ICC World Twenty20 semi-final, The Oval:
Sri Lanka 158-5 beat West Indies 101 by 57 runs
Match scorecard
| By Oliver Brett |
Tillakaratne Dilshan's 96 not out and three wickets for Angelo Mathews in West Indies' first over fired Sri Lanka into the World Twenty20 final.
Dilshan faced just 57 balls and hit two sixes and 12 fours to get Sri Lanka to 158-5 in the semi-final at The Oval.
That may not have been enough, but at the end of Mathews' first over, West Indies were in dire straits at 1-3.
Chris Gayle hit a terrific 63 not out off 50 balls, but his team were bowled out for 101 to lose by 57 runs.
In a depressing show for the fans supporting the men from the Caribbean, no other West Indies batsman even made it to double figures.
On the same Oval pitch that had produced a high-scoring women's semi-final earlier in the day, West Indies skipper Gayle elected to field first - a tactic which paid off for England's Charlotte Edwards.
 Dilshan has been the tournament's outstanding batsman |
Sri Lanka made very slow initial progress until Dilshan, the outstanding batsman of the tournament, rolled out a couple of his idiosyncratic scooped paddles for four and six off Jerome Taylor. He then carved Dwayne Bravo for three off-side boundaries.
As the powerplay drew to a close, spin at both ends did not pose a problem for the men in blue and yellow.
And although the veteran Jayasuriya was not timing the ball particularly well, at 10 overs the total had ticked along to 72, and West Indies were still looking for their first wicket.
But Bravo, so often a game-changer for West Indies, produced an over yielding just two runs, and two massive wickets. Jayasuriya was caught attempting a reverse sweep with Kumar Sangakkara was coolly held by Kieron Pollard above his head as he tried to clear the infield.
Sri Lanka were beginning to make a mess of things, and their plight only increased when Mahela Jayawardene - perhaps a shade unfortunately - picked out short fine-leg as he flicked at a half-volley.
Dilshan continued serenely, reaching his fifty from 30 balls, but at 80-3 from 13, it was West Indies who were the dominant team.
The Caribbean men just could not shift that man Dilshan, however, who was hitting the ball square of the wicket with tremendous timing.
 Gayle produced a lone vigil as the Windies batsmen struggled |
He now took consecutive boundaries off Pollard full tosses before hitting three in a row off the suddenly wayward Bravo. The Trinidian all-rounder's third over, the 17th of the innings, was clattered for 18.
The final over, bowled by Gayle, produced 18 more, with Mathews clubbing him for a six and a four. Dilshan needed to hit the last ball for six to hit the first century of the tournament, but only managed two.
On such a good wicket, West Indies should have been confident about the chase, but the unheralded Mathews - a 22-year-old taking his first steps in international cricket - forced them to rapidly adjust their ambitions.
Mathews' second ball was deflected by Xavier Marshall onto his stumps, his fourth came off Lendl Simmons' thigh-pad before hitting timber and his sixth saw Bravo fall in similar circumstances to Marshall.
Mathews completed his four overs, taking 3-16, and in the ninth over Shivnarine Chanderpaul fell lbw to one of those unique deliveries from Ajantha Mendis that embarrass so many top batsmen.
Gayle had got himself in, but like Dilshan before him was running out of partners and West Indies needed 105 from the last 10 overs with four wickets in hand.
With Mendis, Muttiah Muralitharan and Lasith Malinga available to bowl eight of them it was a very tall order indeed.
Murali helped himself to three wickets, and Isuru Udana's slower ball did for Denesh Ramdin - the only batsman in the innings besides Gayle to hit a boundary.
Gayle himself stood firm, clubbing Murali for a magnificent six, but the ninth wicket fell before the 100 had been registered, when Darren Sammy miscued Mendis to point.
It all came to an end when Malinga's yorker skidded into Sulieman Benn's stumps.
Sri Lanka captain Sangakkara was later fined 10% of his match fee for a slow over-rate, with the other players being fined five per cent.
Match referee Alan Hurst ruled that Sangakkara's side were one over short of its target at the end of the Windies innings when allowances were taken into consideration.
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