SLC MAJOR LEAGUE TIER ‘A’ SUPER EIGHT
By Srian Obeyesekere
Ragama CC defeated Colts CC by 103 runs to register their first win in the Super Eight Tournament at the CCC Grounds. It was a tremendous performance by the Ragama players in coming good this time in the face of their humiliating innings defeat to CCC last week. They extended their overnight score of 190 for 6 to 220 setting Colts an imposing 316 runs to win. If it was Lahiru Thirimanne and Roshen Silva coming back strongly to prove that they were still seasoned campaigners to their cause, the third and final day totally belonged to the threesome of Kalhara Senaratne, Ishan Jayaratne and Amila Aponso who took 3 wickets apiece in finishing off the Colts CC. Colts could muster only 212 runs with only opening batsmen Sadeera Samarawickrea 66 off 128 (5×4) and Avishka Fernando 44 off 58 (5×4) impressing. Their 78-run opening partnership off 18.1 overs was indeed the solid start Colts needed, but the rest slithered after star batsmen Angelo Mathews (18) Santhush Gunathilaka (0) fell cheaply.
CHILAW MARIANS DOWN ARMY BY 45 RUNS
Chilaw Marians CC lived up to their reputation of sturdy stuff to rise from the dumps of 85 for 5 to hand out the Sri Lanka Army SC a 45-run defeat at the P. Saravanamuththu Stadium.
Having rallied to 241 on the heroics of a superb late order knock of 73 by Kasun Vidura Adikari off 106 balls clouting 7 boundaries, the Marians stuck to their guns bowling out Army SC for 249 to register a glorious 45-run victory. Upfront Army’s opening batsman Ashan Randika kept his side in the run hunt with an absorbing 84-ball 133 knock in a spree of 10 sixes and 9 boundaries. He shared in a first wicket alliance of 94 with Thulina Dilshan who made 39 off 36 with 5 boundaries. The Army were right in the game placed on 217 for 4 when skipper Asela Gunaratne fell for 18, but lost their way after the dismissal of Randika soon after slipping to 218 for 5.
The Marians heroes with the ball were pace bowler Nimesh Vimukthi with 4 for 23 and Shehan Jayasuriya with 4 for 66.
BRC’S BHANUKA RAJAPAKSA TWIN TON HEROICS, BUT NCC HANG ON
True to the word, ‘cometh the hour, cometh the man’, BRC’s big hitting captain Bhanuka Rajapaksa arrived and as late as No.8 to bludgeon an unbeaten 110 off 98 balls in a stellar
sixer hitting spree to steer his side from looming defeat of 7 for 70 to a nail biting draw at the FTZ Complex, Katunayake. A record 8 sixes and 5 boundaries the former Royal star left hand batsman reeled out on the way to decorating himself in the valour of twin centuries following his first innings 115.
That Rajapaksa scripted the contest in to one of domestic cricket’s most thrilling recent final day culminations given the late charge in dire situation must endure his role in the annals domestic cricket of a master class. That was after BRC had resumed from 5 for 42 and further perished losing 2 more wickets for 28 runs and just 111 on when the Rajapaksa heroics lifted the side from the dumps to 240. Needing 282 to win NCC were hanging on a thread 227 for 9.
SARACENS MILINDA SIRIWARDENA 151-RUN HEROICS IN DRAWN GAME
The contest between table leaders CCC and Saracens SC petered out to a draw on an absorbing final day’s fare at the SSC Grounds. Set a mammoth 311 to win in 81 overs, Saracens batsmen displayed praiseworthy gall to come close to within 28 runs of the target. Full marks to Saracens skipper Milinda Siriwardena who produced a 151-run showmanship off 180 deliveries decked with 10 boundaries and 3 sixes in a strike rate of 83.88. It was great going as he set the match agog having come in with his side on a precarious 2 for 10 and further deteriorate to 3 for 59. But to Siriwardena, the word no was not in his book as he tore into the strong assorted CCC bowling attack pulverising 165 runs for the fourth wicket with Pramod Maduwantha whose 54 off 160 balls contained 5 boundaries.
Siriwardena was last out with the total on 259 as Saracens valiant effort in the race against time fell short by a whisker with the CCC camp surely thanking their stars.
The CCC was not without its heroes with No.5 batsman Lasith Abeyratne coming to the fore in strking a timely unbeaten 101 off 170 decked with 9 boundaries and a six. He put on 128 for the sixth wicket with Lahiru Madushanka whose 81-ball 63 was spiced with 5 boundaries and 3 sixes.
