Sports
LPL 2022 draft: Kandy Falcons sign Hasaranga; Rajapaksa to turn out for Dambulla Giants
The draft for the third edition of the Lanka Premier League was held on Tuesday evening, with each of the five franchises allowed to pick six international players, with one from each price category barring Gold and Silver. Sri Lankan players were available for all categories. The pre-draft portion of the squad selection, however, meant that for many of the teams the top-tier draft picks had been decided well in advance of the draft proper.
The draft included players in seven price points: Ruby (US$ 60,000; approx LKR 21.5 million) Sapphire ($ 50,000; approx LKR 18 million), Diamond A ($ 40,000; approx LKR 14 million), Diamond B ($ 25,000; approx LKR 9 million), Platinum ($ 15000; approx LKR 5 million), Gold ($ 10,000; approx LKR 3.5 million) and Silver ($ 3000; approx LKR 1 million).
Jaffna Kings
Who to start with than Jaffna Kings? Formerly Stallions, they are two in two in the LPL finals and are no doubt the team to beat. If you were to pinpoint the reason for their success, though, you would boil it down to shrewd team building, which has left the other franchises playing catch-up.
Their captain Thisara Perera, Avishka Fernando, Shoaib Malik, Suranga Lakmal and Wanindu Hasaranga formed the spine of the side that won the first LPL, and were integral parts of last year’s campaign as well. Last season, Kings also identified exciting young overseas as well as local talent in the likes of Jayden Seales, Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Maheesh Theekshana.
But all good things must come to an end, and this season will certainly put Kings’ think tank to the test, first and foremost in navigating the losses of Hasaranga, Avishka and Lakmal. Hasaranga has been signed by Kandy Falcons, Avishka is out long-term with a knee injury and Lakmal has retired.
Still, Kings focused on rebuilding their core of the last two years as much as possible and picked Thisara (Ruby), Malik (Sapphire), and Theekshana (Diamond A) pre-draft and Afghanistan wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz in the draft.
Big-hitting West Indies opener Evin Lewis (Ruby) and South African quick Hardus Viljoen (Sapphire) were their two pre-draft signings as overseas players. The remaining overseas slots were taken by 23-year-old Pakistan quick Shahnawaz Dahani (Diamond B) and 21-year-old South African wicketkeeper-batter Tristan Stubbs.
Their fans will also be excited by the inclusion of allrounders Dhananjaya de Silva (Sapphire) and Dunith Wellalage (Diamond B), their captain at the U-19 World Cup earlier this year. Both were signed pre-draft as direct local signings.
Squad:Evin Lewis, Thisara Perera, Hardus Viljoen, Dhananjaya de Silva, Shoaib Malik, Shahnawaz Dahani, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Maheesh Theekshana, Binura Fernando, Dunith Wellalage, Tristan Stubbs, Praveen Jayawickrama, Suminda Lakshan, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dilshan Madushanka, Nipun Dananjaya, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, Theesan Vidushan, Theivendiram Dinoshan, Ashan Randika
Galle Gladiators
Twice Gladiators have made the title round, and twice they have lost. The second defeat might have hurt more than the first, not necessarily for the nature of it, but because leading up to the final, they seemed to have had Kings’ number. But if they are to go all the way this time around, they will have to do it without their skipper from last season, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, who has been signed by Dambulla Giants.
While that loss will likely hurt, Gladiators managed to retain the services of Danushka Gunathilaka (Ruby) and Kusal Mendis (Diamond A) – the respective top scorers in the past two editions of the tournament. The rest of the side has a much fresher look about it, with Pakistan allrounders Imad Wasim (Ruby) and Faheem Ashraf (Sapphire) brought in as direct pre-draft overseas signings.
Much like Kings, a large part of Gladiators’ squad-building was done pre-draft, with fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera (Sapphire) and left-arm wristspinner Lakshan Sandakan (Diamond B) drafted as direct local signings.
The big signing from the main draft for them was South Africa’s top-order batter Janneman Malan (Diamond A). Afghanistan legspinner Qais Ahmad (Diamond B) and Pakistani batters Azam Khan (Diamond B) and Sarfaraz Ahmed (Platinum) rounded up the overseas picks.
Squad:Imad Wasim, Danushka Gunathilaka, Faheem Ashraf, Dushmantha Chameera, Janneman Malan, Sherfane Rutherford, Azam Khan, Kusal Mendis, Lakshan Sandakan, Nuwan Thushara, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Pulina Tharanga, Nuwanidu Fernando, Nimesh Vimukthi, Movin Subasinhga, Nipun Malinga, Sachindu Colombage, Lakshan Gamage, Tharindu Kaushal, Sammu Ashan
Colombo Stars
If Gladiators are disappointed at falling short twice in a row, spare a thought for Colombo Stars. In the inaugural edition, they were the standout side in the group stages, winning six out of eight games, before losing in the semi-final to a Galle side that had snuck through with just two wins.
