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Friday Nov 15, 2024
Wednesday, 12 February 2020 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Old foes Nawaloka Hospitals and Maliban Biscuits will engage in a grudge match when they clash for the third occasion, this time in the finals of the maiden CBL-Munchee MCA ‘D’ Division 40-Over League Tournament, which will be held on 16 February at the MCA grounds from 10.00 a.m.
They faced each other for the first time in the MCA ‘E’ Division final on 25 May 2019, with Nawaloka narrowly beating Maliban by eight runs at the MCA grounds.
Both teams were then automatically promoted to the ‘D’ Division and drawn into the same group, meeting each other for the second time on 15 December 2019 at Mattegoda, where Maliban trounced Nawaloka by nine wickets.
The battle continues in 2020, with Nawaloka Hospitals under their same captain 36-year-old Samith Ruberu and Maliban under their new Captain 32-year-old Anjula Perera.
Maliban is currently the only unbeaten team in the tournament. Their other wins in the league stage, apart from their triumph over Nawaloka, came against Mode Engineering by three wickets, Colombo Dockyard by six wickets, Hirdaramani by 190 runs and Bodyline by eight wickets. In the knockout stage they beat the Hemas Group by eight wickets in the quarterfinals and trounced DPMC by 92 runs in the semifinals.
Maliban’s top performers are Skipper Anjula Perera, who scored a century in the semifinals against DPMC, Risith Upamala Dias (160 runs), Nethminda Perera (164 runs), Gayashan Jayakody (17 wickets) and Lahiru Dushantha (7.1- 22 -06) who was the match-winning bowler in the semifinals against DPMC.
Apart from their only blemish in the league stage when they lost to Maliban, Nawaloka Hospitals scored wins against Hirdaramani (by 134 runs), MAS Bodyline by 14 runs and Mode Engineering by two runs. Their match against Colombo Dockyard was washed out. In the knockout stage, they beat NDB by 77 runs in the quarterfinals and went on to beat Mode Engineering for the second time by four wickets in the semifinals.
Nawaloka Hospitals’ top performers are Tharindu Suraj (182 runs), Samila Nadeesh (202 runs) and Thiwanka Kakulawala (16 wickets).
Nawaloka Hospitals team: Sumith Ruberu (C), Gayan Prasanga (WK), Tharindu Suraj, Samila Nadeesh, Buddhika Prasad, Deshan Fernando, Thiwanka Kekulawala, Sanka Purna, Nishan Hasaral, Shachinthana Jayawardena, Nisal Ranatunga and K. Sivadharshan.
Maliban Biscuits team: Anjula Perera (C), Gihan Anuruddha (WK), Nadun Darshana, Nethminda Perera, Chamara Rathnayaka, Dilan Chathuranga, Mohammed Silmi, Chathuranga Dewapriya, Venura Gayashan, Lahiru Dushantha, Dilum Fernando, Amila Prasad, Kavindu Bandara, Nalinda Silva and Tharinda Fernando.
