The Jaffna Stallions proved that there are the team to beat in the LPL by recording the 3rd straight win by 54 runs yesterday (1) against Kandy Tuskers courtesy of another monumental effort by Thisara Perera.
The skipper of Jaffna Stallions Thisara Perera won the toss and had no hesitation in batting first after seeing what happened in the previous match on the same pitch.
Team Changes
Jaffna Stallions | In – Suranga Lakmal | Out – Binura Fernando
Kandy Tuskers| No Changes
Déjà vu – Brittle top order
If you remember the last game between the Stallions and the Viiking you would know exactly what happened. Stallions’ top order collapsed once again as they were reduced to 4/49 in 9.3 overs.
Photos: Jaffna Stallions vs Kandy Tuskers – Match 8 | LPL 2020
The pressure was created by experienced seamer Munaf Patel up front with a brilliant spell inside the powerplay, bowling 3 overs for just 14 runs. From the other end, Asela Gunaratne foxed batsmen with changes of pace to pick two crucial wickets of Minod Bhanuka and Tom Moores.
Déjà vu – Captain fantastic Perera
Skipper Perera walked out to bat when the score was 4 for 49 and batted like he has been batting there for 2 days. (He was unbeaten in the last game so technically he was) Just like his last game, he showed no respect for the opposition as he made a 28-ball 68 including 5 sixes while the bowlers fed him his favourite dish; in the slot and on the full.
While that carnage was happening from the other end, Dhananjaya de Silva didn’t let Perera take the spotlight by himself. So, De Silva managed to replicate whatever Perera did but with a stylish upright stance and with more guile. He raced to 61 from just 38 balls including 3 sixes.
The pair added 118 runs in just 47 balls to guide Stallions to 185 which is more than a respectable total considering the place they were after 10 overs.
Déjà vu – poor Nuwan Pradeep
Unfortunately, poor fielding was on display again from Kandy Tuskers as they dropped a few catches and gave away free runs to the Stallions. Nuwan Pradeep was at the receiving end of poor fielding by his teammates again just like he was against Dambulla Viiking where he went for 17 runs in single over due to poor fielding and lost an opportunity of taking a wicket.
This time, in the 17th over of the match, one drop catch of Thisara Perera and two misfields which resulted in boundaries ultimately cost him 17 runs overall in the over. In fact, Pradeep is the biggest victim due to drop catches in this tournament as 4 catches off his bowling have been dropped by Kandy Tuskers.
However, Asela Gunaratne deserves a mention as he managed to pull off an extraordinary catch at the boundary line to dismiss Chaturanga de Silva which was a rare good piece of fielding in a tournament plagued by mishaps.
Déjà vu – Kusal Perera’s fatal pull
Chasing a target of 186, Tuskers skipper Kusal Perera was dismissed in similar fashion as the last game, as he pulled one to deep square leg just to pick the fielder out when he was on 4. This is the 3rd time Kusal Perera has been dismissed trying to pull.
After Perera’s dismissal vice-captain Kusal Mendis managed to produce a cameo (20 off 9) but couldn’t continue as Tuskers would have liked till the end, trying one too many shots.
Déjà vu – Taylor the Craftsman
Veteran Zimbabwean Brendon Taylor showed his class with the bat proving his worth once again for Tuskers. He had to take the responsibility of the middle order again just like the last game and he did that with class. After his half century against Gladiators, he made another crafty innings this time, but lost out on a well-deserved fifty by 4 runs.
Shanaka, Patel and the leggies earn win for Viiking
With Taylor’s dismissal, the chase went nowhere as the Stallions bowling unit restricted the opposition to just 131 runs. The stars with the ball for the Stallions were Usman Shinawari and Wanindu Hasaranga who shared 5 wickets for just 34 runs. Captain Perera was on the board again with another 2 wickets to his name in addition to the three catches he took.
With this win, Stallions continue to top the points table with 3 wins while Tuskers are just ahead of Gladiators in fourth position with 1 victory out of 4 fixtures.
The next match day of the tournament will be another double header as Galle Gladiators, Jaffna Stallions and Dambulla Viiking, Kandy Tuskers will go head-to-head on Thursday (03) at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium.
Keep it logged on to ThePapare.com for all the news, updates, videos and photos of the Lanka Premier League 2020.
Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avishka Fernando | run out (Seekkuge Prasanna) | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 60.00 |
| Minod Bhanuka | st Kusal Janith b Asela Gunarathne | 15 | 23 | 2 | 0 | 65.22 |
| Dhananjaya de Silva | c Nuwan Pradeep b Naveen ul Haq | 61 | 38 | 5 | 3 | 160.53 |
| Tom Moores | b Asela Gunarathne | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 66.67 |
| Shoaib Malik | run out (Kamindu Mendis) | 9 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 128.57 |
| Thisara Perera | c Seekkuge Prasanna b Naveen ul Haq | 68 | 28 | 5 | 5 | 242.86 |
| Wanindu Hasaranga | c Dilruwan Perera b Nuwan Pradeep | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 125.00 |
| Chathuranga de Sliva | c Seekkuge Prasanna b Naveen ul Haq | 5 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Usman Shinwari | not out | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Suranga Lakmal | not out | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | 9 (b 0 , lb 1 , nb 2, w 6, pen 0) |
| Total | 185/8 (20 Overs, RR: 9.25) |
| Did not bat | Duanne Olivier, |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Munaf Patel | 3 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 4.67 | |
| Dilruwan Perera | 3 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 10.00 | |
| Asela Gunarathne | 3 | 0 | 20 | 2 | 6.67 | |
| Naveen ul Haq | 4 | 0 | 44 | 3 | 11.00 | |
| Seekkuge Prasanna | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 9.00 | |
| Kamindu Mendis | 2 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 11.50 | |
| Nuwan Pradeep | 4 | 0 | 44 | 1 | 11.00 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kusal Janith | c Minod Bhanuka b Usman Shinwari | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | c Duanne Olivier b Usman Shinwari | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 120.00 |
| Kusal Mendis | c Dhananjaya de Silva b Suranga Lakmal | 20 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 222.22 |
| Brendon Taylor | c Thisara Perera b Duanne Olivier | 46 | 32 | 4 | 3 | 143.75 |
| Kamindu Mendis | c Suranga Lakmal b Thisara Perera | 9 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 90.00 |
| Asela Gunarathne | lbw b Thisara Perera | 31 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 129.17 |
| Seekkuge Prasanna | c Thisara Perera b Wanindu Hasaranga | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Dilruwan Perera | c Minod Bhanuka b Usman Shinwari | 9 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 112.50 |
| Naveen ul Haq | c Usman Shinwari b Wanindu Hasaranga | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 133.33 |
| Nuwan Pradeep | c Thisara Perera b Suranga Lakmal | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Munaf Patel | not out | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | 1 (b 1 , lb 0 , nb 0, w 0, pen 0) |
| Total | 131/10 (17.1 Overs, RR: 7.63) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Usman Shinwari | 3 | 0 | 17 | 3 | 5.67 | |
| Suranga Lakmal | 3 | 0 | 27 | 2 | 9.00 | |
| Chathuranga de Sliva | 2 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 15.00 | |
| Duanne Olivier | 3 | 0 | 30 | 1 | 10.00 | |
| Thisara Perera | 2.1 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 4.29 | |
| Wanindu Hasaranga | 4 | 0 | 17 | 2 | 4.25 | |
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