MAS Unichela held their nerve to win the final by just one wicket against John Keells Holdings in the Singer MCA Premier T20 Tournament on Saturday at MCA grounds.
It was the ideal finale to a very competitive mercantile cricket season. A star studded MAS Unichela against an in-form JKH team.
The rain stayed away luckily and it was JKH who won the toss and elected to bat first. It wasn’t an ideal start for them as National discard Dammika Prasad struck early.
The wickets kept on tumbling, it was more like they gifted their wickets to MAS bowlers. The experienced Ishan Jayarathne was the top scorer once again, his 28 and a valuable cameo by Vikum Sanjaya got them 90 runs before they were bowled out in the 15th over.
MAS Unichela and John Keells advance to MCA T20 final
Rains have come back to haunt the cricketing arena as the Semi finals of the Singer-MCA Premier T20 League was washed off …
Dammika Prasad was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 20 while veteran Tillakarathne Dilshan and youngster Nipun Ransika bagged 2 wickets each.
It was a straight forward run chase for MAS but, they made a huge mess of it. Horrendous stroke play and smart bowling from JKH got them 75 for 9. It was up to the two seamers Dammika Prasad and Nipun Ransika to save the day for MAS.
>>Photos: 26th SINGER-MCA PREMIER LEAGUE 2019 – T20 | Finals<<
With 16 runs to get, the pair showed a mixture of grit and aggression. The youngster Nipun Ransika was the aggressor while the more experienced chap Dammika Prasad played a more reserved role. The pair got the 16 runs they needed in the 16th over, giving MAS Unichela the win and the title.
John Keells Holdings 90 (15) Ishan Jayarathne 28, Vikum Sanjaya 25, Dammika Prasad 3/20, Tilakarathne Dilshan 2/08, Nipun Ransika 2/18
MAS Holdings – Unichela 92/9 (15.1) Tilakarathne Dilshan 17, Ramith Rambukwella 16, Nipun Ransika 14*, Ishan Jayarathne 3/24, Sachintha Peiris 3/15
Full Scorecard
John Keells
90/10
(15 overs)
Result
MAS Unichela
92/9
(15.1 overs)
John Keells ‘s Innings
| Batting | R | B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M Liyanapathiranage | c TM Sampath b D Prasad | 7 | 12 | |||
| L Milantha | c K Mendis b N Ransika | 1 | 2 | |||
| M Sarathchandra | c N Ransika b TM Dilshan | 4 | 6 | |||
| B Rajapakshe | st TM Sampath b TM Dilshan | 2 | 3 | |||
| I Jayarathne | c D Prasad b S Madushanka | 28 | 20 | |||
| J Daniel | c F Maharoof b K Mendis | 7 | 4 | |||
| M de Silva | (runout) | 2 | 5 | |||
| S Peiris | c C Silva b N Ransika | 7 | 11 | |||
| V Sanjaya | b D Prasad | 25 | 23 | |||
| C Edirisinghe | not out | 1 | 4 | |||
| M Shiraz | c D Gunathilaka b D Prasad | 0 | 3 | |||
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TM Dilshan | 2 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 4.00 |
| N Ransika | 3 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 6.00 |
| D Prasad | 3 | 0 | 20 | 3 | 6.67 |
| K Mendis | 4 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 5.50 |
| S Madushanka | 2 | 0 | 19 | 1 | 9.50 |
| F Maharoof | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2.00 |
MAS Unichela’s Innings
| Batting | R | B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D Gunathilaka | c M de Silva b I Jayarathne | 7 | 9 | |||
| TM Sampath | c L Milantha b M Shiraz | 12 | 8 | |||
| F Maharoof | c L Milantha b V Sanjaya | 1 | 4 | |||
| TM Dilshan | lbw by I Jayarathne | 17 | 12 | |||
| R Rambukwella | b S Peiris | 16 | 17 | |||
| C Silva | c M Sarathchandra b I Jayarathne | 7 | 6 | |||
| K Mendis | c I Jayarathne b M Liyanapathiranage | 3 | 4 | |||
| P Perera | b S Peiris | 7 | 12 | |||
| S Madushanka | c & b S Peiris | 0 | 1 | |||
| D Prasad | not out | 2 | 12 | |||
| N Ransika | not out | 14 | 8 | |||
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V Sanjaya | 3 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 6.67 |
| M Shiraz | 3 | 0 | 23 | 1 | 7.67 |
| I Jayarathne | 3 | 0 | 24 | 3 | 8.00 |
| M Liyanapathiranage | 4 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 2.25 |
| S Peiris | 2.1 | 0 | 15 | 3 | 7.14 |