RSA VS SL - 4th ODI, Sri Lanka tour of South Africa, 2019

That 2-0 Test win seems a generation ago now given the way things have gone downhill for the lost-looking Lankans here. They'd need to find a lot of luck, a lot of soul and really quickly to avoid another today in Cape Town on Saturday. For now though, it's time for us to head out as we - Vineet Anantharaman, MS Ramakrishnan, Nikhil Jadhav along with our scorer, Siva - sign off. Until, hopefully some more fight, ta ta!!

(2/2) - Really looking forward to playing at Cape Town; always a good crowd. The team is playing well and there is a nice buzz in the team. We'll try and make a couple of changes to ensure that everyone gets equal opportunities. We are playing some really good cricket, all the things that should have happened in the last six months have happened. We wanted to be clear in what we wanted as a team and from the balance point of view and that's where we are at the moment. It's going to be an exciting week and the next couple of months with the boys going into the IPL.

Faf du Plessis | Winning skipper (1/2): I thought today went really well. Very pleasing to see JP and Miller finish it off for us, which is what we want to see from our middle order, which is to get in and get stuck to finish matches for us. Lungi has been fantastic for us through the series, Andy (Phehlukwayo) has been fantastic as an all-rounder as well. It was a weird feeling going on in the head, because I wanted the guys to get an opportunity with the bat and then also wanted to finish it off myself. I like batting at three, I enjoy three. Aiden (Markram) has batted all his game up the order and it will be easy for him to move up there. Even Rassie (van der Dussen) bats really well at three. The beautiful thing which we have is that guys can bat at different positions and that is going to help us going into the World Cup.

Isuru Udana | Man of the Match [surprise, surprise]: I knew when we were nine down I had to take on the bowlers who were bowling against the wind. I am working hard on my batting for the past four-five months and I am really happy with my performance. When I was there, Dhananjaya was batting in the middle and my plan was to only rotate the strike, but that didn't didn't really work for long.

Lasith Malinga | Losing skipper: There's nothing much to say. We're going down the same path, the batsmen have to realize their value and bat long on such wickets. The bowling wasn't great either, we got only four and a few early wickets could have made the difference. Six down after 18 overs makes it very difficult for us to come back. We need to put our hands up and look to bat fifty overs. People have to realize the value of the opportunity they've got to play for the national side. We have got good exposure before the World Cup and we'll look to do better. Udana is a proper all-rounder and is a good plus point for us before the World Cup.

South Africa opted to bowl in the afternoon and honestly, Sri Lanka's 189 cannot justify the pitch that was in store. It was a good batting wicket, but they kept losing wickets in heaps. As many as four single-digit scores in the top six. If not for Isuru Udana's heroics, the score would have been even low. Anrich Nortje missed his hat-trick, while Andile Phehlukwayo rushed batsmen and the rest of the bowlers chipped in handy. QdK continued his good form and recorded a fifty. Markram and Duminy looked good on their comebacks. Faf wanted to finish early and perished in the process. His team recorded an emphatic win nevertheless. Dhananjaya de Silva bowled well and bagged three wickets, but the visitors needed at least 100 runs more to compete.

It's 4-0 with a game to go. A really relaxed and happy dressing room. Players congratulating each other. Contrasting emotions in the blue camp. Malinga walks back dejected looking at the big screen. He demanded a bit more intensity and responsibility from the team earlier, but it's another heavy loss. "Lasith might be saying to himself... Hopefully I am not the captain for the World Cup. It will be someone else's problem," quips Michael Holding on air as he sees Malinga leave the field. Sri Lanka seriously have to lift themselves and live upto international standards. There is quality, but the performances have to come.

Perera to Miller, leg byes, 1 run, down the leg-side, glance missed, but it rolls into the on-side off the pad and that's a victory for the Proteas

QdK is already shaking hands in the dressing room

Perera to Duminy, 1 run, oh a direct-hit would have been really tight for Duminy, full delivery outside off stump, Duminy drives to mid-off, takes the fielder on and escapes, may have just been in

Perera to Duminy, no run, short of length delivery, Duminy defends it to backward point

Perera to Miller, 1 run, good length delivery around the off stump, Miller dabs it towards third man

Perera to Miller, FOUR, greatly timed off-drive, full delivery outside off stump, Miller leans forward and hits it along the ground and sends it to the boundary

Malinga to Duminy, no run, slower delivery on the off stump, Duminy defends

Malinga to Duminy, 2 runs, well outside off stump, Duminy cuts late, hits it to the right of backward point, Duminy rockets back for the second run

Malinga to Duminy, no run, pushed into the off-side

Malinga to Duminy, FOUR, off the front foot and driven through cover, full delivery outside off stump, Duminy leans forward and puts it in the gap

Malinga to Duminy, no run, full delivery outside off stump, Duminy tries to drive into the off-side, toe-ends it towards point

Malinga to Duminy, no run, short of length delivery outside off stump, Duminy under-edges it towards backward point

Perera to Duminy, 1 run, outside off stump, Duminy dabs it to third man