell 46 , Mitchell Starc 5)

Maxwell signs off Australia’s innings with a four, as they post a commendable total of 334-7. Centurion Aaron Finch and Steve Smith were the class performers, with Maxwell entertaining the crowd with fours and sixes later. Sri Lanka had chances for direct hits, but they made up for those lost opportunities by dismissing Carey and Cummins in that fashion.

FOUR! Maxwell finishes the innings in style! He whips it through square leg courtesy a wide yorker from Thisara Perera.

After 49 overs,Australia 324/7 ( Glenn Maxwell 40 , Mitchell Starc 1)

Australia have lost Alex Carey and Pat Cummins courtesy run-outs, and the Lankan Lions are roaring all of a sudden. Despite this, 10 runs come off Udana’s over.

WICKET! Cummins’ stint at the crease is short-lived as he is run-out by Udana. Udana bowls a yorker, Cummins plays down the leg side and then the mix-up happens.

Udana on fire. Second direct hit off his own bowling. Sri Lanka have pulled this off fantastically. What a performance this is. Pat Cummins gone.

WICKET! Carey is run out by Udana after a mix-up with Maxwell. Carey run out (Udana) 4(3)

Super fielding by Isuru Udana off his own bowling. Glenn Maxwell worked it on the leg-side, attempted a single and Udana, dived to his right, stopped the ball and threw down the stumps with a direct hit at the non-striker’s end. Steve Rixon, Sri Lanka’s Fielding Coach will be happy with that.

After 48 overs,Australia 317/5 ( Glenn Maxwell 34 , Alex Carey (W) 4)

Seven runs from Malinga’s final over. Carey goes for three runs, courtesy a mix-up between Udana and Siriwardana.

Australia really missing another power hitter low down the order. Sri Lanka has really pulled back in the last couple of overs. Langer went on record this week to say Shaun Marsh is an explosive batsmen – not sure if that is true any way.  Australia might get away with it against a team like SL, but against the likes of India and England they need scores close to 350 on goo batting pitches.

After 47 overs,Australia 310/5 ( Glenn Maxwell 31 , Alex Carey (W) 0)

Udana has removed Shaun Marsh for just three runs. Marsh mistimed the shot and gifted it to Siriwardana at deep mid-wicket. His dismissal has brought in Alex Carey to the crease at number seven.

WICKET! Shaun Marsh mistimes the shot and has to depart after he hits one towards Siriwardana at deep mid-wicket. Shaun Marsh c Siriwardana b Udana 3(9)

After 46 overs,Australia 307/4 ( Glenn Maxwell 29 , Shaun Marsh 2)

Malinga continues to bowl his yorkers and SL concede only four runs from this over. Maxwell and Marsh try to rotate strike in this over, scoring in just singles. SL will be hoping that Australia don’t reach the 350-run mark.

Most runs conceded by a Sri Lankan bowler in a WC match:

97/1 – Ashantha de Mel v West Indies, Karachi, 1987
88/0 – Nuwan Pradeep v Australia, The Oval, 2019*
87/2 – Thisara Perera v Australia, Sydney, 2015

After 45 overs,Australia 302/4 ( Glenn Maxwell 27 , Shaun Marsh 1)

Maxwell is causing destruction all over The Oval now, and 22 runs come off Pradeep’s final over, who ends wicket-less. Maxwell entertained crowds with as many as four fours and one six.

FOUR! This one goes over the keeper as Maxwell signs the over with another boundary.

FOUR! Maxwell whacks this one to deep mid-wicket as Australia bounce back in style.

FOUR! Maxwell plays this behind square as the Aussies just keep scoring no matter what.

SIX! Maxwell slams this one over long-on. Not the kind of start Pradeep would have wanted.

FOUR! A short one from Pradeep and Maxwell plays the pull shot towards mid-on.

After 44 overs,Australia 280/4 ( Glenn Maxwell 5 , Shaun Marsh 1)

A forgettable over for Australia, with Malinga dismissing Smith courtesy his yorker. This has brought Shaun Marsh to the crease with just four runs from it. Marsh is off the mark in his first delivery.

Most centuries scored against a team in ICC ODI World Cups:

19 v Sri Lanka*
18 v Zimbabwe
16 v New Zealand

WICKET! Malinga removes Steve Smith. His yorker does the trick as Smith tries to play through the leg-side but the ball hits the stumps. Top class stuff from Malinga. Smith b Malinga 73(59)

What a knock by Aaron Finch. His 153 is now the highest score by an Australian captain. Previous best Ricky Ponting’s unbeaten 140 in the 2003 final against India in Johannesburg. Equals his career best 153 and equals the highest individual score in this World Cup. Jason Roy also made 153 against Bangladesh in Cardiff.

