Sri Lanka hold the semis spot with nine wicket win over West Indies

Sri Lanka hold to qualify for the World Twenty20 semifinals after thrash West Indies by nine wickets in ICC World Twenty20 2012 in Pallekele on Saturday.

Sri Lanka advance with Super Over win and have healthy run rate to take defending champions England on Monday. West Indies need to beat New Zealand on the same day.

Skipper Mahela Jayawardene made unbeaten 65 off 49 balls helped Sri Lanka to reached their target 130 for 1 in 15.2 overs. Sri Lanka restricted West Indies in 129 for 4 in 20 overs. Ajantha Mendis take 2 wickets for 12 runs.

Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara (39) added 108 run unbeaten partnership for the 2nd Wicket. Ravi Rampaul take Tilakratne Dilshan wicket on 13.

Marlan Samuels top scorer for West Indies with 50 runs and Dwayne Bravo 40 . Chris Gayle got out for earlier in the West Indies batting. Mahela Jayawardene awarded as Player of the Match.

Kumar Sangakkara sweeps three major awards

Colombo: Former Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara walked away with three awards at the ICC Awards ceremony 2012. He bagged the LG People's Choice Award, ICC Test Cricketer of the Year Award and the ICC Cricketer of the Year Award.

Sangakkara won the LG People's Choice, which was introduced in 2010, for the second year in a row. This award is chosen by cricket fans around the world who vote for their favourite player. Other contenders for the award this year were Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis, James Anderson and Vernon Philander.

For the ICC Test Cricketer of the Year Award, Hashim Amla, Vernon Philander and Australia captain Michael Clarke were Sangakkara's competitors but he pipped them to the post. During the performance period, 4 August 2011 and 6 August 2012, he played 14 Tests and in 27 innings and rattled up 1,444 runs at an average of 60.16, including five centuries and five half-centuries. His highest score of 211 came against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi in October 2011, while he also scored 199 not out against the same side on home soil in Galle.

SL thrash Australia in 2nd CB series final

Adelaide: Tillakaratne Dilshan led the way with an impressive century as Sri Lanka humbled Australia in an eight-wicket win on Tuesday to force the Tri-series into a third and deciding final.

Dilshan shared a 179-run opening stand with skipper Mahela Jayawardene (80) and a 55-run second-wicket partnership with Kumar Sangakkara before he was caught in the outfield off Brett Lee's bowling in the 38th over, with the Sri Lankans needing only 38 runs for victory.

Sangakkara finished unbeaten on 51 when he hit the winning boundary with almost six overs to spare.

Australia posted 271-6 after winning the toss and batting, with David Warner scoring 100 and Michael Clarke belting 117 from 91 balls before Lasith Malinga took three late wickets to give Sri Lanka some momentum.

It was Warner's second century in three days, following his 163 in Australia's 15-run win in the first final on Sunday, but it was uncharacteristic — coming off 140 balls and containing only a sprinkling of boundaries.

Clarke dominated the 184-run third-wicket partnership with Warner, stroking five boundaries and four sixes as he tried to lift the sluggish runrate, but also injured his left hamstring and is in doubt for the third final at Adelaide Oval on Thursday.

"We didn't score enough runs, our fielding was poor again tonight and our bowling let us down," Clarke said. "On a very good batting wicket, against a good and strong batting opposition, you need to make 300 on that wicket."

The Sri Lankans also had problems in the field, dropping five catches, but bowled with more discipline than the Australians after opening with offspinner Dilshan in a surprising move by Jayawardene. Malinga's bowling in the end, when Australia could only muster 35 runs in the last five overs, was critical to Sri Lanka leveling the series.

Australia had been in command of the first final, having Sri Lanka struggling at 144-6 chasing 322 for victory in Brisbane on Sunday, but slumped in the last 20 overs against an onslaught from the lower-order batsmen and only ended up winning by 15 runs in the last over.

Defending a low total on Tuesday, the Australian bowlers again struggled, conceding 30 runs in the first three overs including 11 sundries. The Sri Lankan batsmen took their cue from there, and kept the runrate up throughout the innings.

"We bowled really well up front, kept them to a reasonable total. With the bat, we had a very positive start, said Jayawardene, who was sanctioned by the match referee for arguing a no-ball call by the umpires during the Australian innings.

The Sri Lankans have won four of their last five matches against Australia and overcame two early losses in the tournament to edge World Cup champion India for a place in the final.

Jayawardene said his team, runnersup at the 2011 World Cup, had proved its critics wrong.

