Saturday Nov 16, 2024
Saturday Nov 16, 2024
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Colts kept alive their chances of winning a major cricket title in their 150th year when they beat Ace Capital CC by five wickets to qualify to meet NCC in the final of the SLC Major Clubs T20 tournament on Sunday at the SSC grounds.
Colts carried too much weight in their line up for Ace Capital CC with the return of former Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews and talented all-rounder Dunith Wellalage into the side for the semi-finals played at the P Sara Oval yesterday.
Ace Capital CC invited to bat first were indebted to a powerful knock of 73 off 52 balls (6 fours, 4 sixes) from Pawantha Weerasinghe which propelled them to a decent total of 147-8 after being 52-4 at the halfway mark.
The innings was put back on track by Weerasinghe and Sakuna Liyanage (20 off 20 balls) who figured in a partnership of 53 off 43 balls. At 132-5 in 18 overs, Ace Capital CC had a chance of going past the 150-run mark, but Dhananjaya Lakshan in a late burst took three wickets in the 19th over including the wicket of Weerasinghe to keep Ace Capital CC to well below the figure.
Lakshan finished with impressive figures of 4/30, and when Colts began their run chase showed his all-round prowess by contributing a hard hit 51 off 32 balls (3 fours, 3 sixes) to see his team over the line with eight balls to spare. Lakshan and Mathews (36 off 27 balls) who was left out of the Sri Lanka 15 for the World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe, figured in an 82-run partnership for the third wicket to give Colts the momentum after they had lost both openers for 17 in the fourth over. Jehan Daniel ended the match with a six to remain 23* off 14 balls (1 four, 2 sixes).
In the first semi-final played for the day Niroshan Dickwella led from the front to take NCC to the final with a sterling innings of 70* off 26 balls against Moors SC. Dickwella in spanking form began the NCC innings with a boundary and hit two more in the first over that cost Moors SC 14 runs. From thereon it was the Dickwella show as he took apart the Moors SC bowling crashing boundaries at will so that at the end of the sixth over NCC were nicely poised at 80-3 with Dickwella having completed his half-century off 18 balls inclusive of eight fours and two sixes.
The loss of key batters Upul Tharanga (5) and Kamil Mishara (15) mattered little to Dickwella who was in sublime form as he took the attack to the opposition. His destructive innings saw NCC whose target was 138 off 13 overs reach it with 19 balls to spare. Dickwella who scored the winning boundary for NCC finished unbeaten on 70 off 26 balls (11 fours, 3 sixes) and with Sahan Arachchige who followed his captain’s aggressive stroke play by scoring an undefeated 44 off 18 balls (3 fours, 4 sixes) put on an unbroken partnership of 63 off 25 balls to see NCC coast home by seven wickets.
Moor SC put into bat first scored at a rapid rate reaching 69-2 in the first power play with Sohan de Livera (37 off 17 balls, 6 fours, 2 sixes) and Janishka Perera (28 off 21 balls, 3 fours, 1 six) setting the pace. At the hallway mark Moors SC reached 94-4 and were poised to post a challenging total when there was an interruption for rain. When the match recommenced it was reduced to a 13-over contest and Moors SC reached 131-5 with contributions of 28 off 14 balls (2 fours, 2 sixes) from Pasindu Sooriyabandara and 19* off 12 balls (1 four , 1 six) from Mohammad Shamaz. Moors SC should consider themselves unlucky with rain proving to be their undoing when they had set their sights of running up a challenging total. NCC were left to score at the rate of 10.07 an over, but Dickwella had other ideas and produced his best form of the tournament to carry his team to the final. – (ST)
Semi-Final Results
Moors SC 131-5 (13) (Sohan de Livera 37, Janishka Perera 28, Pasindu Sooriyabandara 28)
NCC 138-3 (9.5) (Niroshan Dickwella 70*, Sahan Arachchige 44*)
Ace Capital CC 147-8 (20) (Pawantha Weerasinghe 73, Sakuna Liyanage 20, Udith Madushan 2/29, Dhananjaya Lakshan 4/30)
Colts 152-5 (18.4) (Angelo Mathews 36, Dhananjaya Lakshan 51, Jehan Daniel 23*, Sithum Dissanayake 2/29)
