Dickwella blitz helps SL ‘A’ draw ODI series
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Niroshan Dickwella came back to form with a 92-ball knock of 111
Opener Niroshan Dickwella hit a sparkling century as the touring Sri Lanka ‘A’ Team came from behind to beat India ‘A’ Team by 7 wickets in the fifth and final Unofficial ODI worked off at the Nehru Stadium in Hubli, India yesterday.
The aggressive wicket-keeper batsman who was axed from the Sri Lanka World Cup Squad smashed 111 from just 93 balls as the visitors overtook their opponents score of 259 runs with more than two overs to spare.
Sri Lanka ‘A’ also had the satisfaction of drawing the five-match Unofficial ODI series 2-2 (one no-result) after conceding the Unofficial Test series to India ‘A’ 0-2.
Man-of-the-Match Dickwella regained his form at the correct time as the dynamic left-hander hoisted three sixes and struck a dozen of boundaries while sharing an opening stand of 165 runs with Sangeeth Cooray in just 26.3 overs.
However, Sri Lanka ‘A’ lost both openers in the space of two overs before Shehan Jayasuriya and Skipper Ashan Priyanjan added the finishing touches with an unfinished fourth-wicket partnership of 65 runs.
Earlier, India ‘A’ put into bat were restricted to 259 runs following some disciplined bowling from Akila Dananjaya and Priyanjan who claimed two wickets from just three overs.
Opener Ruturaj Gaikwad carried his excellent form with another splendid half century which included eight boundaries.
Scoreboard
India ‘A’
R. Gaikwad lbw b Jayasuriya 74
P. Chopra b Karunaratne 12
A. Singh c Sandakan b Jayaratne 29
R. Bhui c Priyanjan b Sandakan 38
D. Hooda c Priyanjan b Dananjaya 37
I. Kishan c Priyanjan b Dananjaya 20
W. Sundar c Cooray b Priyanjan 15
S. Gopal b Dananjaya 7
M. Markande run out (Sandakan) 23
T. Deshpande not out 0
S. Warrier b Priyanjan 0
Extras (w4) 4
TOTAL (all out, 50 overs) 259
Fall-of-wickets: 1-25 (Chopra), 2-84 (Singh), 3-144 (Gaikwad), 4-171 (Bhui), 5-211 (Hooda), 6-215 (Kishan), 7-231 (Gopal), 8-246 (Sundar), 9-259 (Markande), 10-259 (Warrier)
Bowling: C. Karunaratne 5-0-19-1, L. Kumara 6-0-33-0, D. Shanaka 1-0-7-0, I. Jayaratne 5-0-35-1, A. Dananjaya 10-0-51-3, L. Sandakan 10-0-52-1, S. Jayasuriya 10-0-39-1, A. Priyanjan 3-0-23-2
Sri Lanka ‘A’
N. Dickwella st Kishan b Gopal 111
S. Cooray st Kishan b Gopal 61
B. Rajapaksa lbw b Gopal 7
S. Jayasuriya not out 45
A. Priyanjan not out 33
Extras (w3) 3
TOTAL (3 wkts, 47.4 overs) 260
Fall-of-wickets: 1-165 (Dickwela), 2-176 (Cooray), 3-185 (Rajapaksa)
Did not bat: C. Karunaratne, A. Dananjaya, I. Jayaratne, L. Kumara, L. Sandakan, D. Shanaka
Bowling: W. Sundar 10-0-47-0, S. Warrier 4-0-32-0, D. Hooda 8-0-34-0, T. Deshpande 3.4-0-34-0, M. Markande 10-0-55-0, S. Gopal 10-0-49-3, P. Chopra 2-0-9-0