Live Score
Cricket Teams
Cricket Players
England taste rare one-day success
After 25 years, England taste its first victory in Sri Lanka, beating them by 65 runs in the 2nd ODI in Dambulla.
Ryan Sidebottom and Stuart Broad shared four big wickets as England ended a 25-year wait with a 65-run win over Sri Lanka in the second one-day international in Dambulla on Thursday.
The pace duo built on man-of-the-match Owais Shah's superb 82 as England dismissed the World Cup runners-up for 169 after posting 234-8 to win their first one-day international in Sri Lanka since 1982.
The victory also helped England level the five-match series 1-1, having lost the first one-dayer by 119 runs at this venue on Monday. The third game will be played in Dambulla on Sunday.
Skipper Paul Collingwood (42 and 2-31) and Graeme Swann (34 and 2-27) also caught the eye with their all-round performances.
"It was very disappointing to lose the first game. The boys showed a lot of character to bounce back. We were fantastic in all departments of the game," said Collingwood.
"Owais played a magnificent innings, to get such a score on a pitch like this and play the shots. It was a good toss to win. We then took early wickets and put them under pressure."
Left-arm paceman Sidebottom (2-23) and Broad (2-42) troubled the Sri Lankan batsmen with pace and movement under lights to reduce the hosts to a paltry 38-4 in the opening 15 overs.
The hosts could not recover from these blows despite defiant knocks from Jehan Mubarak (44 not out), Tillakaratne Dilshan (29), skipper Mahela Jayawardene (23) and last-man Dilhara Fernando (20).
