A mere week into the ‘Singer Cup’ Under 19 Schools T20 Tournament 2016, the high-riding St. Peter’s College, Colombo 4 find themselves in the final along with a rather unknown quantity, a giant-slayer in St. Aloysius’ College, Galle in the encounter to be held on April 8th at the Galle International Cricket Stadium.
Road to the Final – In-form St. Peter’s College
St. Peter’s College has been one of the most consistent teams this season. They have already qualified for the Under 19 Division One Three-Day Final (Which will be played after the Sinhala & Tamil New Year) while they won both their two-day and one-day traditional encounters against arch-rivals, St. Joseph’s College during the month of March.
Even though they were knocked out by Trinity College in the quarter-finals of the Limited Overs Tournament, they have been putting up exceptional performances in the shortest-format of the game.
St. Peter’s College were supposed to play Ananda College in the pre-quarter finals but the school from Colombo 10 backed out of the tournament due to various reasons. The Peterites then took on Richmond College in the quarter-final where they won the game convincingly by 19 runs. In the semi-final, they knocked out Prince of Wales’ College by recording a 31-run thrashing at the R. Premadasa International Stadium.
Road to the Final – Giant-killing St. Aloysius’ College
The little-known St. Aloysius’ College qualified for the pre-quarter finals of the Under 19 division one tournament from group A. They could not progress beyond the round of 16 as Royal College knocked them out in the two-day format but when the limited-overs tournament started, they surprised their star-studded home-town rivals, Richmond College in the pre-quarter final but eventually lost the quarter-final to Nalanda College.
As per the Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association (SLSCA) rules, the top 16 teams of the limited-overs tournament automatically book their place in the T20 tournament. They were up against one of the strongest teams in the pre-quarters, Isipathana College but the lads from Galle scraped through to a close 2-wicket win. In the quarter-final game, St. Aloysius’ College slayed another giant, S. Thomas’ College, Mount Lavinia beating them by 13 runs. The biggest surprise came in the semi-final where they defeated the Trinity College, Kandy outfit comfortably by 7 wickets to enter the T20 final. As per reliable sources, this will be their first-ever Schools U19 division one final.
An insight into St. Peter’s College
The right-arm off-spinning all-rounder Vinu Mohotti will lead St. Peter’s College once again. He has been in tremendous form right throughout the season and his excellent performances with both bat and ball in the semi-final against the Cambrians helped the Peterites to secure their finals berth. Off-spinner Taneesha Weerakoon and left-arm spinner Sadish Pathiranage have been immaculate during the middle-overs to tighten the run-flow.
In the batting department, left-handed one-drop batsman Hashan Wanasekara, wicket-keeper batsman, Lakshina Rodrigo and fast-bowling all-rounder, Manelkar De Silva have belted most of the runs for the Peterites this season and they will look to replicate those efforts yet again.
Squad – Vinu Mohotty (Captain), Hashan Wanasekara (Vice Captain), Chandula Jayamanne, Lakshina Rodrigo, Taneesha Weerakoon, Anishka Perea, Ravindu Silva.Sadish Pathiranage, Randel Seneviratne, Dinal Jayakody, Chathura Obeysekara, Sachin Fernando, Jeramy Fernando, Manelka De Silva, Santhush Gunatilake, Ranmith Jayasena, Ashanth Malkea, Shelon Rodrigo, Inesh Fernando, Vinul Gunawardhane, Malinda Warnapura (Head Coach), Sanath Chinthaka (M.I.C.)
An insight into St. Aloysius’ College
The middle-order batsman Gihan Niroshan will skipper the St. Aloysius’ College outfit. The right-arm fast-bowler Sajith Sankalpa has been the main strike-bowler for the Aloysians while left-arm spinner Hareen Buddhila and off-spinner Amila Ekanayake have become a potent threat to every batting lineup they’ve come up against with their accurate bowling.
One of the most experienced batsmen in the schools circuit, Navindu Nirmal who represented Galle Cricket Club in the recently concluded first-class tournament will be the main player to watch out for. His elegant stroke-making ability and excellent wicket-keeping has been nothing short of brilliant. Opener Prabodha Guruge and middle-order batsman Ashen Bandara have the ability to clear the ropes or to maneuver the field.
Squad – Gihan Niroshan (Captain), Sajith Sankalpa (Vice Captain), Navindu Nirmal, Ashen Bandara, Ravindu Sanjana, Lakmal Prabashwara, Hareen Buddila, Prabodha Guruge Madhusanka, Niluksha Dulmina, Yassas Pramodya, Ashen Kavinda, Amila Ekanayake, Imalka Sakun, Anuja Shehan, Kavika Dilshan, Malaka De Silva (Coach), Jagath Semasinghe (POG/MIC)
Final Say
The tournament organizers have rescheduled the game to Galle International Stadium with the intention of bringing a large crowd to this final. The Aloysians will be pleased to see this final being played at their home town and certainly have an added advantage. They do not fear the name of their opponent, they only concentrate on their game and will be itching to make the final giant-slay on Friday.
From the Peterite point of view, they were beaten by St. Benedict’s College in last year’s T20 final and will look to go one step ahead this year. They are aware of what the St. Aloysius’ team can do and will look to leave no stone unturned in the final.
