4th T20I, Melbourne, February 18, 2022, 01:40 PM
Sri Lanka
139/8(20.0ov)
Australia
143/4(18.1ov)
Australia beat Sri Lanka by 6 wickets
Best Batsmen
R
B
4S
6S
SR
Best Bowler
O
R
W
Econ
Man of the Match
Glenn Maxwell
Commentry
Right then! That is all we have from this match and the Aussies have raced into a 4-0 lead in the 5-match series. The fifth and final match of the series will be played on Sunday, the 20th of February. That match begins at 11.40 am IST (6.10 am GMT). The build-up though will begin much sooner. Do join us then. Take care and goodbye!
Glenn Maxwell has been adjudged as the PLAYER OF THE MATCH for his all-round show with the bat and the ball.
Presentation time...
Sri Lanka are showing time and again that they do have prowess with the ball but just can't get over the line when they do not have enough runs to play with. Maheesh Theekshana gave them a brilliant start as he got the dangerman Ben McDermott out for the second match in a row. Then the fiery pace of Lahiru Kumara caused the opposition a few problems. Kumara was rewarded with a couple of quick wickets as well and the visitors looked on course for a win. This wasn't the case though, as the lack of Wanindu Hasaranga in the middle overs proved to be significant and Jeffrey Vandersay was taken on by Maxwell and Inglis. The runs were running out and the hosts had plenty of wickets in hand. In the end, Sri Lanka were handed yet another thumping defeat and they will be disappointed because they made good starts with the bat and with the ball as well, only to lose their way later on.
Another day and another win for the reigning T20 World Champions, Australia. After a really slow start to the innings, they have managed to win this contest comfortably. Ben McDermott had another failure with the bat as he got out really early on to Maheesh Theekshana yet again. The skipper, Aaron Finch too couldn't get going and Ashton Agar provided some sluggish but useful runs at the top. It was the partnership between Josh Inglis and Glenn Maxwell that really won them the match. It was a 71-run stand in which Maxwell played the second fiddle and Inglis was hitting the ball cleanly. Once Inglis got out, Maxwell and Stoinis notched up the remaining runs without a fuss to make it 4-0!
In over# 19
4
Chamika Karunaratne 22/0(2.1)
18.1
4
FOUR! That's it, it's all over! Banged in short and around off. Glenn Maxwell hangs back and pulls it into the vacant deep mid-wicket fence to seal the win with a boundary. Australia win by 6 wickets!
In over# 18
1
2
4
2
1
1
Jeffrey Vandersay 43/0(4)
17.6
1
Shorter and on middle. Maxwell pulls it down to long on for one more. Scores are level now and Maxwell moves to 44. He'll look to finish it off with a biggie in the next over and bring up his fifty.
17.5
2
Looped up, on middle. Maxwell clears the front leg and drills it down to long on for a couple.
17.4
4
FOUR! Quicker and flatter, on off. Glenn Maxwell backs away and thumps it over the cover region for a boundary.
17.3
2
Here comes the reverse sweep but MKaxwell doesn't get a good connection on it. On middle, swept away over the point region fo0r a couple.
17.2
1
Slower through the air, on a length and on middle. This one grips and turns away. Stoinis hangs back and pulls it down the ground for one.
17.1
1
Tossed up, around middle and leg. Glenn Maxwell skips down the track and drills it back past the bower, down to long on for a single.
In over# 17
1
1
4
2
0W
6
Dushmantha Chameera 33/1(4)
16.6
1
On the pads, Maxwell flicks it down to fine leg for a single. Just 12 needed now off 18 balls.
16.5
1
Back of a length, punched off the back foot onto the off side for a single.
16.4
4
FOUR! Raw power from Marcus Stoinis! A decent yorker, on off. Stoinis just jams it out and gets it through mid off for a boundary.
16.3
2
Very short and outside off. Stoinis looks to uppercut it but ends up getting a bottom edge. The ball goes fine and towards the third man region as the batters come back for two.