Skipper Upul Tharanga slammed a fine hundred to guide Team Galle towards the SLC Super Provincial Limited Overs championship 2018 beating Team Colombo by 75 runs in the final played at R. Premadasa International Stadium on Sunday.
After the group stage was over more than two weeks ago, the final was eventually scheduled on 10th June after numerous postponements due to various reasons.
On a sunny morning, Tharanga had no hesitation in setting a score on a fresh surface. Ramith Rambukwella partnered Tharanga as they blitzed their way to 50 for the opening wicket before the former Royalists perished against the chinaman of birthday boy, Lakshan Sandakan.
33-year old veteran, Tharanga then found an able partner in talented Sadeera Samarawickrama as they added a match-defining 125-run stand for the second wicket to lay a solid platform for the Galle batting lineup.
Tharanga was exquisite in his stroke-making, by dominating the Colombo bowlers with ease. His 24th List A hundred comprised 13 fours and 3 sixes as he went onto score 124 off just 122 deliveries. Samarawickrama ran between the wickets and maneuvered the strike excellently to score 62 off 71 balls with only 4 boundaries.
Dasun Shanaka, Chathuranga De Silva and Bhanuka Rajapaksha provided the late impetus to the Galle innings, scoring 31, 26 and 29 respectively to push the final score to 320 in their allotted 50 overs.
Sandakan who turned 27 today, bowled excellently to pick up 4 scalps for 66 runs off his 10 overs.
Chasing an improbable 321 runs to defend their title, Colombo innings revolved around opening batsman Shehan Jayasuriya who made a sparkling 51 in just 40 balls with 9 fours while young Kamindu Mendis showed his class to score 41 in 38 balls with 4 boundaries and a six.
Off-spinner Nishan Peiris was the chief destroyer, picking up three for 57 in 10 overs including Jayasuriya and Mendis to dent the Colombo chase.
Malinda Pushpakumara joined in to rattle the Colombo batsmen as they had no momentum or stability to reach the stipulated target. Veteran left-arm spinner, Pushpakumara ended with 3 for 31 as Colombo were bowled out for just 245 runs in the 45th over.
With this win, Galle completed their double, securing both the four-day title and the limited overs trophy in 2018.
Individual Awards
Best Batsman – Ashan Priyanjana – Dambulla
Best Bowler – Malinda Pushpakumara – Galle
Man of the Final – Upul Tharanga – Galle
Player of the Tournament – Shehan Jayasuriya – Colombo
Full Scorecard
Team Galle
320/7
(50 overs)
Result
Team Colombo
245/10
(44.2 overs)
Galle won by 75 runs
Team Galle’s Innings
| Batting | R | B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ramith Rambukwella | c K.Anjula b L.Sandakan | 22 | 27 | |||
| Upul Tharanga | c W.Hasaranga b S.Jayasuriya | 124 | 122 | |||
| Sadeera Samarawickrama | b K.Mendis | 62 | 71 | |||
| Sammu Ashan | c L.Abeyrathna b L.Sandakan | 5 | 4 | |||
| Dasun Shanaka | c T.Perera b K.Anjula | 31 | 33 | |||
| Chathuranga De Silva | c L.Abeyrathna b L.Sandakan | 26 | 16 | |||
| Bhanuka Rajapaksa | not out | 29 | 19 | |||
| Seekuge Prasanna | c A.Perera b L.Sandakan | 0 | 3 | |||
| Malinda Pushpakumara | not out | 3 | 5 | |||
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sachintha Peiris | 6 | 0 | 30 | 0 | 5.00 |
| Thisara Perera | 6 | 0 | 40 | 0 | 6.67 |
| Kaveeska Anjula | 6 | 0 | 47 | 1 | 7.83 |
| Lakshan Sandakan | 10 | 0 | 66 | 4 | 6.60 |
| Shehan Jayasuriya | 7 | 0 | 43 | 1 | 6.14 |
| Kamindu Mendis | 10 | 0 | 47 | 1 | 4.70 |
| Wanindu Hasaranga | 5 | 0 | 39 | 0 | 7.80 |
Team Colombo’s Innings
| Batting | R | B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lasith Abeyratne | c D.Shanaka b D.Prasad | 2 | 8 | |||
| Shehan Jayasuriya | c B.Rajapakshe b N.Peiris | 51 | 40 | |||
| Kamindu Mendis | c sub (A.Bandara) b N.Peiris | 41 | 40 | |||
| Chamara Silva | lbw by M.Pushpakumara | 9 | 14 | |||
| Lahiru Thirimanne | c S.Ashan b C.De.Silva | 17 | 23 | |||
| Angelo Perera | c S.Samarawickrama b N.Peiris | 40 | 47 | |||
| Thisara Perera | c B.Rajapakshe b M.Pushpakumara | 26 | 29 | |||
| Wanindu Hasaranga | b D.Shanaka | 31 | 31 | |||
| Kaveeshka Anjula | not out | 13 | 18 | |||
| Lakshan Sandakan | lbw by D.Shanaka | 5 | 13 | |||
| Sachintha Peiris | c N.Peiris b M.Pushpakumara | 2 | 6 | |||
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dhamika Prasad | 6 | 1 | 37 | 1 | 6.17 |
| Nishan Pieris | 10 | 0 | 57 | 3 | 5.70 |
| Dasun Shanaka | 4 | 0 | 24 | 2 | 6.00 |
| Sammu Ashan | 6 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 7.00 |
| Malinda Pushpakumara | 8.2 | 0 | 31 | 3 | 3.78 |
| Chathuranga De Silva | 10 | 0 | 51 | 1 | 5.10 |