PALLEKELE, Sri Lanka (AP) — Kusal Mendis smashed his sixth ODI hundred and led Sri Lanka to a commanding 99-run victory in the third and final one-day international as the home team clinched the series 2-1.
Mendis marshaled Sri Lanka to 285-7 with an aggressive 124 off 114 balls after captain Charith Asalanka won the toss and elected to bat.
The Bangladeshi batters struggled against the pace of Dushmantha Chameera and Asitha Fernando, who shared six wickets between them to bowl out the visitors for 186 and give Sri Lanka an eighth successive win in a home ODI series.
Fernando clean bowled Tanzid Hasan (17) with a searing yorker in the third over of the chase and Najmul Hossain Shanto then deflected Chameera’s incoming delivery back onto the top of the stumps for nought as the visitors slipped to 2-20.
Sri Lanka's middle-order struggled against the spin as Dunith Wellalage (2-33) and Wanindu Hasaranga (2-35) struck with regular intervals and the Bangladeshi batters also couldn't put up strong partnerships.
Towhid Hridoy (51) made a fighting half century off 78 balls before Chameera returned and knocked back the stumps with another superb inswinger and Fernando varied his pace to perfection for two wickets of the tailenders to wrap up the game.
Earlier, Mendis marshaled Sri Lanka to a strong total and together with Asalanka shared a strong 124-run fourth-wicket stand.
Mendis was strong on the leg side and smashed 18 fours in his chanceless century as he punished anything pitched short with his short-arm jab pull shots while sweeping the spinners to perfection.
“My batting coach said that if I score we will win," Mendis said. "I played a different game in the last match, but today I played my normal game after speaking to the coach. The pitch was a little slow, but it came on better later on.”
Bangladesh had kept Sri Lanka in check at 3-100 in 21 overs before Mendis and Asalanka took charge. Sri Lanka looked set to get past the 300-run mark but Bangladesh came back well in the last 10 overs.
Asalanka, who made 58 off 68 balls, holed out in the deep in the 41st over when he missed out on a low full toss of fast bowler Taskin Ahmed.
Mendis fell in the 46th over as he top-edged a short ball from Shamim Hossain, who grabbed a catch over his shoulder. Ahmed finished with 2-51 and Mehidy Hasan Miraz took 2-48.
“We didn’t get partnerships in the middle, and from the openers," Bangladesh captain Miraz said. "That was the problem for us. Our team is young, they need time. If you give opportunity it might pay off one day.”
Both teams will now compete in a three-match T20 series, starting from Thursday.
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
Sri Lanka's Kusal Mendis celebrates his fifty runs during the second ODI cricket match between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, July 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
Sri Lanka's Charith Asalanka plays a shot during the first ODI cricket match between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, July 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.
Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.
“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.
"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.
Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.
Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.
Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.
At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.
Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.
Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.
After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.
“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”
Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.
Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.
His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.
“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”
Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.
FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)
