England v Sri Lanka: Joe Root hits 93 as hosts win ODI series 3-0
Sunday 3 July 2016 10:51, UK
Joe Root top scored with 93 as England beat Sri Lanka by 122 runs in the fifth ODI in Cardiff to win the five-match series 3-0.
Root's 106-ball knock, coupled with Jos Buttler's sparkling 70 from 45 deliveries and James Vince's 51 in his first ODI innings, saw England post 324-7 from their 50 overs at The SSE SWALEC following some early-morning rain.
Root's Yorkshire team-mates David Willey (4-34), Liam Plunkett (3-44) and Adil Rashid (2-41) bundled Sri Lanka out for 202 in 42.4 overs to leave the visitors winless over England in the Test and ODI portions of their tour.
Sri Lanka will have one final chance to earn a victory over the hosts on Tuesday evening when the sides contest a Twenty20 international at The Ageas Bowl in Southampton.
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Root, who will be rested for that game ahead of the Pakistan Test series, was the backbone of the England innings in Wales, notching only six boundaries before he was bowled at the start of the final over.
The Yorkshireman came to the crease in the 12th over after Jason Roy, fresh from hitting 162 in Wednesday's series-sealing six-wicket win at The Oval, swiped Suranga Lakmal into the deep to fall for a run-a-ball 34.
Root initially banded with Vince, who, having replaced Alex Hales in the side following the latter's back niggle, scored a 54-ball half-century in his second ODI - the Hampshire batsman denied a bat in his first, a rained-off game against Ireland in Malahide in May 2015.
Vince was then stumped off spinner Danushka Gunathilaka, who went on to have Eoin Morgan (20) and Jonny Bairstow (22) caught in the deep en route to tidy figures of 3-48 from his 10 overs.
However, Buttler provided pyrotechnics while dominating a stand of 109 with Root, the wicketkeeper batsman scooping and smashing seven fours and a maximum before he was bowled by debuting left-arm paceman Chaminda Bandara.
Root was cleaned up by a Nuwan Pradeep slower ball seven runs short of a ninth ODI ton but Chris Woakes (17no) and Plunkett (nine) added gloss to England's score with some lusty late blows, Woakes clipping Lakmal over fine leg for a wind-assisted six.
Gunathilaka (48) and Kusal Mendis (22) put on a steady 57 for the second Sri Lanka wicket after Kusal Perera (six) was pinned lbw in the fourth over by Willey, but Mendis' run out - courtesy of an arrowed-in throw from Bairstow at deep midwicket - sparked a collapse of 4-40.
Paceman Plunkett trapped Gunathilaka lbw from around the wicket before castling Angelo Mathews (13) with a yorker, while leg-spinner Rashid bowled Upul Tharanga (0) through the gate to hand the batsman a golden duck.
Chandimal (53) stuck around, compiling a fourth straight ODI fifty as wickets continued to tumble, but he was eventually bowled by Willey, who took the final three Sri Lanka wickets to fall, Woakes pouching Pradeep at mid-on to seal a crushing victory.
Man of the Match, Jos Buttler: "I've felt in good form all series and it was nice to contribute again. [My IPL stint with Mumbai Indians] has been valuable and I probably learn that more and more the more cricket I play. I came back very confident and I think that has shown in my cricket."
England captain, Eoin Morgan: "The belief in our changing room has been backed up by performances - Jason Roy has been outstanding but everyone, bar myself, has contributed with the bat, while we have also come up with ideas with the ball when it hasn't been swinging."
Sri Lanka skipper, Angelo Mathews: "We have had the same problems over the past five weeks - either batting, bowling or fielding has let us down in every game and England have outplayed us. They got the momentum from the Trent Bridge tie and we didn't pull ourselves up."
Watch the one-off Twenty20 international between England and Sri Lanka from The Ageas Bowl at 6pm, Tuesday, Sky Sports 2.
