The much awaited limited over Cricket encounter between two leading Cricket-playing schools in the North Western Province was staged yesterday, at the scenic Welagedara Cricket Stadium, and the relentless Maliyadeva side managed to outmuscle their Archrivals – St. Anne’s College.
St. Anne’s captain Buddhima Nandasiri won consecutive the tosses and decided to bat first with the aim of having a good total and the opportunity to apply pressure on Maliyadeva. Without wasting any time, the decision was questioned by the cracking Maliyadeva bowlers.
The Annites’ Skipper’s disappointing big match run continued as he was out without scoring by having consecutive ducks. That first wicket fell to an excellent outswing delivery bowled by Olitha Neranjan for a caught behind. Afterwards, Maliyadeva launched a disciplined bowling attack to put immense pressure on the batting side. Their valiant effort paid off as Maliyadeva managed to get 4 wickets just for 6 runs within 5.1 overs.
With all the pressure on the Annites, they were determined to have a good partnership and were able to bat for another 10 overs without losing a wicket. After doing the hard work, Chamith Sesanjana went for a big hit and it ended up giving an easy catch.
With a run rate of 1.5, the Anites inning was going nowhere after losing 5 top order batsmen for just 23 runs. Therefore Kushan Subhasinghe decided to counter attack the bowlers by changing the gear. Eventually, he was the top scorer for the St. Anne’s inning by scoring a quick 46 runs with 3 fours and a couple of maximums.
Sanuja Dasanayake also launched a power hitting attack with the tail-enders where he accumulated 29 runs with a couple of sixes and a four. His brave batting helped St. Anne’s score to propel towards a three figure mark.
However, the Maliyadeva bowlers displayed a clinical performance and were able to bowl out the Annites for just 102 runs. Dimath Abeysinghe, Sonal Dinusha, Dimantha Arusha and Olitha Neranjan shared two wickets each, while the best bowler of the two day match, Thaveesha, had to satisfy with a one wicket.
After posting an under par score, the Annites looked for some early wickets to have some hope about the match. However, Maliyadeva started things slowly but steadily without taking any risk. The Maliyadeva openers laid a solid foundation for the inning by scoring 30+ runs in 10 overs without losing a wicket.
When the score was at 32, St. Annes got their first breakthrough as the Vice Captain Dimath Abeysinghe was caught by the extra cover fielder. Then Pahasara Bandara came on to the crease and formed an excellent partnership with the set batsman, Rajitha Novodya. It was the only 50+ partnership of the match.
Sri Lankan U-17 cricketer Rajitha managed to show his class by scoring the only half century of the low-scoring encounter. He read the game situations superbly, started things slowly and then picked up the pace to his inning. Rajitha scored 55 runs with four stylish boundaries and a cracking six with a straight drive over the long off region.
At one stage, the Maliyadeva score read as 83/1 and St. Anne’s had something to celebrate as they came back and managed to pick another 3 quick wickets for just 10 runs, giving a glimmer of hope for their supporters.
However, the game never got to an anti-climax and Sandeepa Bandara and Dimantha Arusha managed to pinch singles until they were one stroke away from the target. Maliyadeva crossed the winning margin with a boundary that came from a glorious pull shot by Dimantha Arusha.
Shehan Kumara was the leading wicket taker of the losing side (3 wickets), and Yasmin Jayasundara managed to pick a one wicket.
Rajitha Navodya was adjudged as the Man of the Match for a stumping, a caught behind and most importantly, for his anchoring 55 runs.
St, Anne’s 102 all out 42.1 Overs
- Kushan Subasinghe 46, Sanuja Dissanayake 29
- Sonal Ashwin 22/2, Dimath Abeysinghe 18/2, Olitha Neranjan 19/2, Dimantha Arusha 9/2,Thaveesha Balasooriya 25/1
Maliyadeva 105/4
- Rajitha Navodya 55, Pahasara Bandara 18, Dimath Abeysinghe 10
- Shehan Kumara 18/3, Yashmin Jayasundara 33/1
Special Awards
- Fastest 25 runs – Sanuja Dissanayake (SACK)
- Emerging Player – Sanuja Dissanayake (SACK)Dimath Abeysinghe (MCK)
- Best Batsman – Kushan Subasinghe (SACK)
- Best Bowler – Dimantha Arusha (MCK)
- Best Fielder – Rajith Navodya (MCK)
- Best All Rounder – Dimantha Arusha (MCK)
Man of the Match – Rajith Navodya (MCK)