After 43 overs,Australia 275/3 ( Steve Smith 73 , Glenn Maxwell 1)

Udana has finally removed Australia captain Finch. He bowls a slower one, and Finch gifts it to Karunaratne in the cover position. This has brought in Glenn Maxwell at number five.

Highest individual scores for Australia in WCs:

178 – David Warner v Afghanistan, Perth, 2015
158 – Matthew Hayden v WI, Norht Sound, 2007
153 – AARON FINCH v Sri Lanka, Oval, 2019*
149 – Adam Gilchrist v Sri Lanka, Bridgetown, 2007

WICKET! A little it too late for SL, but Udana has finally seen off Finch for 153. He bowls a slower ball and Finch gifts it to Karunaratne at cover. Finch c Karunaratne b Udana 153(132)

After 42 overs,Australia 269/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 152 , Steve Smith 69)

Finch is in his destructive best here. He brings up his 150 in style with a four. And Smith finishes the over with a six through to deep mid-wicket. Sri Lanka are having a nightmare with Malinga conceding 14 in this over.

SIX! Where has that gone?!Malinga bowls one towards the leg side and Smith lofts it towards deep mid-wicket.

Australian players with 150-plus runs in a World Cup match:

Matthew Hayden v West Indies, North Sound, 2007
David Warner v Afghanistan, Perth, 2015
Aaron Finch v Sri Lanka, The Oval, 2019*

FOUR! Finch gets to his 150-run mark in style. He whips this towards cow corner as the ball races past the boundary ropes.

Still plenty of overs to go, Finch could push towards a double century. Importantly, Australia shifting gears in the manner that they were unable to against Pakistan. Finch deserves plenty of credit, but Smith has played such a pivotal role. Still got Maxwell and Carey in the sheds, Australia will be dissapointed if they don’t reach 350.

Aaron Finch now holds the record of scoring most runs by an Australian captain in a World Cup match, going past 140* runs which Ricky Ponting scored against India at Johannesburg in 2003.

This is Steve Smith’s eighth fifty-plus score out of his last 10 ODI World Cup innings.

There’s lot of discussion on Sri Lanka’s World Cup composition. One of the surprise omissions was Niroshan Dickwella. Instead of England, he was sent to India with Sri Lanka ‘A’ and he has been in good nick. Made a hundred today against India ‘A’. His second on tour.

After 41 overs,Australia 255/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 146 , Steve Smith 62)

Boundaries, boundaries and more boundaries! As many as four fours have been slammed in this over and Nuwan Pradeep is having a nightmare. Finch is into his 140s and looks in real good touch. 18 from it.

FOUR! Finch pulls this towards deep backward point for a boundary. He is on fire!

FOUR! Smith drves this through to deep third-man for a boudary.

FOUR! Smith finds the gap behind square as he finds the gap for a boundary.

After 40 overs,Australia 237/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 137 , Steve Smith 53)

An expensive over from Perera, who remains wicket-less. Finch slams a six over deep-square leg and hits a four through to backward point. 13 runs off the over.

FOUR! Finch picks the short-length directly as the ball races past backward point.

SIX! Finch launches this one over deep square-leg. What a treat it is to watch the Aussie captain bat when he is in good touch

After 39 overs,Australia 224/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 126 , Steve Smith 51)

Steve Smith comfortably gets to his fifty. A well-constructed innings from the Aussie, with six runs off Pradeep’s over. Finch pulls a short-length delivery and runs a couple in the last ball.

FIFTY! Steve Smith gets to his half-century! A well-played innings so far, and he does not seem like he is giving up soon.

After 38 overs,Australia 218/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 122 , Steve Smith 49)

Finch continues to score in boundaries. Hits a four towards deep backward-point courtesy a short-length delivery from Perera. Eight from it.

FOUR! Finch cuts this through deep backward point courtesy a short deliver from Perera.

After 37 overs,Australia 210/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 116 , Steve Smith 47)

Smith is inching closer to his fifty, whereas Udana’s wait for a wicket continues. Finch finishes the over with a four which goes through the deep extra-cover. Seven from the over.

FOUR! Finch cuts this through deep extra-cover as he ends the over in style.

