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ODI world cup 2023 Cricket

'Finally thoda maza ane wala hai' - Fans react as Sri Lanka register first win of 2023 ODI World Cup, beat Netherlands by 5 wickets

It was Sadeera Samarawickrama's unbeaten 91 that guided Sri Lanka to victory over the Netherlands on Saturday.

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Mathew K
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Sri Lanka vs Netherlands (Source: Twitter)

Sri Lanka vs Netherlands (Source: Twitter)

Sri Lanka finally opened their account in the 2023 World Cup with a five-wicket win over the Netherlands on Saturday, October 21. No back-to-back upsets from Afghanistan or the Netherlands. However, the Dutch side will be proud of their fighting display throughout the match at the  Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.

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Electing to bat first, the Netherlands had a horror start as Lankan pacer Kasun Rajitha removed three of their top batters. Opener Vikramjit Singh was the first one to depart in the fourth over. Max ODowd and Colin Ackermann then tried to build a partnership but Rajith struck in quick succession to put Sri Lanka in the driver's seat early on. 

There were no heroics today from their skipper Scott Edwards and their middle order also struggled to find runs. The team were reeling at 91/6 in 21.2 overs, but Sybrand Engelbrecht and Logan van Beek stitched a record partnership for the seventh wicket to bring them back on track. The duo added 130-plus runs before Dilshan Madhushanka broke the dangerous stand in the 46th over with the wicket of Engelbrecht.

Sadeera Samarawickrama - the one-man army for Sri Lanka 

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Chasing a target of 264, Sri Lanka did not get off to a strong start as they lost two Kushal's wickets in the powerplay. Kusal Mendis, after taking the captaincy role, once again failed to shine with the bat. Sadeera Samarawickrama walked into bat in a pressure situation and the dismissal of Pathum Nissanka (54 off 52) made it even worse.  

However, Samarawickrama and Charith Asalanka steadied the ship for Sri Lanka with a 77-run partnership. Aryan Dutt, who was impressive with three wickets, broke the partnership but Samarawickrama continued his sensible innings at one end. Dhananjaya de Silva (30 off 37) then gave solid support at the other end. Undoubtedly, it was Samarawickrama's unbeaten 91 that led Sri Lanka to their maiden victory.

Speaking after the match, Player of the Match Sadeera Samarawickrama said: "Really happy to finish the game for my team. We needed a win, we haven't done well in the last 3 games, so I really wanted to win a game for my team and I am really happy. When I went to bat the wicket was not easy, the ball was spinning and the pacers were bowling good line and lengths, my plan was to bat deep and play maximum overs, I did my basics right and hence succeeded. I knew it would be hard in the later part because the wicket was turning and gripping, my plan for others was also to bat deep and told them we can't chase this total in 40 overs. Today it was hard (to bat) against the spinners, the wicket was slow and the ball was gripping."

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Here's how fans reacted to Sri Lanka's win over Netherlands: 

 

 

 

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