Boof blast fires Aussies to ODI win

Aaron Finch has revealed that Australia’s dramatic change in form to claim the ODI Series against Sri Lanka was fuelled by a scathing critique delivered by coach Darren Lehmann.

Finch was an architect of the reigning world champions’ six-wicket win in Dambulla last night than saw them grasp an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-game series with a record equalling 55 from 19 balls at the top of his team’s run chase.

But the opener said the back-to-back wins in the jungle city of Dambulla were preceded by a withering blast from Bupa National Men’s Team coach Lehmann in the immediate aftermath of their 82-run loss in game two at Colombo’s Premadasa Stadium a week ago.

A match that saw the series levelled at 1-1 and skipper Steve Smith announce he was heading home to freshen up having suffered defeats in all three preceding Tests and experiencing success only in the opening 50-over fixture.

“We copped a pretty good and a pretty fair bake after the second game in Colombo, everyone did – batters, bowlers, fielders,” Finch said today in recalling Lehmann’s response to his bowlers conceding a series-high 288 to Sri Lanka and then being bowled out for 206.

“There was no dust left on the shelf, everyone copped it.

“I can’t repeat most of what it was that he said.

“But it was a below-par performance in terms of the way that we went about it with the bat, our execution with the ball and in the field.

“So he didn’t miss anyone to be fair.”

Under Smith’s replacement as skipper, David Warner, the world’s number-one ranked ODI team produced efforts in Dambulla a little more worthy of their lofty billing.

Despite Warner losing the toss in both matches and being consigned to batting second, Australia’s seam-based bowling attack led by Mitchell Starc and John Hastings restricted Sri Lanka to modest totals of 226 and 212.

Which were ultimately chased down, though not without the occasional nervous moments, thanks largely to the consistent contributions from George Bailey (70 and 90no), Travis Head (36 and 40) and Finch (30 and 55).

Making the victories even more meritorious was the challenging nature of the pitches rolled out for the ODI games that, in keeping with the Test series, were played on bare, dry surfaces that aided spin bowling and made strokeplay almost impossible once the initial sheen was lost from the ball.

The 2015 World Cup champions have not reached 250 in all four of their innings in this tournament (with three of those occasions coming when batting second chasing sub-250 totals).

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It’s the first time since the home ODI campaign also against Sri Lanka in 2012-13 – which included the infamous day in Brisbane that the Australians were rolled over for 74 by Nuwan Kulasekara and Lasith Malinga – that they have played four consecutive 50-over games without reaching 250.

In the wake of this series win last night, Warner slammed the condition of the pitches used for the first four matches claiming they were detrimental to the promotion of the game and the attraction of fans through the gate.

Finch, who has played almost 70 ODIs including many in Asia and the West Indies and has vast experience in the T20 format at international and IPL level, rated the pitches for this series among the most challenging he’s encountered as a batsman.

“It’s been a tough tour,” said the 29-year-old who quickly learned how difficult conditions were despite not being part of the squad for the 3-0 Test series loss.

“We haven’t been treated to good wickets in the one-day series especially.

“I think the first wicket (for the opening ODI at Premadasa) was a nice wicket and they (Sri Lanka) have reeled out some ordinary one-day wickets since then.

“The West Indies (where Australia played an ODI tri-series against South Africa and the West Indies last June) wasn’t easy. 

“They were some tough wickets, but that was a lot to do with the weather and they were tacky wickets that spun quite a bit. 

“But in general, 100 overs of a game on a tough wicket, I think this has been as hard as I’ve seen it.”

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The Australians’ frustration was compounded in Dambulla by the sight of a pristine pitch sporting an even cover of grass that was thought to have been prepared for the second ODI, only for local officials to inform the tourists on match eve that the pitch for yesterday’s game would be the same one used for the first match last Sunday.

With ground authorities claiming the pitch the tourists expected to be employed yesterday was in fact being prepared for the women’s ODI series between Sri Lanka and the Commonwealth Bank Southern Stars that remains almost three weeks away.

“It can be quite frustrating as a batter when you look over and there’s a beautiful batting wicket two strips over that could have (produced) a really entertaining game from a high-scoring point of view,” Finch said of the pitch that sat unused as Sri Lanka laboured to 212 and Australia chased it down thanks to the opener’s explosive start.

“But they used the same one (as last Sunday).

“It’s their home conditions so I suppose they’re entitled to do that, but it was nice to win when you feel there was a lot of things working against you.”