Farveez Maharoof stroked an unbeaten match winning half century as MAS Unichela won the inaugural MCA – Bharti Airtel Super T20 tournament beating Hatton National Bank by 2 wickets in a nail-biting final played at MCA grounds on Sunday.
Hatton National Bank elected to bat first after their skipper Saman Jayantha won the toss after a delayed start due to the wet outfield. HNB got off to a flying start with their opening pair of Damitha Hunukumbura and Saman Jayantha putting up a magnificent 89 runs partnership in 8.4 overs for the 1st wicket. Skipper Saman accumulated 39 runs in 21 balls with 6 fours and a six while Damitha Hunukumbura hammered 46 runs in just 35 deliveries with 4 sixes and 3 boundaries. After the terrific start, HNB lost the plot as they lost wickets at regular intervals to make their own grave as they were restricted to only 157 runs in their allocated 20 overs. Right arm fast bowler Ishara Amarasinghe captured 4 wickets conceding 32 runs in his 4 over spell while leg spinner Malinga Bandara took 2 scalps giving away only 25 runs from his 4 overs.
Chasing 158 runs to win the final, MAS Unichela opening pair of TM Dilshan and Mahela Udawatta got their team off to a flying start as well with both attacking batsmen making 40 runs for the 1st wicket in just 16 balls and then their downfall came with HNB bowlers tightening the screws on the run flow. Experienced left arm leg spinner Sajeewa Weerakoon bowled an economical spell of 2 wickets for 23 runs in his quota of 4 overs to peg back the MAS Unichela chase.
Dhanushka Gunathilake and Dilruwan Perera revived the innings with valuable scores of 23 and 29 respectively but the MAS Unichela innings was cramped until their skipper Farveez Maharoof took charge of the game. Sri Lanka ODI discarded all-rounder carried his bat till the end smashing a whirlwind knock of 50 runs in 31 balls with 4 maximums to get his team over the winning line after they were in a spot of bother at 114 for 8 in the 16th over. MAS Unichela reached their destination with a stunning boundary by Maharoof with 3 balls to spare. Left arm fast bowlers Sujeewa De Silva and Vimukthi Perera captured two wickets apiece for HNB apart of Sajeewa Weerakoon.
Brief Scores:
Hatton National Bank – 157/9 in 20 overs : Damitha Hunukumbura 46, Saman Jayantha 39, Madawa Warnapura 22, Ishara Amarasinghe 4/32, Malinga Bandara 2/25.
MAS Unichela – 161/8 in 19.3 overs : Farveez Maharoof 50*, Dilruwan Perera 29, TM Dilshan 20, Sujeewa De Silva 2/24, Sajeewa Weerakoon 2/23, Vimukthi Perera 2/45.
Match Result – MAS Unichela won by 2 wickets
Individual Awards:
Man of the Tournament – Kosala Kulasekara
Best Batsman of the Tournament – Kosala Kulasekara
Best Bowler of the Tournament –Ishara Amarasinghe
Man of the Final – Farveez Maharoof
Most Disciplined Player of the Tournament – Malinga Bandara
