Key events
WICKET! Sri Lanka 32-4 (Sadeera b Maharaj 0)
Keshav Maharaj is on a hat-trick! Sadeera Samawickrama is bowled first ball, beaten on the inside by a lovely delivery that straightens to hit the stumps. Sri Lanka are in a heap.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 32-3 (Hasaranga st de Kock b Maharaj 0)
This is turning into a rout. The captain Hasaranga tries to make something happen by charging Maharaj, but he slogs all round the ball and is stumped by de Kock.
8th over: Sri Lanka 31-2 (Kusal 14, Hasaranga 0) Nortje had a pretty miserable IPL, but there weren’t many pitches like this in India.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 31-2 (Kamindu c Hendricks b Nortje 11)
Anrich Nortje, the quickest of the South African bowlers, strikes in his first over. He had already beaten Kusal Mendis with three successive deliveries when a pick-up shot from Kamindu Mendis went straight to deep square. South Africa are bullying Sri Lanka, and it’s mightily impressive.
7th over: Sri Lanka 30-1 (Kusal 13, Kamindu 11) Time for left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj. Kamindu reverse sweeps confidently for two, but Kusal continues to struiggle with his timing. Six from the over: four singles and that two.
“I’m getting a feeling of deja vu,” says Vinod Ganesh. “Adelaide 2022, vs Netherlands. Similar pitch. Ned 150+. SA couldn’t chase it.”
6th over: Sri Lanka 24-1 (Kusal 11, Kamindu 7) Kamindu clunks a drive for a single off Baartman. That’s one of a number of mistimed strokes, so maybe the pitch is a bit two-paced. As if I’d know!
Kusal is beaten by successive leg-cutters from the impressive Baartman, then survives a big LBW appeal about pushing around a big off-cutter that would have bounced over the stumps. This feels like a Test match, not a T20. Kusal decides he has to do something and runs down the track to blast Baartman’s final ball over mid-off for a couple. He didn’t really time it, and the fielder was interestef for a while, but he got enough on it.
22 print/web media members in the flashy new media center for the start of play between South Africa and Sri Lanka in Nassau County. They’ve even sent ABC 7 Eyewitness News out pic.twitter.com/KQm75CZbGJ
— Peter Della Penna (@PeterDellaPenna) June 3, 2024
5th over: Sri Lanka 21-1 (Kusal 9, Kamindu 6) The left-handed Kamindu is beaten by an outswinger from Rabada, who has changed ends to replace Jansen, but then he picks up handsomely over square leg for a one-bounce four. That would have been six on most grounds.
It’s important Sri Lanka hold their nerve and don’t push too hard for an unrealistic score. Even something like 130 could be competitive here; we don’t know what it will do for the spinners.
4th over: Sri Lanka 14-1 (Kusal 8, Kamindu 0) Apparently Baartman is the first South African to take a wicket with his first ball at a World Cup, though Allan Donald may beg to differ.
It’s a marvellous first over from Baartman, a wicket-maiden in fact. The only run was a leg-bye.
WICKET! Sri Lanka 13-1 (Nissanka c Klaasen b Baartman 3)
Ottneil Baartman strikes with his first ball at a World Cup! Nissanka slashed a length delivery all the way down to third man, where Heinrich Klaasen crouched to take a simple catch.
3rd over: Sri Lanka 13-0 (Nissanka 3, Kusal 8) Sri Lanka’s openers look slightly wary of the pitch, which is brand new by the way. Kusal fiddles at Jansen and is beaten, then squirts a cover drive for two. A big ground and a slowish outfield aren’t in the batters’ favour, so a par score might be lower than we think.
2nd over: Sri Lanka 9-0 (Nissanka 2, Kusal 6) Kusal Mendis uses the extra bounce to uppercut Rabada’s first ball for four. He’s beaten twice later in the over, one on each side of the bat. This is a strong start from South Africa.
1st over: Sri Lanka 2-0 (Nissanka 1, Kusal 1) The left-armer Marco Jansen makes a really good start, conceding only two runs and beating Nissanka with successive deliveries. The second was a jaffa that burst from a length, and the early signs are that the pitch has plenty for the quick bowlers.
Outside the stadium in Nassau County, they’ve turned the entrances into a militarized zone. Never seen so much security and police for any sporting event in New York metro area. Get here 2 or 3 hours early if you’re a fan or media.
— Peter Della Penna (@PeterDellaPenna) June 3, 2024
South Africa’s fast-bowling depth is such that Lungi Ngidi didn’t make the squad. They have four quicks today, including 31-year-old Ottneil Baartman, who was called up after a superb SA20. This is only his second game for South Africa.
The teams
Sri Lanka Nissanka, Kusal (wk), Kamindu, Sadeera, Asalanka, Mathews, Shanaka, Hasaranga (c), Theekshana, Pathirana, Thushara.
South Africa de Kock (wk), Hendricks, Markram (c), Klaasen, Miller, Stubbs, Jansen , Maharaj, Rabada, Nortje, Baartman.
Sri Lanka win the toss and bat
Ravi Shastri is conducting the toss in New York, which might just be the peak of human existence. South Africa’s captain Aiden Markram calls incorrectly, so Sri Lanka have won the toss. Wanindu Hasaranga says they will bat first; no surprise given he is one of four spinners, full- and part-time, in their XI.
Markram says South Africa would have bowled, so everyone’s happy.
Today’s game will be played on a drop-in pitch that began life in Adelaide. Simon Burnton has more.
Preamble
Start spreadin’ the news, there’s cricket today. The Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in Long Island is the venue for Sri Lanka v South Africa, an intriguing game in an open group that also includes Bangaldesh, Nepal – and the Netherlands, who have beaten South Africa at the last two white-ball World Cups.
South Africa are potential winners, with a punishing middle-order to hide from never mind die for, but the past ain’t through with them. Nor will it be until they finally win a World Cup.
Sri Lanka have the talent, personality and variety, particularly in their bowling, to cause the bigger teams problems, whether in the group stage or during the Super Eights. It should be a cracking match. And even if it’s not, it’s in New York, which is a story in itself.
The match starts at 3.30pm BST, 10.30am in New York.
It’s really amazing how this beautiful stadium in Eisenhower Park, New York was built in a little over 3 months! The site work commenced in January and the construction work started in mid-February only.
The stadium is made mostly of steel and aluminium. The drop-in pitches have… pic.twitter.com/HCYLshchCL
— Rajneesh Gupta (@rgcricket) June 3, 2024