The last edition, though, was admittedly a write-off, where despite having one of the more impressive squads on paper, they lacked consistency.
On the plus side, they successfully retained the services of many of their key players in Angelo Mathews (Ruby), Dinesh Chandimal (Diamond B), Seekkuge Prasanna (Platinum) and Jeffrey Vandersay (Platinum), while also adding two exciting left-hand batters in Charith Asalanka (Sapphire) and Niroshan Dickwella (Diamond A).However, they lost both Chameera and Dhananjaya to rival sides, and there is no Kusal Perera either this year as he is recovering from an injury.
In their rebuild, Stars have this year chosen to cast their net a little wider. The addition of Dwaine Pretorius (Ruby) as their premier overseas signing hints at an overarching strategy of bringing in more players with all-round skills. Then there is Dhananjaya Lakshan (Diamond B), who was pivotal in Galle’s run to the final in 2020, Ishan Jayaratne (Platinum) and young Afghanistan seam-bowling allrounder Karim Janat (Platinum).
Janat is one of three Afghanistan fast bowlers in the squad, alongside Fazalhaq Farooqi (Diamond B) and Naveen-ul-Haq. West Indies’ Dominic Drakes (Diamond A) offers another all-round option.
In the batting department, Stars are mostly set, and the signing of Pakistan’s Asif Ali (Sapphire) will provide further heft to an already robust line-up.
Squad:Dwaine Pretorius, Angelo Mathews, Asif Ali, Charith Asalanka, Dominic Drakes, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Naveen-ul-Haq, Niroshan Dickwella, Dinesh Chandimal, Dhananjaya Lakshan, Karim Janat, Seekkuge Prasanna, Jeffrey Vandersay, Ishan Jayaratne, Muditha Lakshan, Lakshitha Manasinghe, Kevin Koththigoda, Chathuranga Kumara, Navod Paranavithana, Chamod Battage
Dambulla Giants
Led by Dasun Shanaka, the national T20I captain, the franchise from Dambulla has flattered to deceive in the two LPL outings, going from impressive performances to mediocre ones. If they were to find some consistency, one gets the sense they could be a match for any side, but striking the necessary balance has proved elusive – though the signing of Rajapaksa (Sapphire) is certainly a step in the right direction.
Rajapaksa, the former Galle Gladiators skipper, has been a consistent performer in the LPL, and his addition gives the middle order some much-needed bite. Especially after last season’s campaign had run almost exclusively on the form of the opening pair of Phil Salt and Dickwella – both of whom are no longer part of the squad.
The lack of big-hitters has been further addressed through the signings of Australian allrounders D’Arcy Short (Ruby) and Ben Cutting (Sapphire), while New Zealand wicketkeeper-batter Tim Seifert and Pakistan batter Haider Ali – both in the Diamond B category – further bolster Giants’ middle order.
Short’s wristspin is likely to prove useful on Sri Lankan pitches, though it’s another wristspinner, Nepal’s Sandeep Lamichhane (Diamond A), who is likely to get top billing on that front. Lamichhane has been a regular in the BBL, picking up 34 wickets across the last three seasons. It will be intriguing to see the impact he can have in the LPL, considering how influential spinners have been in previous seasons.
Chaturanga de Silva, the elder brother of Hasaranga, has also been signed from the Diamond A category along with West Indies’ left-arm seamer Sheldon Cottrell (Diamond B). Giants have also retained the services of spin-bowling allrounder Ramesh Mendis (Diamond B) and fast-bowler Nuwan Pradeep (Diamond B).
Squad:D’Arcy Short, Dasun Shanaka, Ben Cutting, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Sandeep Lamichhane, Tim Seifert, Haider Ali, Chaturanga de Silva, Ramesh Mendis, Nuwan Pradeep, Sheldon Cottrell, Tharindu Ratnayake, Pramod Madushan, Lasith Croospulle, Kalana Perera, Dilum Sudeera, Sachitha Jayathilake, Dushan Hemantha, Sacha De Alwis, Ravindu Fernando
Kandy Falcons
It has been three changes of ownership (and names) in three seasons for Falcons (formerly Warriors and Tuskers), and they will certainly be hoping to be third time lucky.
The first edition saw them struggle to even register a win. They didn’t fare much better last season either, registering just two victories across the tournament. But this season, they have made as clear a statement of intent as possible, signing Sri Lanka’s premier spinner Hasaranga (Ruby) as their top-most priority signing pre-draft.Hasaranga has been without a doubt the LPL’s most destructive bowler, taking 28 wickets across two editions, while he is also capable of hefty blows with the bat. Not only does his addition strengthen Falcons, it also significantly weakens the defending champions Kings, from whom they nicked him.
Another player nicked from Kings is Pakistan’s Usman Shinwari (Platinum), who will lead a fairly light-looking pace attack consisting of 19-year-old Matheesha Pathirana (Diamond B) and seam-bowling allrounders Carlos Brathwaite (Ruby), Chamika Karunaratne (Sapphire) and Isuru Udana (Diamond A) – all three of whom will add power-hitting options lower down the order.