SUPER EIGHT:
AT CCC GROUNDS Ragama CC beat Colts CC by 103 runs
RAGAMA CC 258 (63 Overs) RR: 4.09 128 runs
(S. Fernando 73, N.M. Fernando 57, Udara Jayasundera 30, Akila Dananjaya 4/24, N.G.R.Prabath Jayassuriya 3/76, Santhush Gunathilaka 2/36)
AND 220 (O/N 190/6) (65.2 Overs) RR: 3.36
(R. Silva 67, L. Thirimanne 63,S. Fernando17, N. M. Fernando 13, H.I.A. Jayaratne 12, N.G.R.P. Jayasuriya 5/69, A. Dananjaya 4/44).
COLTS CC 163 (57.3 Overs)RR: 2.83
(S. Gunathilaka 33, N.G.R.P. Jayasuriya 27, A.D. Mathews 22, M.D.K. Perera 20, P.W.S. Dulshan 6/45)
And 212 (55.5 Overs) RR: 3.79
(S. Samarawickrema 69, W.I.A. Fernando 44, M.D.K. Perera 19, A.D. Mathews 18, A. Dananjaya 13, D. Madushanka 10, S.M.K.S. Senarathne 3/28, H.I.A. Jayaratne 3/31, M.A. Aponso 3/48)
AT P.SARA STADIUM: Chilaw Marians beat SL Army SC by 45
CHILAW MARIANS CC 269 82.3 Overs RR: 3.26
(Shehan Jayasuriya 95 , Pulina Tharanga 41)
And 241 (O/N 85/2) (63 Overs) RR: 3.82 85/5 (23 Overs) RR: 3.69
(K.V.A. Adikari 73, S.T. de Silva 30, D.H.A.P. Tharanga 23,Kamindu Mendis 22, Oshada Fernando 19, Rumesh Buddhika 16, Seekuge
Prasanna 6/101)
SRI LANKA ARMY SC 216 (O/N 5/2) (70 Overs) RR: 3.08
(Dinesh Chandimal 62, Asela Gunaratne n.o. 43, Mahesh Kumara 36, Asitha
Fernando 4/71, Nimesh Vimukthi 2/39)
And 249 (36.3 Overs) RR: 6.82
(D.A. Randika 133, W.T. Dilshan 39, D.A.S. Gunaratne 18, H.S. Liyanage 13,
K.D.V. Vimukthi 13, N. Vimukthi 4/23, G.S.N.F.G. Jayasuriya 4/65)
AT THE FTZ COMPLEX, KATUNAYAKE Match Drawn
BRC 316
(Bhanuka Rajapaksa 115, Duvindu S. Tillakaratne n.o. 53,)
And 240 (O/N 42/5) (58.5 Overs) RR: 4.07
(S.D. Withanawasam 15, Mohamed Shiraz n.o.10, Lahiru Kumara 3/31, D. Gunaratne 2/5)
NCC 275 (65.2 Overs) RR: 4.2
(Lahiru Igalagamage 90, Chamila Karunaratnde 93, Duvindu
S. Tillakaratne 6/63, Hashen Ramanayake 2/44)
And 227/9 (44 Overs) RR: 5.15
(L.U. Igalagamage 93, A.K. Perera 37, W.U. Tharanga 26, M.L. Udawatte
18, D.S. Tillakaratne 7/55)
AT SSC Match Drawn
CCC 142 (40.4 Overs) RR: 3.49
(Minod Bhanuka 92, Kasun Rajitha 5/63)
And 351/7 decl. (O/N 307/7) (81 Overs) RR:4.33
(L. Abeyratne 88, Lahiru Madushanka 63, Ron Chandraguptha 39, Minod Bhanuka
37, Kusal Mendis 21, Kasun Rajitha 4/84)
SARACENS SC 183 (O/N148/7) (49.3 Overs) RR: 3.69
(Milinda Siriwardena 89, Chamikara Edirisinghe 34 5, D.S. Thilakaratne 10, Lahiru
Gamage 5/29, Vishwa Fernando 3/37)
And 283/6
(T.A.M. Siriwardena 151, P. Maduwantha 54, G.K. Amarasinghe 21, K.N.A.Bandara 13, E.M.C.D. Edirisinghe n.o. 13, P.A.S.S. Jeewantha n.o. 12, M.V.T.Fernando 3/38, P.A.D.L.R. Sandakan 2/64)