Most centuries in ICC ODI World Cup by teams:

28 – Australia*
27 – India
23 – Sri Lanka

After 36 overs,Australia 203/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 111 , Steve Smith 45)

Perera continues after the drinks break. Smith scores a boundary which goes past the third man position. Eight runs off the over.

Most centuries for Australian openers in international cricket:

40 – Matthew Hayden
36 – David Warner
20 – Mark Taylor
16 – Adam Gilchrist, Justin Langer, Aaron Finch*
15 – Mark Waugh

Sensation knock by Aaron Finch, this is his third century in 10 innings. Hard to believe he went nine innings without a fifty before the Pakistan series. He has opened up his stance ever so slightly and that has allowed him to hit the ball in the ‘V’, he has scored 50% of his runs between long-on and long-off. A sign he is back to his best form.

Least innings to 14 ODI tons:

84 – Hashim Amla
98 – David Warner
103 – Virat Kohli
104 – Quinton de Kock
105 – Shikhar Dhawan
110 – AARON FINCH*
122 – Joe Root

Australian captains with a century in ICC ODI World Cup:

Steve Waugh v South Africa, Leeds, 1999
Ricky Ponting v Sri Lanka, Centurion, 2003
Ricky Ponting v India, Johannesburg, 2003
Ricky Ponting v Scotland, Basseterre, 2007
Ricky Ponting v India, Ahmedabad, 2011
Aaron Finch v Sri Lanka, Oval, 2019*

FOUR! Smith plays a shot towards third man and the ball races towards the boundary ropes.

After 35 overs,Australia 195/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 109 , Steve Smith 39)

Finch hits another boundary as he drives it through mid-off thanks to a full-length delivery from Udana. Five from the over.

FOUR! A fullish-length from Udana as Finch drives it through mid-off for yet another boundary.

After 34 overs,Australia 190/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 104 , Steve Smith 39)

After a few expensive ones, Perera delivers a decent over for the Lankans. He bowls a few shorter-length balls and only five runs come from it.

After 33 overs,Australia 185/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 102 , Steve Smith 36)

Aaron Finch has scored a century here. A well-played innings by the Australia captain as he notches up his 13th ODI ton with six over through long-off. Nine runs off the over.

What a way to bring up his hundred. Aaron Finch steps out for Milinda Siriwardana and lofts it over the long off fielder for maximum.

SIX! Finch reaches his hundred in style with a maximum over long-off.

After 32 overs,Australia 176/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 95 , Steve Smith 35)

An expensive over from Malinga. Smith starts off with a boundary through to extra-cover. Malinga also bowls a no-ball, but does not concede any run in the free-hit. Eight runs off it.

FOUR! Malinga bowls one outside off, but Smith finds the gap through extra-cover.

Smith playing the No.4 role perfectly, he can manipulate the strike so well against the spinners. Smith has raced to 30 without playing a shot in anger. It has also enabled Finch to pace his innings as he approaches his century. It will be interesting to see if Australia can carry on this momentum.

After 31 overs,Australia 168/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 94 , Steve Smith 30)

Smith slams a four through backward square leg as Australia get off to a good start in the over. Not a good start from Siriwardana, who concedes nine off his first over.

FOUR! Smith finds the gap through extra-cover as Malinga bowls a fuller one outside off.

After 30 overs,Australia 159/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 93 , Steve Smith 22)

Malinga concedes a wide. A full-toss from Malinga as that goes down the leg-side. Meanwhile, Finch and Smith continue to score in ones and twos. Seven runs from the over.

After 29 overs,Australia 152/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 91 , Steve Smith 18)

An expensive over for Sri Lanka. One four and two back-to-back sixes from Finch in the first three balls has just given a nightmare to the Sri Lankan bowlers. 20 runs off Dhananjaya’s over.

After 28 overs,Australia 132/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 73 , Steve Smith 17)

Eight runs come off Udana’s over. Finch drives past the point region for a boundary and now Australia are looking set to unleash the attack mode.

FOUR! Smith plays a square drive as he finds a gap through the point region for four.

After 27 overs,Australia 124/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 71 , Steve Smith 11)

Dhananjaya concedes a wide in this over, but only five runs come from it. Finch and Smith continue to rotate the strike and score in singles. Australia will hope that this partnership does not break apart.

After 26 overs,Australia 120/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 69 , Steve Smith 9)

Steve Smith brings up his first boundary. Udana bowls a low full-toss, but Smith chops away through deep mid-wicket for a four. Nine runs off Udana’s over.

