COLOMBO, Sept 10: Glenn Maxwell smashed four sixes and seven boundaries to score 66 off 29 balls to set up a close four-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the second Twenty20 international and a 2-0 series win on Friday.
Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat first and managed only 128-9 in 20 overs. Dhananjaya de Silva scored 62 for his maiden Twenty20 international half-century
Legspinner Adam Zampa and fast bowler James Faulkner took three wickets each for Australia.
Maxwell and captain David Warner started the Australian chase aggressively and shared 93 runs in 51 balls But from there the tourists lost six wickets for 27 runs but went over the line with 13 deliveries to spare thanks to the good opening stand. Retiring Tillakaratne Dilshan had best figures 2-8 for Sri Lanka.
Maxwell continued his superior form the first match and reached his half-century in 18 balls, the fastest by an Australian. He made an unbeaten 145 in the first match to take Australia to a 85-run win.
He was bowled by legspinner Seekkuge Prasanna off the inside edge.
Left-arm spinner Sachith Pathirana brought Sri Lanka strongly back into the game taking two wickets in the tenth over after Australia had experimented with the batting order by promoting lower order batsmen.
Maxwell dropped from Australia's ODI squad to play Sri Lanka
Moises Henriques was sent in at No. 3 but he was out for one stumped off Pathirana. Two balls later Warner (25) was out caught by Thisara Perera off Pathirana.
Dilshan took a wicket off the last ball of his international cricket when he had Matthew Wade (14) caught by Dinesh Chandimal leaving Australia 120-6.
Travis Head hit a six off Pathirana to seal victory.
Australia finishes its tour to Sri Lanka on a winning note having won the one-day international series 4-1 and winning the Twenty20 series 2-0 after losing the test series 3-0.
Captain Warner said that said playing on Sri Lankan pitches was tough but commended his players for their determination and fight to overcome the challenge.
Warner however was disappointed that his team lost wickets consistently after a good start.
"We probably saw there the lack of consistency when we lost a wicket after a good start," Warner said.
"Something we want to keep improving on. It's disappointing we lost five or six for 20 in eight overs in the middle after being none for 90. But obviously it is fantastic to get a win and win the series."
Dilshan said that he is disappointed to leave the game with a loss.
"We tried our best to win the match but we were about 20 runs short; and also while bowling we gave away too many runs in the first six overs," Dilshan said.
"It's time to relax now. It was pressure playing for the country. Now I feel lighter."
The International Cricket Council paid tribute to Dilshan calling him an "epitome of the modern-daycricketer with his ability to adapt."
Dilshan is among the 11 players to have scored a century in all formats of cricket.
"Dilshan's accomplishments across all three formats are fantastic. He started as a solid batsman but adjusted to the demands of the faster-paced game and came to be known as one of the best in ODI and T20 Internationals," the ICC statement quoted its chief executive David Richardson as saying.
"He will be remembered for his innovative strokes and as a destructive opener. He was also a useful spin bowler and an outstanding fielder. We congratulate Dilshan for a fine career and wish him every success in the future." Richardson said.
Dilshan leaves international cricket with 17,671 runs in 497 games across all formats. He also had 151 international wickets.
