Sri Lanka vs Australia: Marks out of 10 for David Warner and co
SL vs AUS: Marks out of 10 for David Warner and co
Australia who went down in the Test series by 0-3 had lots to worry about as they went into the five-One-Day Internationals (ODI) series. But to no one’s surprise they came up victorious in thumping manner as they clinched the ODI series by a 4-1 margin. Having taken a sweet revenge with a win in the ODI series, expectation and momentum was riding high for the Australians before they took on the field for two-Twenty20 International (T20I) series and came out victorious too. Full Cricket Scorecard: Sri Lanka vs Australia 2nd T20I at Colombo
Sri Lanka, on the other hand, had fair chance to gain momentum after losing the ODI series but the story remained the same for them. Rohan Sawant evaluates Australian players’ unprecedented comeback in the shorter formats after the drubbing they received in Tests. ALSO READ: Dilshan congratulated by ICC
David Warner: 7 out of 10 – Warner captained Australia after Steven Smith was given rest in the middle of ODI series given Australia’s busy schedule going ahead. There were apprehensions on Warner’s credentials as a leader having no experience in leading his national side before. Warner came in as a perfect replacement for Smith as he led his side to a thumping series win in shorter formats. Warner scored 28 and 25 runs respectively in two innings as he opened alongside Glenn Maxwell Warner took responsibility and gave full freedom to Maxwell to unleash big shots whereas he himself was happy rotating the strike. READ: David Warner hails Glenn Maxwell’s comeback for Australia
However, Warner had the chances to convert his innings into a big score but could not. Nonetheless, he was up to the mark with bowling changes, field placements and they way he lifted the team’s responsibility on his shoulders. ALSO READ: Sri Lanka vs Australia, 2nd T20I Highlights: Tillakaratne Dilshan denied fitting farewell as visitors whitewash series
Glenn Maxwell: 9.5 out of 10 – Maxwell had a dream comeback in the team as he finished the T20I series with 211 runs with a staggering strike rate of 224.47. The last time he played for Australia was back in June against West Indies. Due to his inconsistent form, he was kept out but his impressive performance for Australia A earned him a place into the national side. With opener Aaron Finch getting injured in the final ODI, Maxwell opened the innings along with Warner. His unbeaten 145 off 65 balls set the platform for Australia to clinch the T20I series. Maxwell was not done yet as he inflicted more pain on the hosts with a quickfire 66 off 29 balls. In the 2nd T20I. He certainly deserves all the appreciation for his hard work and entertaining the viewers throughout the series.
Usman Khawaja: 5 out of 10 – Khawaja had a horrid ODI tournament. His batting woes against Sri Lanka’s spinners gave him a tough time as he looked clueless. Khawaja, who played in both the T20I matches, did not have good time here as well. Khawaja has had issues against spin and did not impress much in the shortest format as well. He looked confident in the first match as Sri Lankan bowlers were being hammered all round the park. Khawaja made a vital 36 off 22 balls to help Australia getting to the highest T20I score but failed in the second outing. Khawaja came to bat in a tricky situation in the final match as the ball started spinning and Sri Lanka were looking for a comeback. He failed to stand tall and succumbed for 6 runs off 15 balls.
Travis Head: 8 out of 10 – Head showed that he was learning to play against spin as the tour progressed. Head contributed with vital cameos in the ODIs and bailed his team out more than once. He looked in shape in the T20Is as well. Head made 45 off just 18 balls in the first T20I and finished the innings in the second T20I when every other batsmen were getting out cheaply. He has shown impeccable talent on this Sri Lankan tour and was made it clear that he is a quick learner which will be fruitful for Australia going ahead.
James Faulkner: 7 out of 10 – Faulkner had a good T20I series as he claimed four wickets in two matches. Faulkner was the leading wicket-taker in the series alongside Adam Zampa and Mitchell Starc. Faulkner went for 38 runs in four overs in the first match with only one wicket but bounced back well in the second T20I where he ended with the figures of 4-0-19-3. However, he failed with the bat scoring just one run in the only innings he played.
Moises Henriques: 4 out of 10 – Henriques could not show his batting skills in the second T20I as he made only 1 run. He was promoted up the order at No. 3 but failed miserably. Henriques did not have a good time with the ball as well. Henriques was leaking runs in both matches and never looked in control of his bowling. Out of the total five overs that he bowled, he went for 45 runs with just one wicket. He certainly has that caliber but unfortunately he was not on the brighter side in Sri Lanka.
Mitchell Starc: 8 out of 10 – Starc was the most consistent player for Australia throughout Sri Lanka tour. He led the Australian bowling attack and was spot-on in Tests as well as in ODIs. Starc continued with his ominous form in T20Is as well as he finished with four wickets. He has been consistently bowling in accurate line and lengths and posed problems to the opponents throughout the course of the tour. With such consistent bowling effort, Starc proved menacing as Sri Lanka never breathed easy with him bowling at the other end.
Adam Zampa: 8.5 out of 10 – Zampa was the find for Australia in this tour. Zampa, at such a young age, knows how to get rid of batsmen in quick fashion. Zampa was sharp with the ball and exhibited good knowledge of how to deceive the batsmen in flight. Zampa was in good form in the ODIs and maintained the same run in the T20Is as well. He bagged 4 wickets and proved to be very economical thereby showing that he can not only contain the flow of runs but also chip in with few wickets in crucial times.
John Hastings: 7 out of 10 – Hastings is in rich form and continued to make progress. He maintained his growing reputation in the shortest format too. Even though he played only one match, he was sharp and clever as he ended with figures of 4-0-23-2 in the second T20I. Hastings did not give more than 6 runs per over and took two important wickets including one of retiring opener, Tillakaratne Dilshan.
Scott Boland: 7 out of 10 – Just like Hastings, Boland also played a single match and was impressive as well. Boland picked up three wickets in four overs while giving out just 26 runs. Sri Lanka was following a target of 264 in the first match and it was obvious that they had no option but to go after the Australian bowling. Knowing he was up against a batting line-up raring to go at him, Boland bowled well and remained economical bagging three important wickets.
Peter Nevill and Matthew Wade: 4 out of 10– Wade played a handful knock of 14 off 23 deliveries in the only chance he got but could not make it big as he lost his wicket against spinners . Nevill, on the other hand, just faced a single delivery in the second match and scored 3 runs off it. It would be unfair to rate these two wicketkeeper-batsmen as they did not get much to prove themselves but were at par.
(Rohan A. Sawant is reporter for CricketCountry. He loves Football, Cricket and is a die-hard Arsenal fan. He is an avid writer and has some knowledge about cricket and so he is trying his best to pour with his Laptop as he find writing with pen and paper very clumsy. You can follow him on Twitter @iswandering)