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Jansen headlines 19-wicket Day 2 to put South Africa in command

Published

2 years ago

2024/11/28

Priyan

It took South Africa only 83 balls to bowl Sri Lanka out for 42 – their lowest-ever Test score – as Marco Jansen bagged stunning figures of 7/13. It paved the way for South Africa to end with an overall lead of 281 on a day where 19 wickets fell in total.

The seaming track in Durban proved to be a nightmare and Sri Lanka had no answers as batter after batter either nicked off or were bowled with none looking secure in defence. While Kagiso Rabada started the carnage having Dimuth Karunaratne nicking to first slip, Jansen proved to be the wrecker-in-chief. He had Pathum Nissanka pushing out at a delivery angled across and edging while Dinesh Chandimal was cleaned up with a delivery that seamed in. Angelo Mathews and Dhananjaya de Silva were dismissed trying to force the pace while the tail was left as clueless as the top-order. In between Gerald Coetzee chipped in with the dismissals of Kamindu and Kusal Mendis leaving Sri Lanka in complete disarray.

As they were bowled out for the lowest total against South Africa, Jansen’s 41-ball spell had yielded the third-best figures by a South African pacer at home. The lead of 149 was the highest for South Africa in games where they had been bowled out for less than 200. On a low-scoring, bowler-friendly surface the lead was monumental. Only a while before that, as they scraped their way to 191 on the back of Temba Bavuma’s 70, South Africa were firmly in the backseat.

While more than two sessions were washed out on the opening day, the second day saw Sri Lanka continue to trouble South Africa under bright sunshine. Their pacers had skittled through the top-order under cloudy conditions on the first day, and it continued even when the sun was out. There was enough on the pitch to keep pacers Lahiru Kumara and Vishwa Fernando in their opening spells.

The former added to this two wickets on the first day by trapping Kyle Verreynne plumb in front early on the second day. Kumara also struck Wiaan Mulder on the glove soon after and forced him off the field, which was later revealed to be a fractured finger.

Now reduced to 85/6 effectively in Mulder’s absence, South Africa were in dire need of a partnership and someone to give company to the resolute Temba Bavuma. The skipper found his man in Marco Jansen for a while as the duo held fort with a heavy focus on defence. But Sri Lanka responded to this with the introduction of spin in the form of Prabath Jayasuriya. the tall left-arm spinner attacked the stumps consistently and it paid dividends when he eventually beat Jansen’s defence to catch him plumb in front. South Africa’s review too went in vain and even as Bavuma neared a half-century, he lost another partner.

Gerald Coetzee did not show the defensive temperament that Jansen had showed and an attempted big hit against Jayasuriya was miscued to deepmidwicket where Kamindu Mendis took a good low catch diving forward. But Keshav Maharaj, who came in next, took some pressure off Bavuma by lofting Jayasuriya down the ground twice and then hitting him inside out over cover to gather some useful boundaries. Bavuma, who had been stuck on 49 through this period, trickled over to a hard-fought fifty, his 22nd in Tests.

But just as Maharaj was looking comfortable, Sri Lanka changed the plan around and attacked him with pace from both ends. That move worked wonders as soon enough Maharaj chipped Vishwa Fernando to mid off leaving South Africa precariously poised. Bavuma went on the offensive soon after driving Kumara through cover and straight down the ground and even upper-cutting him for a six. Mulder had been deemed available if necessary, and he was required to bat as Bavuma eventually skied a big hit off Asitha Fernando to be dismissed for 70. Mulder hung in as the last wicket pair added 26 before Rabada pulled one down to fine leg, as South Africa finished with 191.

But after getting the big lead, their second innings progressed on a stronger note. Markram started off confidently, and added 47 for the opening stand with De Zorzi. But Jayasuriya ended the stand having De Zorzi caught at deepmidwicket to bag his 100th Test wicket. The injured Mulder made a surprise appearance at No. 3 and added 30 with Markram before the latter was cleaned up from the round-the-wicket angle by Vishwa Fernando three short of a half-century. Mulder himself didn’t last too long thereafter being trapped in the front by Jayasuriya. However, Bavuma and Stubbs dug in to extend the lead to 281 by Stumps on an eventful second day.

Brief Scores:
South Africa 191 (Temba Bavuma 70; Asitha Fernando 3-44, Lahiru Kumara 3-70) & 132/3 (Aiden Markram 47, Temba Bavuma 24*; Prabath Jayasuriya 2-48) lead Sri Lanka 42 (Kamindu Mendis 13; Marco Jansen 7-13) by 281 runs.

[Cricbuzz]

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New Court of Appeal Judge Sajeewani Dilka Lakmali Sworn In

Published

4 hours ago

2026/09/3

Priyan

Ms Sajeewani Dilka Lakmali Karunannayake was sworn in as a Judge of the Court of Appeal before President Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the Presidential Secretariat this afternoon (03).

