liers, running out the South African skipper with a direct-hit and Duminy departed soon after, with no doubt this time as he was trapped lbw by Rashid on t

Choice of game I have lived in Australia for 23 years, and this is the first time in my time here that the World Cup has been played in this country. Ken Willard Jersey . I could not pass up an opportunity to attend a World Cup quarter-final in my home city of Sydney, regardless of the teams playing. That Sri Lanka made it to the knockouts was a bonus.Team supported I always support Sri Lanka, even on days like this when they are soundly beaten. I was also looking forward to seeing Dale Steyn, AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla in action for the first time.Key performer Imran Tahirs excellent spell of leg-spin bowling was the defining performance of the match. His googly was not read well, even by good players of spin. De Villiers used attacking field placements and Tahir bowled accordingly, with very few loose balls. The wickets of Lahiru Thirimanne and Mahela Jayawardene turned the match significantly in South Africas favour, and they did not relinquish control after that. Tahir was well supported by JP Duminy, whose spread-out hat-trick went largely unnoticed by the crowd, and even the announcer only mentioned it at the end of the over!One thing I would have changed The crowd was hoping for another significant partnership between Kumar Sangakkara and Jayawardene for one last time, but, unfortunately, it wasnt to be.Face-off I relished Before the match, I was looking forward to the showdown between South Africas pace spearhead Steyn and the maverick TM Dilshan. The winner of that battle could dictate the rest of the game, and it was decided in spectacular fashion by Faf Du Plessis superb diving catch at second slip.Wow moment Watching du Plessis catch live at the ground, unlike on television, can make you truly appreciate the astonishing hand-eye coordination required to take a reflex slip catch marginally above the ground whilst diving forward, off a fast bowler bowling at 140+ kph.Close encounter To be honest, given the low-scoring nature of the game, outfielders were few and far between. It was clear, however, that Sangakkara, Lasith Malinga and de Villiers were the most popular players in the match.Shot of the day Thirimanne played some eye-catching shots in his 41, but the pick was a glorious lofted off-drive off Steyn. It was an effortless stroke, and one of the very few highlights for Sri Lanka on the day.Crowd meter The ground was about 75% full, an excellent turnout given Australia were not playing, and both sets of patriotic fans created a fantastic atmosphere. Every boundary or wicket was raucously cheered. The split between the supporters was about 65-35 in favour of Sri Lanka. There were thousands of flags and jerseys (from both teams) and plenty of noise. The Sri Lankan fans, as always, continued to cheer enthusiastically until the end, even as the result became more and more apparent.Fancy-dress index A group of fans were dressed up as Tigger from Winnie-the-Pooh, and there were a few Irish fans wearing St Patricks Day gear after celebrating yesterday.Entertainment The entertainment began outside the stadium with Baila music being played by a Sri Lankan band on a stage. Inside the ground, the papare bands played throughout the day. The acoustics in the upper tiers of the Trumper stand meant the music reverberated thunderously off the roof to a near concert-level volume. The drummers in those bands drowned out the official drummers at the ground. The fans next to the bands danced until the very end, and even as Sri Lankas ship sank, the bands played on. Some notable song choices by the DJ included Africa by Toto when South Africa took a wicket, and Summer Rain and Why does it always rain on me? during the rain break.Accessories I had plenty of food (which ultimately wasnt needed given the early finish), a Sri Lankan jersey (one of thousands in the stadium), and blue and yellow sneakers.Overall Despite a brief rain shower, it was largely a wonderful day for cricket, played in an iconic stadium in front of 27,000 passionate fans. Unfortunately, a thoroughly one-sided match left most in the crowd disappointed.Marks out of 10 If I was a South Africa supporter, Id say 10/10, but for me it was just pass mark. Despite the result, a day out at the cricket with friends and family is still an enjoyable experience, particularly at the picturesque SCG.Last chance to see It was a solemn farewell to two legends of world cricket - Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene. On behalf of all Sri Lankan fans, I thank you for your tireless dedication, the countless great performances and many unforgettable victories. We will miss you, and we wish the two of you the best for the future. Levine Toilolo Jersey . Varlamov made 33 saves and Ryan OReilly had a goal