Australian captain Pat Cummins has snared the first breakthrough of Monday’s crucial World Cup clash against Sri Lanka in Lucknow.
The right-armer produced a bouncer that Sri Lankan opener Pathum Nissanka top-edged towards deep mid-wicket, where David Warner held onto a smart catch.
Sri Lanka is currently 1-154 in the 26th over, with Kusal Mendis (5*) and Kusal Perera (76*) unbeaten in the middle.
MATCH CENTRE: Australia vs Sri Lanka, World Cup scorecard
Earlier in the opening over Mitchell Starc hooped a full inswinger into Nissanka, with the right-handed opener just getting his bat down in time. Believing the ball scraped his bat first, the Australians called for a review, only for replays to show Nissanka had smacked it.
Later in the same over, Starc gave Perera a warning for leaving his crease at the non-striker’s end too early.
Starc’s ‘Mankad’ warning for Perera | 00:29
Disaster struck in the ninth over when Glenn Maxwell trapped Perera on the pads, but umpire Joel Wilson ignored his desperate appeals for LBW. Cummins elected not to call for a review on this occasion, with Hawkeye replays suggesting the ball would have crashed into leg stump.
Sri Lankan captain Kusal Mendis won the toss and elected to bat first in Lucknow. Australia named an unchanged XI after last week’s loss to South Africa.
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Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Australian captain Pat Cummins admitted the five-time champions have “got to start winning and start winning quick” to rescue their faltering World Cup campaign.
Australia have lost both their opening matches, by six wickets to hosts India and 134 runs to South Africa, their heaviest defeat at a World Cup.
Despite boasting the batting firepower of David Warner and Steve Smith, they have yet to post a total of 200.
“We’re obviously 0-2, so we’ve got to start winning and start winning quick,” said Cummins ahead of Monday’s clash against Sri Lanka in Lucknow.
“Every game now becomes almost like a final. You’ve got to win just about all of them.”
Poms in dire straits after EPIC upset | 02:42
The figures so far make for grim reading for Australia.
None of their batsmen have made a half-century with Smith top-scoring with 46 against India and Marnus Labuschagne matching that modest mark in the rout by South Africa.
They have also been hamstrung by their fielding performances. Against India, Virat Kohli was dropped on 12 before he went on to make a match-winning 85.
Had the catch been taken, India, chasing just 200 to win, would have been teetering at 20-4.
It got worse against South Africa where five chances went down. Needing 312 to win, Australia slumped to 70-6 and were reduced to a damage limitation exercise in an effort to shore up their run rate.
Australian XI
David Warner, Mitch Marsh, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Mitch Starc, Pat Cummins (c), Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa
Sri Lanka XI
Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Perera, Kusal Mendis (c, wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Chamika Karunaratne, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Lahiru Kumara, Dilshan Madushanka
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