Dinesh Chandimal scored only 21 AFP
Dinesh Chandimal scored only 21 AFP

Sri Lanka finally tasted success as they registered first victory in the One-Day International (ODI) series against Bangladesh on Saturday. By winning the third ODI at Colombo by 70 runs, the hosts managed to draw the three-match series 1-1. The second match at Dambulla was washed out after the Lankan innings, in which they scored 311. They would be feeling a tad unlucky, for they had a genuine chance of winning the series if at all had it not rained. Nevertheless, a drawn series is much better than a lost series, and they would know this better. The Tests and ODIs are out of the way and it is time for the T20 action. But before we move on to it, here are the highlights from the third ODI:

Dinesh Chandimal s bizarre run-out: Dinesh Chandimal, who stitched a 49-run stand with Kusal Mendis for the third wicket, had a very sad end to his stay in the middle. He was casually returning back to the striker s end for his second run but was caught short of crease in the most bizarre of fashions. His bat was inside the line but he lifted it when the bails were dislodged by Bangladesh wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim. Sadly for Sri Lanka, his feet were also in the air. This was actually very poor and lazy cricket from Chandimal. He could easily have survived there had he stuck to the basics and had a little presence of mind. Third umpire S Ravi took his time and had a look at multiple replays, before eventually ruling him out as per the rules.

Thisara Perera s fighting fifty: Thisara Perera walked out to bat with score reading 194 for 5 in 37 overs. Even as he lost two partners in Asela Gunaratne and Seekkuge Prasanna, Thisara kept fighting. He took his time early on but then quickly got into the groove and smacked 4 fours and a six enroute his 7th ODI fifty. Thisara played his characteristic knock, racing to his fifty off just 37 balls, and yet at the same time held one end firmly. With his back to the wall, Thisara produced an excellent knock just when his side needed it the most. Quite rightly, he was adjudged as the Man of the Match in the end.

Nuwan Kulasekara s near-drop: With 280 on the board, Sri Lanka needed a good start with the ball too. Same with Bangladesh, who needed a strong start to chase down the big total. However, Sri Lanka proved lucky in this regard when Nuwan Kulasekara dismissed Tamim Iqbal in the first over. It was a massive wicket, given Tamim s hundred in the first game had sunk Sri Lanka. This time though, he was dismissed after giving a simple return catch to the bowler, who made it a bit tricky. Kulasekara jumped to take the catch but lost the control over the ball when he tried throwing it in the air to celebrate. Tamim wanted to check whether the bowler held the ball long enough for it to be called a legitimate catch. TV Umpire chipped in, eventually ruling the batsman out.

Seekkuge Prasanna s dab celebration: The dab celebration is popular in football, with star footballers like Paul Pogba using it in the English Premier League (EPL) to bring it in public consciousness. However, it is an import from the United States of America (USA), where it first emerged in their professional sports in the autumn having originated on the hip hop music scene. And now, it seems the dab celebration has finally caught up with cricket too. Sri Lankan all-rounder Seekkuge Prasanna, who ended the match with figures of 10-1-33-2, unleashed the dab celebration after dismissing Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza. Prasanna caught Mortaza of his own bowling and immediately brought out the ‘dab’ celebration!

Send-off to Sabbir Rahman: Sabbir Rahman has had his share of issues with the Sri Lankan players. His 54-ball 80 handed Sri Lanka a defeat in Asia Cup T20 last year. In this particular series, he had had verbal exchanges and on-field tiffs with the Lankan players. On Saturday, in the third ODI, it was Sri Lanka s turn to give it back to him. Kulasekara sent him back for a duck and naturally, the pumped up Lankan had a go at the batsman, giving him a bit of a send-off.