Date-stamped : 22 Dec94 - 14:30
4-Nation Mandela Cup
South Africa vs Sri Lanka
Played at St George's Park, Port Elizabeth, 21 Dec 1994

South Africa Defeat Sri Lanka to Meet Pakistan in the Final

South Africa booked their place in the best-of-three match  final
of  the  Mandela Trophy against Pakistan when they beat Sri Lanka
by 44 runs in a rain- affected day-night game on Wednesday.

After compiling 237 for eight from their 50 overs,  South  Africa
restricted  Sri  Lanka  to 139 for six.  Rain interrupted the Sri
Lanka innings at 75 for four and again at 101 for five. Two hours
play  were  lost and their eventual adjusted target was 184 in 34
overs.

They never really got going after man of the match Chris Matthews
captured  three wickets in the opening 12 overs of their innings.
He had Roshan Mahanama well caught in the gully by Clive  Eksteen
for  three, Sanath Jayasuriya spectacularly caught one- handed by
substitute fielder Mike Rindel at mid-on for 20 and  Aravinda  de
Silva  caught,  also  at mid-on, without scoring.  Hashan Tillek-
eratne was top scorer with an unbeaten 36.

Earlier, South Africa's innings was built around a  fourth-wicket
stand  of  119  between  Daryll  Cullinan, who made 63, and Jonty
Rhodes

Three wickets in one over by off-spinner Kumar Dharmasena checked
South  Africa  when they looked set for a big score in their cru-
cial Mandela Trophy match against Sri Lanka on Wednesday.

But South Africa still managed to  post  a  challenging  237  for
eight in their 50 overs in a match which will decide which of the
two plays Pakistan in the best-of-three-game final.

Just when it looked as though the South Africans were heading for
a  total  well  in  excess of 250, the first ball of Dharmasena's
10th over brought about Jonty  Rhodes'  downfall  for  53  as  he
clipped  the  ball straight to Roshan Mahanama at midwicket.  His
dismissal brought the return to the crease of Daryll Cullinan who
had  retired hurt earlier needing stitches in his lip after being
hit in the face attempting a reverse sweep.  But  Cullinan  added
only  a  single to his well-worked 62 before holing out to Asanka
Gurusinha at midwicket off the fourth ball of the same over.

With the batsmen having crossed, Dave Callaghan, who had made 23,
took  strike and promptly hit the next delivery straight down the
throat of Sanath Jayasuriya at deep mid-on.  From 198  for  three
the innings had slumped to 200 for six and it never quite came to
life again as  Chaminda  Vaas  picked  up  the  wickets  of  Dave
Richardson  and Eric Simons.  Dharmasena finished with figures of
10-0-38-4.

Thanks Reuters.
<END> Contributed by Vicky (vigneswa@sulu.ecs.umass.edu)