The Josephians recorded a stunning come-from-behind win to be crowned champions of the All-island ‘U17 division 1’ cricket tournament, when they beat St. Sebastian’s, Moratuwa by 77 runs in the final at the BRC on Wednesday(19).
The Josephian skipper Ashian Daniel won the toss and elected to bat first at the Burgher Recreation Club in Colombo, but the Josephians were put in trouble early on by the Sebastianites skipper Janishka Perera (4/46).
Johanne de Silva and Dineth Jayakody got starts but couldn’t convert them into big scores, as Janishka Perera troubled the Josephian top order with seam and swing.
Thadula De Silva then joined the party for the Sebastianites with a three wicket haul, with the Josephians quickly losing their way been reduced to 131/8.
Then came the game-changing partnership between experienced campaigner Lakshan Gamage and Sheran Fonseka. Gamage went berserk during this partnership as the duo added an invaluable 88 runs for the 9th wicket, before Fonseka was dismissed for a fighting 24.
Gamage who was the last man to be dismissed fell short of a deserving century by just 3 runs, but not before he struck 5 fours and 7 towering sixes in his 66 ball knock to entertain the crowd at BRC.
The Sebastianites replied strongly with a 66-run stand for the opening wicket, but it was only Dunith Jayathunga who actually threatened the Josephian bowlers with a composed 68. His dismissal sparked a dramatic collapse as St. Sebastian’s were eventually bowled out for 158, handing the Josephians a much deserved 77 run victory.
Full Scorecard
St. Joseph's College
235/10
(47.1 overs)
Result
St.Sebastian's College
158/10
(45.1 overs)
SJC won by 77 runs
St. Joseph's College’s Innings
| Batting | R | B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J de Zilva | c S Prasanna b J Perera | 24 | 20 | |||
| Shevaan Rassool | c C Mendis b J Perera | 13 | 12 | |||
| Yesith Rupasinghe | c T de Silva b C Mendis | 13 | 26 | |||
| Dineth Jayakody | c S Prasanna b T de Silva | 21 | 30 | |||
| Dunith Wellalage | c & b N Fernando | 7 | 33 | |||
| Miranga Wickramage | c J Perera b T de Silva | 4 | 6 | |||
| Lakshan Gamage | c N fernando b J Perera | 97 | 66 | |||
| Dinal Anuradha | c & b N Fernando | 8 | 23 | |||
| Ashain Daniel | lbw by T de Silva | 3 | 14 | |||
| Sheran Fonseka | c D Jayathunga b J Perera | 24 | 51 | |||
| A de Alwis | not out | 0 | 2 | |||
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J Perera | 7.1 | 0 | 46 | 4 | 6.48 |
| S Perera | 7 | 0 | 45 | 0 | 6.43 |
| C Mendis | 10 | 2 | 24 | 1 | 2.40 |
| T de Silva | 10 | 0 | 44 | 3 | 4.40 |
| N Fernando | 10 | 1 | 46 | 2 | 4.60 |
| D Fernando | 3 | 1 | 27 | 0 | 9.00 |
St.Sebastian's College’s Innings
| Batting | R | B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Savindu Rodrigo | b A Daniel | 16 | 50 | |||
| Dunith Jayathunga | c S Fonseka b A Daniel | 68 | 99 | |||
| Sukitha Prasanna | c L Gamage b A Daniel | 4 | 20 | |||
| Bihanga Mendis | lbw by Y Rupasinghe | 2 | 12 | |||
| Janishka Perera | c D Anuradha b A Daniel | 30 | 61 | |||
| Nadeera Fernando | b D Wellalage | 2 | 7 | |||
| Sasika Perera | b D Wellalage | 0 | 2 | |||
| Thadula de Silva | st S Rassool b D Wellalage | 0 | 1 | |||
| Saveen Fernando | c Y Rupasinghe b A Daniel | 13 | 16 | |||
| Dulara Fernando | lbw by M Wickramage | 0 | 3 | |||
| C Mendis | not out | 0 | 0 | |||
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakshan Gamage | 8 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 4.75 |
| Ashan de Alwis | 5 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 3.60 |
| Dunith Wellalage | 10 | 0 | 27 | 3 | 2.70 |
| Johanne de Silva | 3 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 4.67 |
| Ashain Daniel | 9.1 | 3 | 14 | 5 | 1.54 |
| Miranga Wickramage | 8 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 2.50 |
| Yesitha Rupasinghe | 2 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 10.00 |