Peterite Santhush slams swashbuckling double ton
The Peterite top order batsman snatched the best knock recorded by a schoolboy cricketer this season - Pic by Priyantha Wickramaarachchi
Santhush Gunatileke slammed a career-best unbeaten 252 to help St. Peter’s College to a first innings win over Ananda College in their U-19 cricket encounter concluded at Ananda Mawatha yesterday.
Resuming from their overnight score of 102 for 1, Ananda posted a mammoth score of 423 for 3 declared in reply to Ananda’s 213 runs on the back of the swashbuckling century from the tall right-hander.
Gunathileke’s knock, the highest this season so far came off just 244 balls as he plummeted the Ananda bowling and sent them on a leather hunt to hit 29 boundaries and eight towering sixes.
Santhush was also involved in two century partnerships with the first being 174 runs for the second wicket with Bhanuka de Silva and the other of 181 runs for the third wicket with Ranmith Jayasena. Ananda batting the second time ended the day on 166 for 7 as the match ended in a draw.
Ananda 213 (Kavindu Gimhana 53, Janidu Jayawardena 48, Kalana Wijesiri 33, Daminda Reshan 27: Ruvin Seneviratne 4 for 48, Santhush Gunatileke 3 for 45) and 166 for 7 (Kanishka Ranthilakage 90, Kavindu Gimhana 31: Ranmith Jayasena 3 for 13, Kanishka Maduwantha 2 for 49, Ruvin Seneviratne 2 for 55)
St Peter’s (102/1 overnight) 423 for 3 declared (Ranmith Jayasena 80, Bhanuka de Silva 63, Santhush Gunatileke 252 n.o.)