South Africa scamper to a six-wicket win by CricketArchive Staff Reporter

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Scorecard:	South Africa v Sri Lanka
Player:	DW Steyn, JH Kallis, J Botha, HH Gibbs, AB de Villiers
Event:	ICC World Twenty20 2009

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DateLine: 3rd June 2009

 

Propelled by a sedate knock of 48 from 53 deliveries from Herschelle Gibbs, South Africa scampered to a six-wicket win over Sri Lanka in their warm-up game at the Lord's.

 

Chasing a modest total of 110 to win, South Africa started on a scary note losing important wickets of skipper Graeme Smith (1) and Jacques Kallis (2) in the first two overs.

 

But after that in-form batsmen AB De Villiers (32 off 39 balls) and Gibbs took up the cause and added 70 runs for the third wicket. The duo was slow to start off and at one stage South Africa had just 38 runs in 10 overs needing 72 to win in the next 10.

 

The next five overs yielded 39 runs as both batsmen started to take a few risks. In the process de Villiers threw away his wicket trying to hit Udana out of the park, only to find Malinga at deep mid-on.

 

Then on first Gibbs and Jean Paul Duminy (12) and then Duminy and Mark Boucher (8) finished the task in hand with five balls and six wickets to spare.

 

Earlier Sri Lanka batted first after Graeme Smith won the toss and elected to field first on a surface that looked suited to seam bowling.

 

The Lankans started off in rollicking fashion with Dilshan clearing the fence comfortably in the third over of the innings itself. The next ball though brought his fall. Dilshan could not keep a drive down and Gibbs took a comfortable catch off the bowling of Dale Steyn.

 

Then a procession began as Sri Lanka slipped to 44 for the loss of seven wickets in the 10th over. Nobody apart from Kumar Sangakkara looked comfortable on the wicket. He too though could not read an in-dipper from Johan Botha and got out after making 17 runs off 19 deliveries. In fact, Sangakkara was the only one in the top seven batsman to reach double figures.

 

There was a little partnership of 31 runs between Maharoof (11) and Matthews (28) but till then enough damage had already been done.

 

Sri Lanka with the help of that partnership and a quickfire 24 off 14 deliveries from Kulasekara could muster only 109 for the loss of nine wickets.