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Pathum Nissanka
Avishka Fernando
By Champika Fernando in Abu Dhabi
It may have been against one of the weakest teams in the competition, but up-and-coming batsman Pathum Nissanka’s 76 against Papua New Guinea (PNG) is likely to have booked him a place at the top of the order ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup starting Sunday.
Brought into the side at the eleventh hour in the search for an able partner for Kusal Janith Perera, Nissanka hammered 76 in quick time to send a strong message to the team’s think-tank.
With senior batter Dinesh Chandimal doing little in his last three outings in the bid for the vacant slot, the selectors will now turn to young Nissanka to shoulder the burden at the top of the order at the World Cup. His promotion is more out of desperation as selectors are grappling with many answered questions since shutting the door on several seniors and the suspension of Niroshan Dickwella, Danushka Gunathilaka and Kusal Mendis, three automatic choices in white-ball cricket.
Nissanka’s innings included six boundaries and two sixes off 58 balls, maintaining a healthy strike rate of over 131. At 23, Nissanka, a prolific run accumulator in domestic circuit, has appeared in only four T20I games in his short international career, and bigger tests await the youngster as the tournament progresses.
He shared 103 runs for the third wicket with Avishka Fernando, who seems to be relishing his new-found freedom in the vital number four batting slot. He hammered his third 50-plus score in four innings, hitting 61 off 37 balls with four sixes and two boundaries as Sri Lanka batted first in their practice game, scoring 162/5 in Abu Dhabi.
Fernando, who has had a poor run as opener, has been thrown into the middle order as Sri Lanka looks to steady the fragile batting order. He has kept the faith of the selectors by scoring consistently at a good pace.
Dhananjaya de Silva, who was also promoted to the top of the order, continues his miserable form in T20 cricket, lasting just five balls, while Charith Asalanka (8), the first-choice number three batter, and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (2) fell cheaply. It would be interesting to see who will bat at number three, a position wide open in the side with no player seems to have secured the spot yet.
The Sri Lankan bowlers kept the PNG batters in the check, bowling tightly and economically as they were restricted for 123/7 – giving Sri Lanka a 39-run win. Fiery fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera and spinner Wanindu Hasaranga were key contributors to Sri Lanka’s victory, not only picking wickets but also by giving little room to score runs.
Together they took four wickets – two apiece – but what was more impressive was the economy of their bowling at five and four respectively. Chamika Karunaratne, skipper Dasun Shanaka and spinner Maheesh Theekshana also shared one wicket each as they halted a PNG march to victory. For PNG, Assad Vala hit 51 while left-arm seamer Kabua Morea claimed 4/25.
In another match, Ireland shocked Bangladesh winning by 33 runs, while Scotland warmed up in style with a 19-run win over Namibia.
Chief scores:
Sri Lanka: 162/5 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 76, Avishka Fernando 61; Kabua Morea 4/25) beat PNG: 123/7 in 20 overs (Tony Ura 26, Assad Vala 51; Dushmantha Chameera 2/20, Wanindu Hasaranga 2/16) by 39 runs
