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Persistent rain in Pallekele brought to an untimely end the final One-day International between Sri Lanka and New Zealand, with the match officially abandoned after just 21 overs. Despite a promising start, the weather meant the game would not proceed further, and Sri Lanka, who had already secured victories in the first two matches, claimed the series 2-0.
This marks Sri Lanka`s fifth ODI series win of the year, adding another impressive achievement to their 2024 campaign.
The game began with anticipation as the fresh pitch at Pallekele was expected to favour the batters, offering a contrast to the slower, more sluggish surfaces that had characterised the first two encounters of the series.
New Zealand won the toss and opted to bat first, a decision that initially appeared to pay off as they got off to their best start of the series. In the first 10 overs, New Zealand were ticking along at a rate of just under six runs per over, without taking too many risks.
However, a significant portion of those runs came from the wayward bowling of Dilshan Madushanka, whose two overs conceded 23 runs. It was an unfortunate day for the left-arm seamer, who had been one of the standout performers during Sri Lanka’s World Cup campaign the previous year.
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Madushanka, who had been one of the most highly regarded seamers in world cricket 12 months ago, struggled to maintain consistency, with sloppy fielding adding to his woes. Of the first five boundaries of the New Zealand innings, four had come off Madushanka`s bowling, and he was soon removed from the attack.
At the other end, Sri Lanka managed to keep things more tightly controlled. Seamer Mohamed Shiraz, playing just his second ODI and his first of the series, bowled a commendable spell. He made the breakthrough, taking the lone wicket of the innings by removing Tim Robinson.
The wicket was thanks to a fine effort from skipper Charith Asalanka, who leapt high at mid-off to take a well-judged catch off Robinson`s mistimed drive. Shiraz, with his late swing, troubled both Robinson and Will Young, finishing with figures of 1 for 23 from five overs. His performance was marked by an impressive 20 dot balls out of 30 legal deliveries, reflecting his control and accuracy.
Despite the early struggles, New Zealand managed to maintain a steady scoring rate, with Young and Henry Nicholls remaining unbeaten on 56 and 46, respectively. Their partnership had flourished to 88 runs off 106 balls, putting New Zealand in a strong position. They had succeeded in cutting off Sri Lanka`s boundary options, relying on a steady rotation of the strike.
Unfortunately, after just 21 overs, rain halted play, and it became clear that the game would not resume, resulting in the abandonment of the final ODI. This meant that both teams missed an opportunity to test their bench strength ahead of future challenges.
New Zealand had given debuts to seamer Zakary Foulkes, who had impressed during the T20I series, and Adam Milne, who also made his first appearance on the tour. They replaced Nathan Smith and Jacob Duffy in the squad. On the Sri Lankan side, coach Chris Silverwood made five changes to the lineup.
Key players Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Kamindu Mendis, Dunith Wellalage, and Asitha Fernando were all left out of the playing XI. In their place, Sri Lanka brought in Nishan Madushka, Nuwanidu Fernando, Madushanka, and Shiraz, along with a debut for seam-bowling allrounder Chamindu Wickramasinghe. However, Wickramasinghe bowled just two overs, giving away 14 runs in the process.
With no further play possible, Sri Lanka`s 2-0 series win confirmed Sri Lanka’s fifth series win of the year.
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