Dasun Shanaka remained unbeaten on 54 off just 25 balls as he played a captain’s knock to take Sri Lanka to a four-wicket win against Australia in the third T20I in Pallekele.
It was one of the most dramatic finishes to a T20I in recent history during the third and final match of the series between Sri Lanka and Australia. Chasing a 177-run target, Sri Lanka were 118/6 at the end of the 17th over, requiring another 59 runs to win in merely 18 balls. However, Dasun Shanaka, then, played a captain’s knock as he slammed Josh Hazlewood for 21 runs in the next over, slammed three more boundaries in Jhye Richardson’s penultimate over of the innings, and hit 4, 4, 6 off three successive deliveries against Kane before a wide eventually handed Sri Lanka a thrilling victory in the game.
Shanaka remained unbeaten on 54 off just 25 deliveries, slamming five fours and four sixes in his match-winning innings. Chamika Karunaratne, his partner and no.8 in the Sri Lankan batting order, also made a key contribution as he remained unbeaten on 14 off 10 balls, hitting two important boundaries.
Sri Lanka had already conceded a series loss in T20Is, losing the first two games of the three-match series; however, the comeback victory in the final game will provide the home team with a much-needed momentum when they take on the Aussies in the five-match ODI series, starting from June 14.
The first two matches will take place in Pallekele, and the teams will then move to Colombo for the remaining three.