and scored in the shootout as the Avalanche beat the New Jersey Devils 2-1 on Thursday night. Larry Allen Jersey . Aduriz headed home Markel Susaetas cross in the sixth minute to open the scoring at San Mames Stadium. He bettered that with a long-range blast that went in off the goal frame in the 18th, and converted a penalty in the 72nd after Diego Mainz was sent off for fouling Aduriz with only the goalkeeper to beat. http://www.custom49ersjersey.com/custom-...arge-2088d.html . Patrice Bergeron and Daniel Paille scored 20 seconds apart a few minutes after Stamkos was taken off the ice on a stretcher with a broken right leg, and the Bruins beat the Lightning 3-0 on Monday afternoon.Chris Morris smashed 62 off 38 balls to see South Africa to a thrilling one-wicket win over England in Johannesburg, with the series now level at 2-2 with one to play. Joe Root (109) hit his eighth ODI hundred and second-straight in the series, helping England recover from 108-6 after a collapse of 4-13, and set South Africa 263 to win.England seemed to have a series win within their grasp, reducing the hosts to 210-8 in reply, before Morris blasted South Africa to victory, taking the series to a decider in Cape Town on Sunday.South Africa won the toss and somewhat surprisingly chose to bowl first on a pitch they smacked 439 on when last playing at The Wanderers.An early breakthrough, Jason Roy top-edging Kagiso Rabada (4-45) to fine leg, went some way to vindicating their decision, before Alex Hales hit 50 in a partnership worth 69 with Root for the second wicket.Looking to take the attack to leg-spinner Imran Tahir (3-46) like they had done successfully in the first three ODIs, Hales perished at deep midwicket when attempting a slog-sweep for six.Tahir then took two wickets in his next over - Eoin Morgan cutting to point and Ben Stokes edging to Hashim Amla, who took a fine catch to his right at slip. Watch this brilliant catch from Hashim Amla to claim the wicket of Ben Stokes Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali too fell for single-figure scores, both to Kyle Abbott (2-57), the former top-edging an attempted hook onto his helmet which looped back to the bowler, and Amla taking another fine catch to dismiss the latter.With England reeling at 108-6 at the halfway point of their innings, Root put on a crucial 95 for the seventh wicket with Woakes (33).Root brought up the England 200, and his century an over either side of Woakes wicket - top-edging Rabada behind - in the 42nd. Joe Root was in sensational form, hitting his second straight century in the series A useful cameo from Adil Rashid (39 off 26 balls) helped England up to 262 before he was the last wicket to fall, a tiring Root having scooped to fine leg, andd Stuart Broad picking out long-on. Ben Garland Jersey. roads return with the ball got off to a better start, bowling Hashim Amla in the first over as the opener chopped onto his stumps.The in-form Quinton de Kock (27) - scorer of two centuries in the series - and Faf du Plessis (34) recovered from the early blow, before a break for bad light due to a floodlight failure seemed to disrupt the South African innings. Stuart Broad celebrates the wicket of Hashim Amla in his first over back in ODI cricket Stokes (2-46) and Woakes (1-42) both struck with the score on 63, Stokes benefitting from another drag on by De Kock, and Woakes sending the stumps splattering when clean bowling Du Plessis with a beauty.Drops of JP Duminy (31) by Hales on one and AB de Villiers (36) by Roy on nine, as well as a strong lbw shout against Duminy being turned down, denied England further breakthroughs and De Villiers in particular cashed in after his reprieve.He blasted Broad (1-55) for a four next ball and then a straight six as the seamer struggled following his early wicket. Chris Woakes celebrates after running out AB de Villiers Woakes eventually dismissed the ever-dangerous De Villiers, running out the South African skipper with a direct-hit and Duminy departed soon after, with no doubt this time as he was trapped lbw by Rashid on the back foot.A couple of terrific catches - Reece Topley (2-39) off his own bowling to remove Farhaan Behardien (38) and Morgan snaffling David Wiese (21) at cover off Stokes - saw England move closer to a series-clinching win. Chris Morris hits out in his match-winning innings Topley removed Rabada for a duck - caught by Root at slip - but Rashid then dropped Morris in the deep in the same over.It proved to be a costly error as Morris struck four sixes and three fours on his way to his match-winning fifty. Although he fell - bowled by Rashids googly - with one run still needed for victory, Tahir tucked away the winning runs next ball.Watch highlights of a thrilling fourth ODI between South Africa and England at 10pm on Sky Sports 3, then join us for the series decider in Cape Town from 7.30am on Sky Sports 2 on Sunday. ' ' '