Khawaja is Australia’s second highest run scorer in 2019, but a majority of his runs have come as an opener. Khawaja just doesn’t seem at home down the order. he was trying to hit towards the short side, but teams know the slog sweep is his get away shot. Australia could look to bat Shaun Marsh at No.4 and Smith at No.3 in the next game. Sri Lanka are back in the contest.

FOUR! A low full-toss from Udana as Smith chops it through deep mid-wicket for his first boundary.

After 25 overs,Australia 110/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 67 , Steve Smith 2)

Finch and Smith are forced to run in singles, as Dhananjaya delivers another exceptional over. Just two runs off it.

After 24 overs,Australia 108/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 66 , Steve Smith 1)

Finch brings up the first six in the match as he lofts one behind square leg. after failing to loft in one of Pradeep’s shorter deliveries, Finch takes advantage and the ball flies away. Eight runs off it.

SIX! Finch takes advantage of Pradeep’s short ball and lofts it behind square. The first six of the match comes from the Aussie skipper.

Sri Lanka picked Dhananjaya de Silva as their lead spinner. It was a big call to leave out Akila Dananjaya. But he has done well here at The Oval accounting for the first two wickets. Dot ball pressure does the trick as Usman Khawaja  falls caught in the deep.

After 23 overs,Australia 100/2 ( Aaron Finch (C) 59 , Steve Smith 0)

Dhananjaya de Silva has picked up the wicket of Khawaja, just after the Aussies get to the 100-run mark. A tossed up delivery, which falls to the hands of Udana at deep mid-wicket. Just three from it.

WICKET! A tossed-up delivery from Dhananjaya as Khawaja finds Udana at deep mid-wicket. Another huge blow for Aussies despite reaching the 100-run mark. Khawaja c Udana b Dhananjaya de Silva 10(20)

After 22 overs,Australia 97/1 ( Aaron Finch (C) 56 , Usman Khawaja 10)

Pradeep tries to threaten Khawaja with a bouncer. In the fifth ball, he ducks that short-pitched delivery off Pradeep. Just two runs off it.

This is Aaron Finch’s seventh fifty-plus score  out of last 10 ODI innings.

After 21 overs,Australia 95/1 ( Aaron Finch (C) 55 , Usman Khawaja 9)

Dhananjaya continues his impressive spell and concedes just a couple of runs in his latest over. Khawaja drives to the covers for a single as SL try to put pressure on the Aussie duo.

After 20 overs,Australia 93/1 ( Aaron Finch (C) 54 , Usman Khawaja 8)

Usman Khawaja gifts the Aussies with a welcome boundary . The ball races past the third slip and to the boundary at third man. Six runs off Pradeep’s over.

Warner was choked down by the tight lines by De Silva from around the wicket. Plus the fact that De Silva was spinning one and getting one to skid on, the delivery that got Warner was the one that went on with the arm. The pitch looks on the slower side. Khawaja back to No.3, meaning Australia want to stick with left and right combo.

After 19 overs,Australia 87/1 ( Aaron Finch (C) 53 , Usman Khawaja 3)

Dhananjaya bowls a couple of outside-off deliveries as Finch and Khawaja continue to score in singles. four runs off it as Australia look to get back on track.

After 18 overs,Australia 83/1 ( Aaron Finch (C) 51 , Usman Khawaja 1)

Aaron Finch gets to his fifty, as Australia look to recover after Warner’s dismissal. Just three runs off Perera’s over.

FIFTY! Aaron Finch gets to his fifty.

After 17 overs,Australia 80/1 ( Aaron Finch (C) 49 , Usman Khawaja 0)

Sri Lanka get the much-needed breakthrough. Warner is clean bowled by Dhananjaya de Silva. Usman Khawaja comes in at number three as play resumes after drinks.

Here’s how Warner was done in by Dhananjaya

David Warner was undone by Dhananjya de Silva's arm ball. The four previous deliveries de Silva bowled to Warner all turned by at least 0.90° away from the left-hander. The wicket-ball only turned 0.49° - going on with the arm - and bowling Warner. #CWC19 pic.twitter.com/HEmrM7DMEw

— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) June 15, 2019

WICKET! Bowled’em! Dhananjaya comes round the wicket, bowls a good-length delivery, Warner pushes forward to play a shot, but finally is dismissed. Much-needed breakthrough for SL.