My fourth day’s report on Asian Cricket Council website: Sri Lanka stop spirited Nepal in high scoring contest
By K.R. Nayar
Sri
Lanka displayed their batting might through centuries from Sadisha Rajapaksa
and Chamindu Wickramasinghe to post a huge total of 322 for 4 in 50 overs.
Nepal chased the target valiantly and scored 262 runs in 47.5 overs. Sri Lanka
won by 60 runs in this high scoring encounter on the fourth day of the ACC
Under-19 Asia Cup at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
Sri Lanka’s opener Wickramasinghe cracked 111 off 126 balls with eight boundaries and two sixes while one-down batsman Rajapaksa scored 131 off 119 balls with 11 boundaries and two sixes. Nepal chased through Arjun Saud, who top scored with 64 runs. Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana and leg spinner Raveen De Silva restricted Nepal’s innings with three wickets each.
Sri Lanka elected to bat
after winning the toss. Openers Wickramasinghe and Shevon Daniel put on 39 runs
in 10.1 overs before Daniel got caught and bowled by Nepal skipper Dev Khanal
for 17. Rajapaksa joined Wickramasinghe and steadily increased the run rate. In
the 16th over Wickramasinghe hit two boundaries
off Sher Malla to steer the total past 75 runs.
Sadisha Rajapaksa celebrates his century with Chamindu Wickramasinghe. Photo: ACC
Rajapaksa used his feet well to pick the gaps and scored at a steady pace.
Wickramasinghe was the first to reach his half century in 74 balls. At the half
way mark, Sri Lanka were placed at 126 for 1.
Wickramasinghe
lifted Malla over long-on for a mighty six in the 26th over. Rajapaksa hit a six off
Basir Ahmad and Sri Lanka went past the 200 run mark in the 36th over. Rajapaksa
was the first to reach his century in 93 balls. Wickramasinghe too followed
reaching his century in 119 deliveries.
Mazhar Khan, GM of Sharjah Cricket Stadium presents the Player of the Match award to Sadisha Rajapaksa. Photo: ACC
Sri Lanka raced towards the 300 run
mark with Wickramasinghe hitting his second six off Khanal. Rajapaksa hit
consecutive boundaries off Mohammad Aadil Alam in the 43rd over.
Then Aadil Alam struck in the same over ending Wickramasinghe’s knock of 111.
The pair had put on a whopping 223 runs partnership off 197 deliveries.
Bibek Yadav gave away only six runs in the 44th over while Aadil Alam’s
next over yielded just seven runs. Skipper Dunit Wellalage hit successive
boundaries off Yadav and steered Sri Lanka past the 300 run mark in the 48th over.
Rajapaksa’s innings of 131 ended when he went for a slog shot exposing his
wicket to Aadil Alam and got bowled. He had also added another 39 runs with Wellalage
for the third wicket. Wellalage remained unbeaten on 34 off 24 balls with three
boundaries and a six to help Sri Lanka post 322 for 4 in 50 overs.
Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana bowls with his sling action. Photo: ACC
Nepal’s openers
Dev Khanal and Santosh Karki began confidently, refusing to be
affected by the formidable target. Karki played
some lovely shots hitting Yasiru Rodrigo for a six and picking boundaries
through the gaps. Soon Khanal too began to score freely hitting
Pathirana for two boundaries in the ninth over. The pair put on 50 runs in the
first ten overs.
Pathirana, who has
a sling bowling action similar to the legendary Sri Lankan pacer Lasith
Malinga, yorked Karki and got him out for 34 runs. Karki and Khanal had put on
59 runs. At the score on 81, Khanal who was batting
confidently , lifted leg spinner Raveen De Silva to mid-wicket for Rajapaksa to
produce a brilliant catch. Khanal’s 28 came off 45 ball with four boundaries.
Basant Karki, who joined Nepal’s wicketkeeper batsman Arjun Saud became another
De Silva victim for 1. When De Silva also removed Bibek Kumar Ranamagar, Nepal
slipped to 92 for 4 in 22.2 overs.
Basir Ahmad and
Saud refused to be affected by the fall of quick wickets and went for their
strokes. Both batsmen hit sixes off De Silva who bowled the 30th over. When Wellalage introduced
himself, Ahmad hit him for his second six. Off spinner Shevon Daniel, who was
introduced for the 37th over, provided the
breakthrough with his fifth delivery by having Ahmad caught by Wanuja Sahan for
43. Ahmad’s knock came off 51 balls with three boundaries and two sixes. He had
put on 75 runs off 87 balls with Saud.
Bibek Yadav joined Saud, who reached his half century in 73
balls. Yadav hit Sahan, who bowled the 40th over, for two
boundaries and two sixes to take 21 runs off that over. Saud’s knock came to an
end when Anjala Bandara ran him out for 64. His knock which came off 80 balls
had three boundaries and two sixes, and he had put on 41 runs with Yadav for
the sixth wicket.
Pathirana bounced at Gulhsan Kumar and had him caught and bowled for 13.
Though Dunith Nethmika got Mohamad Aadil Alam out for 7, Yadav continued to
score and Nepal went past the 250 mark in the 45th over. His
innings too ended in a run out following a direct hit from the bowler Rodrigo
for 46 off 29 balls with three boundaries and three sixes. Pathirana picked
this third wicket by dismissing Sher Malla to end Nepal’s challenge.
Rajapaksa, who was adjudged the Player of the Match, said: “I am happy to have
contributed to my team’s success. I enjoyed batting with Wickramasinghe who
also hit a century and helped our team get a big score. Though I have got many
centuries in school’s cricket, this is my first century in such a high level
tournament.”
Sri Lankan captain
Dunith Wellalage feels his team batted and bowled equally well. “It was good to
have two of our batsmen get centuries and our pacer Pathirana also bowled very
well. Three of Nepal’s batsmen too batted very well, and overall it was a very
good game especially before our match against Bangladesh. We want to improve more
and perform well in the coming matches.”
Nepal captain Dev Khanal said he was proud of his team’s performance. “Though
we lost I want to give all credit to our team for the excellent fight we put up
in this match. It is a big boost for us to have given a big fight against a
Test playing nation. We have shown that Nepalese are fighters and we want to
keep producing such performances in the future too.”
Brief score:
Sri
Lanka Under-19 bt Nepal Under-19 by 60 runs.
Sri Lanka
Under-19: 322 for 4 in 50 overs (Chamindu Wickramasinghe 111, Sadisha Rajapaksa
131, Dunit Wellalage 34n.o, Mohammad Aadil Alam 2 for 46) Nepal Under-19: 262
in 47.5 overs (Santosh Karki 34, Dev Khanal 28, Arjun Saud 64, Basir Ahamad 43,
Bibek Yadav 46, Matheesha Pathirana 3 for 49, Raveen De Silva 3 for 35) Player
of the Match: Sadisha Rajapaksa
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