"No one gave us any chance when we came to Australia," he said. "As long as we're confident about our game, and play the way we've been playing the last couple of weeks, we've got a very good chance."

Sri Lanka thrash Australia by 8 wickets for first win

Sydney: Mahela Jayawardene smashed an unbeaten half-century to lead Sri Lanka to a commanding eight-wicket win over Australia and back into limited-overs tri-series finals contention on Friday.

Australia were bowled out for just 158, their lowest ODI total at the Sydney Cricket Ground since 1997, after the match was reduced to 41-over innings due to a two-hour rain interruption.

Faced with an amended victory target of 152 after adjustments made under the Duckworth-Lewis Method, the Sri Lankans wasted no time in aggressively chasing down their first win of the tri-series.

Jayawardene carried his bat for 61 not out off 67 balls as the Sri Lankans reached the winning total in just the 25th over.

"We needed a start," Jayawardene said. "I have done opening before, and thankfully it worked today. We knew we had to win today."

India lead the series by a point from Australia, while Sri Lanka, with a bonus point, are only two behind the host side.

Jayawardene and Tillakaratne Dilshan shared an almost run-a-ball 74-run opening partnership as the Australia bowlers failed to make an impression.

Dilshan made 45 off 41 balls before Clint McKay (1-23) finally make a breakthrough when he had the opener caught at slip by David Hussey in the 12th over.

Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara then shared 59 runs until Sangakkara was caught by Xavier Doherty at mid-on off Brett Lee (1-42), leaving Sri Lanka requiring 21 runs with 20 overs remaining. Sangakkara had 30 off 29 balls, and became the 10th man to pass 10,000 ODI runs, and the third Sri Lankan.

David Hussey's aggressive 58 off 64 balls was the sole highlight for Australia's innings as the hosts were dismissed two balls short of their 41 overs.

Man of the Match Thisera Perera returned figures of 2-29, as well as being responsible for a run-out. Farveez Maharoof had 2-18 and took the important catch of opener David Warner.

"The pitch didn't have the sort of pace we thought it had, and their bowlers capitalized," stand-in captain Ricky Ponting said. "Full credit to Sri Lanka, they bowled and fielded really well, and played their shots in the chase."

Hussey shared a 49-run, ninth-wicket partnership with tailender Mitchell Starc (17) which saved Australia from total capitulation.

Warner made just 13 before being caught by Maharoof off Lasith Malinga (1-42) and Ponting faced just 10 balls before being caught and bowled by Maharoof for 2.

Wade was run out on 15 in the next over thanks to some athletic fielding from Perera at short-cover.

Michael Hussey was caught behind off Angelo Mathews (1-26) for 13, before Maharoof claimed his second wicket when he had Peter Forrest caught by Mathews for 16.

Perera trapped Dan Christian lbw for 6 to leave Australia at 81-6 when rain interrupted play.

Clint McKay faced just eight balls after the resumption of play before he was out lbw to Rangana Herath (1-12) for 3 and Brett Lee failed to score before he was run out.

Australia meet India on Sunday in Brisbane.

Sri Lanka beat South Africa in thrilling finish

Johannesburg: Sri Lanka tailender Sachithra Senanayake smashed a six on the second-last ball for his team to chase down South Africa's total of 312-4 and win by two wickets in the fifth and final one-day international.

Playing in just his second ODI and facing his second delivery on Sunday, Senanayake struck spinner Robin Peterson over midwicket as Sri Lanka lost the series 3-2 but became the first team to score 300 or more to win successive one-dayers since 2007.

AB de Villiers' 125 not out and Graeme Smith's 125 had earlier put South Africa in control at New Wanderers Stadium, adding 186 in 28 overs for for the third wicket. It was Smith's first ODI hundred since September 2009 to ease the pressure after calls for him to be dropped.

But Kumar Sangakkara (102) and Lahiru Thirimanne (69) put on 100 to get Sri Lanka back into the game before falling late on.

"Graeme and AB batted beautifully and almost put it beyond us, but our openers started brilliantly," Sangakkara said. "Thirimanne also came in and performed. Credit goes to those three guys. Senanayake hitting the winning runs with a six was the icing on the cake."

Sri Lanka's run chase started unusually with Upul Tharanga rather than Tillakaratne Dilshan playing the attacking role. He was unbeaten on 34 out of Sri Lanka's 57-0 when rain came in the eighth over.

No overs were lost despite a break of around an hour, and Tharanga continued where he left off before being removed for 46 by a sensational catch when JP Duminy turned and ran toward the boundary fence and held a diving effort.

