It could have gone horribly wrong for Australia, the five-time champions, against Sri Lanka in what experts billed as a must-win game for either side. Sri Lanka, the 1996 champions, opted to bat first in the 14th match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 on Monday. On a tricky Ekana Stadium top, Lankan openers Pathum Nissanka (61 off 67) and Kusal Perera (78 off 82) defied Aussie attack to post a 125-run opening stand in just 21.4 overs. Then, as narrated earlier, they imploded even as Lucknow braced for a storm mild but strong enough to leave a falling roof in its wake at the venue. A brief stoppage, and then Adam Zampa completed a four-wicket haul as Sri Lanka managed only 209 all out in 43.3 overs. The chase got off to a nervy start, and Lankan bowlers, especially Dilshan Madushanka who got both David Warner and Steven Smith in the same over, intimidated the Aussie batters. At one point, the Aussies were 81/3 (14.3). But the Lankan defence, a fraught one as it turned out, didn't last long. Mitchell Marsh found his lost touch before eventually running himself out for 52 off 51. Marnus Labuschagne (40 off 60) and Josh Inglis (58 off 59) also played brilliantly, but their efforts were overshadowed by what Glenn Maxwell (31 not out off 21) and Marcus Stoinis (20 not out off 10) did towards the end. With the five-wicket win, Pat Cummins's team opened the account while Sri Lanka, now led by Kusal Mendis, remained winless. Australia next meet Pakistan in Bengaluru on Friday, while Sri Lanka will stay back in Lucknow for their Saturday fixture against the Netherlands. Catch highlights of the AUS vs SL cricket match. (Scorecard | Match Report |?Full Coverage)

That's all from our side!

Player of the match? -? Adam Zampa? (8-1-47-4)

Australia won by 5 wickets!

9:35 pm: AUS?- 215/5? Overs 31-35.2? Highlights
Glenn Maxwell charged against the Madushanka and smashed 3 fours in his over. Then he hit two sixes off Theekshana's over to reduce the margin. Dunith Wellalage struck with Josh Inglis's wicket and then Marcus Stoinis started his innings with two boundaries in his over. Both batters rotated strikes before Stoinis finished things with a six off Wellalage. Australia won by 5 wickets.

9:10 pm: AUS?- 162/4? Overs 21-30? Highlights
Josh Inglis and Marnus Labuschangne paved the way for Australia's victory with their 79-run stand until Madushanka dismissed Labuschagne for 40 runs. Before that, Dhananjaya de Silva and Karunaratne bowled a few tight overs. Lahiru Kumara proved expensive again. Josh Inglis completed his fifty by smashing a drive down the ground.?Maxwell joined Inglis and Australia is just 47 runs away from their first victory in this World Cup.

8:24 pm: AUS?- 109/3? Overs 11-20? Highlights
Dunith Wellalage and Maheesh Theekshana bowled tight in between overs and kept Australia hustling for the runs. Mitch Marsh got involved in a run-out for a?needless double. Josh Inglis and Marnus Labuschagne rebuilt the Australian innings and kept rotating the strike. Australia silently reaching the target whereas Sri Lanka is trying their?everything to stop them.

7:40 pm: AUS?- 64/2? Overs 1-10? Highlights
David Warner and Mitchell Marsh gave Australia a thumping start after they collected 15 runs from the first over of the innings. Lahiru Kumara has been very expensive so far for Sri Lanka, conceding 26 runs in 2 overs. Dilshan Madushanka first caught?David Warner in front of the wicket then Steven Smith in a maiden over to put pressure back on Australia. But Marsh and Marnus Labuschagne soaked all the pressure and fought back with positive intent. Marsh played his natural game and Marnus just rotated the strike and let Marsh take the chances.?

6:56 pm: Australia's?batting starts
Mitch Marsh and David Warner at the crease for Australia to start the chase. The ball is in Lahiru Kumara's hands. First fall, Marsh smacked it hard for four. Australia is off the mark with a boundary.

Innings Break!!
Sri Lanka imploded. That's the story so far [read: innings] In the 14th match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. Kusal Mendis, who took charge of the team after Dasun Shanaka?pulled out of the tournament due to injury, won the toss and opted to bat first against Australia at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium. In a sensational start to the innings, openers Pathum Nissanka (61 off 67) and Kusal Perera (78 off 82) put up a 125-run stand and also completed their respective individual fifties. But the story started to unravel soon enough. Aussie captain Pat Cummins sent both back to the pavilion, and what followed was a collapse of some magnitude. From 125 for one in the 22nd over, Sri Lanka were all out for 209 in 43.3 overs, with Charith Asalanka being the only other batter to reach double figures, 25 off 39. For the Aussies, often chastised Adam Zampa claimed four wickets (4/47 in 8 overs), while Mitchell Starc got a brace. For what's worth, the innings was briefly interrupted by rain.

Target set for Australia - 210 runs in 300 balls

Sri Lanka - 209/10 (43.3)

6:00 pm: SL - 209/10? Overs 41-43.3? Highlights
Mitchell Starc bowled Lahiru Kumara after he hit him for a?smashing four. Then Maxwell puts the final nail in the coffin and gets the wicket of Charith Asalanka to finish the Lankan innings on 209 runs.?