She previously served as an Additional Solicitor General at the Attorney General’s Department.

The appointment has been made to fill a vacancy on the Court of Appeal.

Secretary to the President Dr Nandika Sanath Kumanayake was also present on the occasion.

(President’s Media Division)

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Sun directly overhead Madampe, Thorayaya, Thotagamuwa, Rattota and Kalavanchikudy about 12.09 noon today (03)

Published

16 hours ago

2026/09/3

Priyan

The sun is going to be directly over the latitudes of Sri Lanka from 28th of August to 07th of September due to its apparent southward relative motion.

The nearest places of Sri Lanka over which the sun is overhead today (03) are Madampe, Thorayaya, Thotagamuwa, Rattota and
Kalavanchikudy about 12.09 noon.

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Nilakshika fifty, Athapaththu seven-for rescue Sri Lanka against Indonesia

Published

22 hours ago

2026/09/3

Priyan

Chamari Athapaththu (3.3-0-5-7) produced the fifth-best figures in women's T20Is [ACC]

A Chamari Athapaththu seven-wicket haul and Nilakshika Silva’s 50 off 35 saw defending champions Sri Lanka withstand a valiant Indonesian side to register a resounding 75-run victory in their Asia Cup match in Dubai.

Athapaththu was undoubtedly the pick of the bowlers, as she started and finished Indonesia’s slide with career best figures of 7 for 05, inclusive of a hat-trick – nearly two in fact. Chasing a target of 125, the opening pair of Maria Corazon and Rahmawati Pangestuti struck 16 runs in the first two overs, but once spin came into play scoring slowed down to a trickle and Indonesia were eventually bowled out for 49 in the 19th over.

Sri Lanka, too, had found it tough to combat Indonesia’s mix of spin and slow-medium seamers as they stumbled to 62 for 6 in the 13th over, but their innings received a timely boost as Nilakshika countered with a trademark back-against-the-wall effort to drag her side to a total that seemed about par on a pretty sluggish surface. In the end it proved to be plenty.

Sri Lanka struggle early on

Having been put in to bat on a fresh surface, Sri Lanka were perhaps guilty of a little complacency against their less-fancied opponents. Time and again the top order sought to find the boundary, and time and again they failed to find their timing.

On a wicket where the ball was hardly coming on, the Sri Lankan batters’ tunnel vision focused squarely on boundary hitting and eschewed strike rotation; there were 19 dot balls in a powerplay that had fetched 31 runs for the loss of two wickets.

By the halfway point of the innings, the dot count had risen to 28. The scorecard, meanwhile, read 47 for 5. Indonesia, to their credit, did well to bowl to their fields and frustrate the Lankan batters.

Sanjana Kavindi got to double-digits with a pair of nicely struck boundaries, but she was the only one of Sri Lanka’s top five to do so – and she was eventually done in on 15 missing an attempted cut on a straight one.

Nilakshika brings the Silva-lining

With recognised batting fast running out, Sri Lanka needed someone to take control of the innings, and as she has done so often over recent years it was Nilakshika that stood up to be counted.

She first strung together 17 off 18 with Kaushini Nuthyangana, but when Nuthyangana fell Nilakshika produced a masterclass in batting with the tail. She cajoled Kawya Kavindi to keep rotating the strike, and when the opportunity arose she was unerring in finding the boundaries – including Sri Lanka’s first and only six of the innings in the penultimate over.

Their seventh-wicket partnership eventually ended on 50 off 36, reached simultaneously alongside side Nilakshika’s fifty – her third in T20Is – but by then she had already ushered her side to safety.

Athapaththu steals the show

In Chethana Vimukthi, Sri Lanka might have their first ever genuine fast bowler but on a wicket where the ball was not quite coming on, pace never seemed like the answer. For the first two overs of the chase, Indonesia’s openers did well to find boundaries against Vimukthi and and fellow seamer Kawya, but then Sri Lanka introduced their spinners.

Athapaththu promptly castled Pangestuti before removing Corazon and Rada Rani off consecutive deliveries in her next over. Here she missed her hat-trick by a whisker, a yorker narrowly missing Desi Wulandari’s off stump.

She brought herself back into the attack in the 14th and removed Nanda Sakarini, and she capped things off by achieving her hat-trick at the second time of asking, taking three wickets off what proved to be the final three deliveries of the innings.

Scores:
Sri Lanka Women 124 for 7 in 20 overs (Sanjana Kavindi 15, Nilakshika Silva 50, Kawya Kavindi 15*; Ni Ariani 1-23, Sang Maypriani 2-15, Ni Luh Dewi 3-32, Sofia Velic 1-21) beat Indonesia Women 49 all out in 18.3 overs (Rahmawati Pangestudi 10, Ni Made Putri Suwandevi 12; Kavya Kavindi 1-14, Sugandika Kumari 1-03, Chamari Athapaththu 7-05, Kavisha Dilhari 1-02) by 75 runs

[Cricinfo]