Sri Lanka were reduced to 175-3 when Dilshan was caught behind for 41 from a rising delivery from Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Dinesh Chandimal followed soon after in similar fashion for 20 off Wayne Parnell's bowling.

But that brought Thirimanne and Sangakkara together and they were rarely troubled. Sangakkara brought up his century off 96 balls by glancing Albie Morkel for four, but he holed out to Duminy two deliveries later.

Thirimanne reached his first ODI half-century moments later but Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera and Nuwan Kulasekara came and went without offering support as the game turned in South Africa's favor.

When Thirimanne fell off the third ball of the last over, Peterson's second wicket in three deliveries, it seemed to be all over. But that all changed following Senanayake's heroics off the penultimate ball.

In South Africa's innings, Smith and De Villiers came together after Alviro Petersen and Francois du Plessis fell cheaply and accumulated steadily before changing their approach.

Having played the anchor role in reaching his century off 129 balls, Smith then hit two sixes off one over from Senanayake.

Smith picked out the leaping Chandimal at mid-wicket off Lasith Malinga, but De Villiers passed 100 with a huge six, then manufactured a couple more to take his side past 300.

3rd Test: SA close in on series win

Cape Town: South Africa closed in on a long-awaited first home series win since 2008 as it reduced Sri Lanka to 138-4 in its second innings in the decisive third Test at Newlands on Thursday, still more than 200 behind.

Returning from injury, seamer Vernon Philander took four wickets on day three as South Africa rolled Sri Lanka out for 239 in its first innings and then made telling inroads in the second after forcing the tourists to follow on.

With two days to play, Sri Lanka still needed 203 just to make South Africa bat again after the Proteas' daunting first innings total of 580-4 declared. Its best batsmen — Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene — had all been dismissed twice.

Philander had 3-46 and 1-24 but South Africa's bowlers all contributed to their 12 wickets in the day to leave Sri Lanka with little hope of saving the Test and the series, which is level at 1-1.

Fast bowler Dale Steyn returned 3-56 in the first innings and began South Africa's productive day with a wicket in the first over.

Morne Morkel and legspinner Imran Tahir had three wickets each and Jacques Kallis broke a 67-run partnership between Sangakkara and Lahiru Thirimanne early in Sri Lanka's second innings to keep South Africa on top in a Test the home team has dominated from the start.

Sri Lanka looked almost certain to slide away to a fourth series defeat in four tours to the country — despite a historic win in Durban in the second Test — while South Africa neared a first series success at home since beating Bangladesh over three years ago in sight.

With Sri Lanka solid overnight on 149-2 in its first innings, Sangakkara flashed a wide Steyn delivery straight to point off the third ball of the third day to begin a surprising slump where the tourists lost 8-90 in 34.5 overs on a pitch that was still expected to favor batsmen. Sri Lanka surrendered a first-innings deficit of 341.

Philander continued South Africa's momentum with the early wicket of captain Dilshan for 5 in the second innings and, despite the stubborn stand between Sangakkara and Thirimanne, South Africa also managed to dismiss leading batsmen Sangakkara (35 and 34) and Jayawardene (30 and 12) twice in the day.

Angelo Mathews was 28 not out with three fours and Thilan Samaraweera unbeaten on 19 at stumps in an unbroken 40 run partnership that appeared to only delay South Africa's march to victory.

Dilshan made 78 in Sri Lanka's first effort in the only half-century so far by a visiting batsman in the match, but he was already out late on Wednesday when Steyn and Philander ran through the tourists on day three.

Bustling right-arm fast bowler Philander continued his impressive start to Test cricket — after missing the defeat in Durban with a left knee injury — by taking his tally to 28 wickets halfway through his fourth Test.

Top-ranked Test bowler Steyn removed top-ranked batsman Sangakkara as well as Jayawardene and Mathews in the first innings as South Africa's attack put to bed thoughts that a flat Newlands pitch might see them struggle to take 20 wickets to win the Test.

Legspinner Tahir also capitalized on turn and unpredictable bounce to bowl Thisara Perera with a big-turning legspinner in his 2-54 in the first innings.

He worked out Sangakkara in the second with a googly that took the edge of the left-hander's bat and fell to Kallis at slip.

In between, home favorite Kallis — whose career-best 224 dominated South Africa's first innings score — produced enough bounce off the pitch to have Thirimanne out to a bat-pad catch by Hashim Amla that ended solid resistance from the left-handed opener and broke Sri Lanka's only meaningful partnership of the day.