Leeward Islands Thunder vs Trinidad & Tobago Legions - Commentary

Right then, that is all we have from this game. Australia have taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match T20I series. The final match of the T20I series will be played in Kandy, on Saturday the 11th of June. Sri Lanka will be looking to get going with a win whereas the visitors will be hoping for a clean sweep. That game begins at 7 pm IST (1.30 pm GMT) but our build-up will begin much sooner. Do join us then. Take care and goodbye!

Captain of Australia, Aaron Finch says, that their bowling unit did a fantastic job to restrict Sri Lanka, the wicket deteriorated towards the end but Matthew Wade showed all his experience. Adds that the one thing they had in their favour was the run rate and Wade just took his time to settle in. Says that the wicket was going to get slower, but in the Powerplay, they were always looking to target the bowlers.

Dasun Shanaka, the Sri Lanka skipper says, that 20 more runs would have been more crucial. Mentions that the top-order fell and they struggled to get going in the end, the conditions were tough. Says that they got many wickets in the middle but they failed to capitalize on that. Adds that they had a chat before the game if they need to add another seamer but they went with the same bowling attack and that did work in their favour.

Matthew Wade is the Player of the Match for his calm batting under pressure. He says that they gave a bit of a sniff tonight. Adds that Sri Lanka got momentum which was very tough to break. Adds that they are a hard team to stop when they get going. Mentions that their top-order got off to a flier of a start so the run-rate was never an issue, and his job at the backend was to get the team over the line.

Presentation ceremony...

Earlier in the game, Sri Lanka were inserted into bat and this time they didn't even have a good start and were struggling inside the Powerplay. The middle overs were decent as Charith Asalanka and Kusal Mendis stitched together a good stand but the loss of wickets at regular intervals, especially at the backend cost them dearly. The Richardson pairing of Jhye and Kane brought Australia wickets, 7 of them between those two and Glenn Maxwell too got a couple of crucial wickets. It was a solid bowling performance to restrict the opposition to just 124. During the chase, Australia got a fast start and a big chunk was taken off the target pretty soon. They did lose wickets in a heap in the middle overs as the Lankan spinners dominated and Wanindu Hasaranga once again showed why he is so highly rated. It was then an effort from Matthew Wade down the order that ensured his side got over the line and went on to seal the T20I series.

Well, Sri Lanka have lost the series but they will take a lot of positives from the second half of this game. After another sorry outing with the bat, the bowlers started off poorly too. But they kept on bowling with a lot of heart and then the wickets came. Wanindu Hasaranga was the star of the show as even after getting hit, he kept on tossing it up and ended up with four wickets. Dushmantha Chameera made a good comeback too after being hit for 18 runs in the first over. The rest of the bowlers were economical but they just didn't have enough runs to play with, 20 or so more and it might have been a different story. For now, they will look to focus on the next game and try to avoid a whitewash.

Having chased down a similar score in the first game, Australia were expected to do so yet again and they did get the start they needed. Aaron Finch took his form from the previous game and came out of the blocks quickly. Finch though tried to be over aggressive and ended up giving away his wicket. David Warner and Mitchell Marsh too started off in fine fashion but Marsh feel and then Steven Smith was dismissed soon after. Warner fell via a run-out and suddenly the visitors started to lose the plot a bit. Maxwell and Wade kept a calm head and got their side close to victory before Maxwell got out, leaving the door open for the opposition. In the end, Australia did get over the line thanks to a composed innings from Matthew Wade.

A nervy end to the match, but the Aussies have managed to get over the line and go on to win the T20I series with a game remaining. Over the two games so far, Australia have been the dominant side and for all the efforts of the Lankan bowlers in this game, the visitors did deserve to win the match and the series as well.

A bit of thinking for Dasun Shanaka here. Sri Lanka are penalised for not getting through the overs in time and in the final three overs, they will have to have a minimum of 5 five fielders inside the 30-yard circle.