By Srian Obeyesekere

Sri Lanka’s world cup hopes hit a distant own backyard declining 89 run second defeat yesterday at the hands of England let loose from a 2 for 49 hinroad to Udeshini Prabhodini dropping ultimate century maker Nat Sciver Brunt on 3 after off off spinner Inoka Ranaweera as the England captain made the difference hitting a haughty trail to pulling her side out of a 168 for 6 rut to staying right up to one delivery from the 50 overs in a run a ball 117 hitting 9 boundaries and 2 sixes in denting a Lankan fight back but for the big wicket lapse with the ICC Women’s World Cup co-host nation tripping to 164 chasing a target of 253 on an easing batting conducive surface at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium.

As it was, Lankan skipper Chamari Athapaththu’s gamble to putting England in on the toss suffering the kickback of a vital dropped catch by Prabhodini whose fitness in that respect was questionable now aged 40, proved to be the negative turning point to a decisive game Sri Lanka was very much in, finally finding the 254 chase too much to cope with in that batting debacle on a day the Lankan skipper’s early retirement by injury on 7 was a setback before being plumb bowled on return for 15 by the impeccable spin of the 4 for 17 Sophie Ecclestone, her apparent an out of form run costly for Sri Lanka.

Only opener Hasini Perera 35 off 60 with 3 boundaries and Harshitha Samarawickrama 33 off 37 with 5 boundaries offered a semblance of resistance in lifting the score to 95 into 20.1 overs following Athapathu’s injury retirement with the score on 18 before the disintegration before the heady England attack with Nat Sciver putting to play her all-round prowess with a 2 for 25 Player of the Match round off, and Charlie Dean 2 for 47, the lending nucleus to center piece playmaker with the ball the 4 for Ecclestone.

England 253 for 9 (Sciver-Brunt 117, Ranaweera 3-33) beat Sri Lanka 164 (Hasini 35, Samarawickrama 33, Nilukshi de Silva 23, Ecclestone 4-17, Sciver-Brunt 2-25) by 89 runs