John Keells prevail by five runs on Duckworth/Lewis
John Keells prevailed by five runs on the Duckworth/Lewis method over Sampath Bank in a high scoring match of the 21st MCA Division ‘A’ Limited Over cricket encounter played at the Thurstan ground yesterday.
The foundation for their win was laid by Ishan Jayaratne and Janaka Gunaratne, who both cracked half tons helping John Keells amass a score of 298 for 9.
Ishan made a top score of 66 in only 49 balls that included five boundaries and four sixes while Janaka chipped in with a 52. The pair came to the rescue of the side when they were struggling on 155 for 6 in the 35th over adding a valuable 105 runs for the seventh wicket.
HNB batsman Kosala Kulasekara drives during his knock of 58 against Seylan Bank - Pic by Mangala Weerasekara
Sampath Bank in their run chase was sent off to a flying start by openers Samin Kandanarachchi and Rumesh Buddika who together put on 56 before they were separated in the 11th over.
However in-form Kaushal Silva struggled while Samin did the scoring in a brief 36-run stand for the second wicket before Kaushal was dismissed and Samin followed having made a brisk 55 in 50 balls with the side on 98 for 3 in the 16th over.
Jeewan Mendis and Thilina Kandamby made steady progress with the pair adding a useful 67 runs for the fifth wicket and this was followed by another fruitful 69-run partnership for the seventh wicket between Thilina and Dilhara Lokuhettige.
Sampath Bank was strongly placed on 253 for 7 in the 44th but bad light, after the 45th over, saw the match being called off ending in a close win for John Keells.
Defending champions MAS Active after undergoing some anxious moments recovered to end with a challenging score of 256 against MAS Unichela in the morning session of play at De Zoysa in Moratuwa.
MAS Active’s recovery came through T.N. Sampath who made a 126-ball knock of 107 inclusive of eight boundaries and two sixes. Sampath had the support of Sameera de Zoysa as the duo put on an 85-run stand for the sixth wicket when they were in a bad position of 135 for 5 at the halfway stage of the innings.
But in the end the score posted by MAS Active turned out to be insufficient as Kusal Perera who a knock of 65 and Mahela Udawatte making an unbeaten 85 helped MAS Unichela reach the target in the 47th over.
Tharanga Paranavithana’s knock of 97 in 82 balls with 13 boundaries and four sixes helped Seylan Bank to record an easy seven wicket win over HNB in another match of the same tournament played at Braybrooke Place.
Seylan Bank in pursuit of 180 runs for victory was given a sound start of 108 by openers Tharanga Paranavithana and Kanchana Gunawardena which enabled them to seal the game with minimum of fuss.
Earlier in the day Charith Jayampathy’s five wicket haul laid the foundation for Seylan Bank for an easy run chase as HNB folded up for a score of just 179 runs.
For HNB only Kosala Kulasekara was able to put in some resistance as he made a top score of 58 in his sides score of 179. Charith ended with impressive figures of 5 for 28 with Gayan Sirisoma and Kaushalya Weeraratne sharing four wickets.
At Thurstan: John Keells beat Sampath Bank by 5 runs on D/L
John Keells 298 for 9 in 50 overs (Ishan Jayaratne 66, Janaka Gunaratne 52, Roshen Silva 44, Shehan Jayasuriya 29, Milinda Siriwardena 23, Denuwan Rajakaruna 20: Dilhara Lokuhettige 3 for 41, Dasun Shanaka 2 for 41, Nuwan Perera 2 for 59)
Sampath Bank 259 for 7 in 45 overs (Samin Kandanarachchi 55, Jeewan Mendis 44, Dilhara Lokuhettige 38, Rumesh Buddika 25, Thilina Kandamby 50n.o.: Kanishka Alvitigala 3 for 54, Janaka Gunaratne 2 for 43)
At Moratuwa: MAS Unichela beat MAS Active by 5 wickets
MAS Active 256 in 46.1 overs (T.N. Sampath 107, Sameera de Zoysa 33, Geeth Alwis 24, Andy Solomons 23: Malinga Bandara 4 for 40, T.M. Dilshan 2 for 48)
MAS Unichela 257 for 5 in 47.5 overs (Kusal Perera 65, Prasanna Jayawardana 37, Lahiru Jayaratne 25, T.M. Dilshan 21, Mahela Udawatte 85 n.o.: Geeth Alwis 2 for 27, Sachithra Serasinghe 2 for 30)
At Braybrooke Place: HNB beat Seylan Bank by 7 wickets
HNB 179 in 48.3 overs (Kosala Kulasekara 58, Chamalka Rodrigo 21, Hashan Goonetilleke 18, Ashen Fernando 15, Malinda Warnapura 15: Charith Jayampathy 5 for 28, Gayan Sirisoma 2 for 36, Kaushalya Weeraratne 2 for 40)
Seylan Bank 180 for 3 in 30.2 overs (Tharanga Paranavithana 97, Ian Daniel 25, Kanchana Gunawardena 24: Sajeewa Weerakoon 3 for 23)
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