Malinga makes history with helmet-trick
… but South Africa win by one wicket in thriller
By Vemen Walter at Providence
Guyana Chronicle
March 29, 2007
IT was a historic day at the Guyana National Stadium at Providence, not just with the venue hosting its inaugural international cricket match but when Sri Lanka’s 23-year-old fast bowler Lasith Malinga picked up two wickets, Shaun Pollock and Andrew Hall, with the fifth and sixth balls of his eighth over before dislodging Jacques Kallis and Makhaya Ntini with the first two balls of his ninth over, he became the first player in the international history to grab a helmet-trick.
After being battered in his first spell with the new ball, Malinga, bowling with great pace and accuracy almost pulled off an unlikely victory for his team but his fantastic effort all ended in vain when Robin Peterson, with South Africa needing two to win with the last pair out in the middle, edged the second ball of his last over -- the penultimate of the innings -- to third-man for a boundary that settled the issue.
Malinga ended with figures of four for 54 from 9.2 overs and, in the process, also joined the elite company of Chetan Sharma, Saqlain Mushtaq, Chaminda Vaas and Brett Lee to have taken hat-tricks in World Cup Cricket.
Fast bowler Charl Langeveldt later shared the man-of-the-match award with Malinga, bowling splendidly in bagging five for 39, his best One-day International figures to help dismiss Sri Lanka for 209 in 49.3 of their allotted 50 overs of which South Africa responded with 212 for nine, scraping home with 1.4 overs to spare.
Kallis (86) from 110 balls laced with five fours and Herschelle Gibbs (31), appeared to have it all wrapped up for South Africa at 160 for two, but a double strike from champion off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan in the 33rd over brought Sri Lanka right back into the match.
Muralitharan, who claimed the wicket of Graeme Smith earlier on, stumped by wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara for a stroke-filled (59) that materialised off 65 deliveries, spiced with seven gorgeous fours and an effortless six over long off, off Malinga, had Gibbs caught and bowled before trapping Mark Boucher in front of his stumps.
Obviously inspired by Muralitharan’s success (10-0-34-3) Sri Lanka struck another telling blow when left-arm-spinner Sanath Jayasuriya (1-34) outsmarted Justin Kemp and was smartly stumped by Sangakkara to leave South Africa on 182 for five.
Kallis and Pollock (13) kept the Sri Lanka bowlers at bay for a while in pushing the total within four of the jackpot, but it was then that the Malinga magic started to unfold.
Pollock had his stumps rocked back, Hall caught at cover, Kallis caught behind and Ntini, comprehensively bowled.
Chaminda Vaas, who uprooted the woodwork of opener AB de Villiers (0) with the last ball of the first over, producing a beauty that cut back sharply, was the other wicket-taker with one for 31.
Tillekeratne Dilshan (58) and Russel Arnold (50) notched up half-centuries in Sri Lanka’s total after the men from the sub-continent won the toss and had no hesitation to take first strike on a surface that was making its debut at this level, but apart from being on the slower side, passed its test.
The right-handed Dilshan teamed up with Arnold in the 25th over with Sri Lanka stuttering on 98 for five and proceeded in putting together an important 97-run sixth-wicket stand that dragged their team out of the woods.
Pacemen Ntini snared the early scalp of Upal Tharanga (12) in his second over, the fourth of the day, when the batsman edged a lifting delivery to Kemp at first slip.
Jayasuriya, 26 from 27 balls, threatened to tear the bowling apart, playing a couple of his trademark strokes including two smashing cover-driven fours in Pollock’s third over that raced across the slowest outfield, understandably so because of the rain experienced over the past couple of days until he was snapped up by Kallis at cover, attempting to hit Langeveldt over the infield.
Langeveldt then picked up the wicket of skipper Mahela Jayawardene, who used up 31 deliveries for his 12, skiing a catch to de Villiers at cover before Sangakkara (28) endeavouring a pull, gloved a catch to Boucher off fast bowler Hall (1-33) while Chamara Silva (9) was needlessly run-out.
Silva, with three scores over 50 in as many matches so far in the tournament, steered one to backward point and scampered down for a suicidal single, only to be sent back by Dilshan. But the catlike Gibbs, who ran towards the stumps and then dived full-length to break the stumps, was fast enough to find Silva short.
Dilshan struck four fours in his 76-ball stay at the crease and, alongside the left-handed Arnold, batted enterprisingly in pushing the total to 195 in the 46th over. When Ntini (2-26) came back for a second spell he made the breakthrough as Dilshan, in an effort to up the tempo, slashed at one that peeled off the outer portion of the bat and flew high to Kemp at wide third-man shortly after bringing up his fifty with a savage pull for four in the 44th over, bowled by Kallis.
Arnold, who faced 73 deliveries, two of which were dispatched for fours, followed 13 runs later, top-edging a slug sweep for Boucher to run back and take, giving the 32-year-old Langeveldt his first of three wickets in the 49th over.
Maharoof (5) and Vaas (0) were the other casualties, falling preys in the deep and with Muralitharan (1), being run-out in the last over, Sri Lanka’s last five wickets had tumbled for a mere 14 runs.
Sri Lanka tackle West Indies on Sunday in another vital encounter also at Providence while South Africa’s next assignment is against Ireland on Tuesday at the same venue.
SCOREBOARD
SRI LANKA innings
U. Tharanga c Kemp b Ntini 12
S. Jayasuriya c Kallis b Langeveldt 26
M. Jayawardena c de Villiers b Langeveldt 12
K. Sangakkara c wkp. Boucher b Hall 28
C. Silva run-out 9
T. Dilshan c Kemp b Ntini 58
R. Arnold c wkp. Boucher b Langeveld 50
F. Maharoof c Ntini b Langeveldt 5
C. Vaas c Gibbs b Langeveldt 0
L. Malinga not out 0
M. Muralitharan run-out 1
Extras: (lb-3, nb-1, w-4) 8
Total: (all out, 49.3 overs) 209
Fall of wickets: 1-13, 2-45, 3-65, 4-90, 5-98, 6-195, 7-208, 8-208, 9-208.
Bowling: Pollock 8-0-46-0, Ntini 8-0-26-2, Langeveldt 10-1-39-5 (nb-1), Hall 9.3-33-1 (w-3), Kallis 6-0-24-0, Peterson 5-0-22-0 (w-1), Smith 3-0-16-0.
SOUTH AFRICA innings
G. Smith stp. wkp. Sangakkara b Muralitharan 59
A.B. de Villiers b Vaas 0
J. Kallis c wkp. Sangakkara b Malinga 86
H. Gibbs c & b Muralitharan 31
M. Boucher lbw b Muralitharan 0
J. Kemp stp. Wkp. Sangakkara b Jayasuriya 5
S. Pollock b Malinga 13
A. Hall c Tharanga b Malinga 0
R. Peterson not out 4
M. Ntini b Malinga 0
C. Langeveldt not out 1
Extras: (b-5, lb-4, nb-1, w-3) 13
Total: (for 9 wkts; 48.2 overs 212
Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-95, 3-160, 4-160, 5-182, 6-206, 7-206, 8-207, 9-207.
Bowling: Vaas 10-1-31-1, Malinga 9.2-0-54-4 (nb-1, w-1), Maharoof 7-0-41-0, Muralitharan 10-0-34-3 (w-1), Jayasuriya 10-0-34-1, Dilshan 2-0-9-0.