5:45 pm: SL - 199/8? Overs 31-40? Highlights
After play resumed, Sri Lankan batter Charith Asalanka and Dhananjaya de Silva started the innings. But Mitchell STarc struck early and bowled Dhananjaya de Silva. Mitchell Starc and ICC ODI?World Cups is?a lethal combination. Dunith Wellalage came but could not survive enough as he got involved in run-out and Starc made no mistake. Chamika Karunaratne came to bat in his first World Cup game and got LBW out on Adam Zampa's bowling. Zampa struck again in the 40th over to send Maheesh Theekshana back after bowling him LBW out. Sri Lanka was looking strong on 125 for no loss at one moment, but these wickets collapse have left Sri Lanka with no batter except Charith Asalanka in the middle to put up a respectable total on the board.

4:45 pm: Play stopped due to rain!
Drizzle out of nowhere. Players rushed back to the pavilion as Umpires called for covers on the field. David Warner helped the groundsmen. The sky looks clear. Hopefully, the game will resume soon. Score: SL - 178/4 (32.1)

4:30?pm: SL - 166/4? Overs 21-30? Highlights
Captain Pat Cummins got the breakthrough for Australia as he dismissed?dangerous-looking Pathum Nissanka for 61(67). Then Perera hits a couple of boundaries on Hazlewood before Pat Cummins bowled him for 78(82). Then newly appointed captain Kusal Mendis gives his wicket to Adam Zampa. Sadeera Samarawickrama looked set and was later trapped by Zampa as well. Sri Lanka's batting collapsed courtesy of Adam Zampa and Pat Cummins. Dhananjaya de Silva and Charith Asalanka take charge of?putting up a good total on board.?

3:40 pm: SL - 114/0? Overs 11-20? Highlights
Mitchell Starc started his second spell but no good came out of that. Adam Zampa started his spell on a poor note when Nissanka welcomed him with a couple of boundaries. Australian bowlers have not been successful in claiming any wicket of Sri Lanka. Both batters have completed their respective fifties and 100-run partnership as well. Nissanka survived after another tough chance for the Aussies. Australia are in search of their first breakthrough. Sri Lankan openers have set a statement with this gritty start.

2:55 pm: SL - 51/0? Overs 1-10? Highlights
Sri Lankan openers Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Perera have played the first powerplay very beautifully?and have crossed the first phase of the Australian bowling attack easily. Nissanka played a couple of?handsome fours to start his innings and Perera also joined him in the process. Josh Hazle wood bowled a maiden in his first over. Perera also gets a couple of fours. Nissanka survived a tough chance, otherwise, there is?no pressure for Sri Lanka so far. Hazlewood and Starc started well but spin was introduced in the 8th over with Maxwell in attack. Sri Lanka going well.

2:02 pm: Play Begins (SL 9/0 In 1 Over)
Play is underway in Lucknow. Australia's?left-arm swing bowler Mitchell Starc has the ball and the right-handed Pathum Nissanka is on strike for Sri Lanka. Kusal Perera is at the non-striker's end.?Starc starts the over well with an inswinging yorker but ends up giving away boundaries off the last two balls. SL are away.??

1:36 pm: Line-Ups
Australia XI: Mitchell Marsh, David Warner, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (c), Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.
Sri Lanka XI: Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Perera, Kusal Mendis (c, wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Chamika Karunaratne, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Dilshan Madushanka, Lahiru Kumara.

1:32 pm: Toss Update
Sri Lanka have won the toss and elected to bat first.

1:12 pm: What The New SL Skipper Said
Here's what Kusal Mendis, who will lead Sri Lanka for the remaining duration?of the showpiece tournament in the absence of injured skipper Dasun Shanaka, had to say at the post-match press conference.

?12:50 pm: Head-to-head Record
Australia have taken on Sri Lanka 103 times in ODIs and won 63 of those games;?Sri Lanka have emerged victors 36 times while four matches did not produce a result. In the ODI World Cup, the two teams have clashed 11 times and Australia have prevailed in eight of those matches. In their latest five match-ups, though, Sri Lanka enjoy a 3-2 win record.

12:30 pm: Weather Conditions
Hazy sunshine is expected in Lucknow all through Monday, with the maximum temperature likely to be around 33 degree Celsius. The humidity will hover around the 50% mark and there might be some light showers in the evening, but that shouldn't affect the match.

Preview:
In contrasting but consequentially similar ways, Australia and Sri Lanka have both endured nightmarish starts to their respective ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 campaigns. While the Aussies were outplayed in all three departments by India and South Africa, Sri Lanka put up 300-plus totals but leaked runs with the ball to end up on the losing side against South Africa and Pakistan. To compound their woes, The Lions lost their skipper Dasun Shanaka to an injury that ruled him out of the entire tournament. Hence when the two struggling sides face off at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Monday, their first aim will be to avoid slumping to three consecutive defeats in the tournament - a state that could prove to be irredeemable later on.

Earlier, the ICC World Cup 2023 saw some incredible action over the weekend. On Saturday,?hosts India absolutely thumped?arch-rivals Pakistan at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad to delight crores of supporters. The following day, Afghanistan came up with a heartwarming performance to comprehensively beat defending champions England in Delhi and throw the tournament wide open with the shock result. The World Cup has well and truly come alive now.

Teams:
Sri Lanka: Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Perera, Kusal Mendis (c), Sadeera Samarawickrama (wk), Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dushan Hemantha, Dunith Wellalage, Maheesh Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana, Dilshan Madushanka, Lahiru Kumara, Kasun Rajitha, Chamika Karunaratne, Dimuth Karunaratne.
Australia: Mitchell Marsh, David Warner, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (c), Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood, Sean Abbott, Travis Head, Alex Carey, Cameron Green.? ? ? ? ? ??