Brathwaite isn’t the only West Indian in the side, with spin-bowling allrounder Fabian Allen (Sapphire) and top-order batter Andre Fletcher (Diamond A) picked up in the main draft.
South Africa’s Dewald Brevis (Diamond B) and Australia’s Chris Green (Diamond B) round up the overseas draft picks. Brevis most recently had an impressive showing in the IPL for Mumbai Indians, while Green has shown his utility with both bat and ball in the BBL and T20 Blast.
Squad:Carlos Brathwaite, Wanindu Hasaranga, Fabian Allen, Chamika Karunaratne, Andre Fletcher, Dewald Brevis, Chris Green, Isuru Udana, Matheesha Pathirana, Ashen Bandara, Usman Shinwari, Kamindu Mendis, Ashan Priyanjan, Minod Bhanuka, Avishka Perera, Ashian Daniel, Malinda Pushpakumara, Janith Liyanage, Lasith Abeyratne, Kavin Bandara
(Cricinfo)
A five-wicket haul by Mahiru Kodituwakku and a fighting unbeaten knock of 92 runs by Manuth Dasanayake were the highlights as Royal College Colombo beat arch-rivals S. Thomas’ College, Mount Lavinia, to win the Under-17 Division I cricket title at P. Sara Stadium on Friday.
Chasing 206 runs for victory, S. Thomas’ lost wickets at regular intervals as Mahiru Kodituwakku led the bowling attack with a five-wicket haul to dismiss them for 133 runs.
Kodituwakku demoralized the Thomian batting lineup by taking early wickets. They lost their first four wickets for 31 runs inside seven overs, before being bowled out in the 33rd over.
Kodituwakku completed impressive figures of 7.5-0-32-5.
The victory looked a distant possibility halfway through Royal’s first innings. Tharul Jayasuriya struck early blows, removing Savain Gamage and Nithesh Jayasinghe cheaply, before Shenuk Fernando accounted for Mudith Gunasekara and skipper Dushen Udawela to leave Royal struggling at 73 for four wickets. However, after being five wickets down at 86 at one stage, Royal recovered to post a competitive total, thanks to an unbeaten 92 from Manuth Dasanayake.
Manuth held the batting lineup together with his dogged knock, which came off 87 balls. He cracked eight fours and five sixes in an entertaining performance.
Scores
Royal 205 for 9 in 50 overs
(Mudith Gunasekara 38, Manuth Dasanayake 92n.o.; Shenuk Fernando 2/20, Tharul Jayasuriya 2/61)
S. Thomas’ 133 all out in 36.5 overs
(Reshon Solomans 38, Tharul Jayasuriya 29; Mahiru Kodituwakku 5/32, Gagan Gamage 2/42) (RF)
Sri Lanka survived an all-time all-round display from Fatima Sana to triumph over a spirited Pakistan and seal a second-straight Asia Cup final berth against India.
Sana, a rare Player of the Match from the losing side, struck 47 off 36 to drag Pakistan to 130 for 5, and then finished with figures of 4 for 38 – inclusive of two double-wicket overs – but Sri Lanka’s all-round excellence eventually overcame Sana’s bloody mindedness.
In their chase, Sri Lanka were reduced to 5 for 2, and then 33 for 4, but a match-defining partnership of 67 off 59 between Harshitha Samarawickrema (36 off 31) and Kavisha Dilhari (33 off 33) turned the tide in Sri Lanka’s favours.
Sana’s second double-wicket intervention saw the backs of both Samarawickrama and Dilhari, but Sri Lanka’s batting depth came to the fore as Nilakshi Silva and Kaushini Nuthyangana saw the game off with eight balls to spare.
As Sri Lanka’s players celebrated on the sidelines as Nilakshika ramped Sana for one final, definitive boundary, the Pakistan skipper was on her haunches, tears streaming down her face. It’s not been an uncommon sight with Sana, but it was yet another example of just how much of herself she had put into the game – just that in this instance, it was simply not enough.
Run-scoring hasn’t been easy in Dubai this Asia Cup, with spinners in particular thriving. And that narrative was not about to change as Sri Lanka put Pakistan into bat – even as the data suggested the team batting first had won nine of the previous 13 games at the venue.
It proved to be the right call as the tournament’s unlikely leading wicket-taker, Chamari Athapaththu, struck early once more, getting Shawaal Zulfiqar and Ayesha Zafar in each of her first two overs. Left-arm spinner Sugandika Kumari meanwhile had removed Muneeba Ali in her first over as well. Seventeen-year-old left-arm spinner Chamudi Prabodha continued the pattern when she completely did an advancing Sadaf Shamas in the flight to have her stumped in the 10th over.
At the halfway point of the innings, Sri Lanka’s plan was going just as envisioned. Pakistan were reeling on 52 for 4 and they would need a minor miracle to post a respectable, if not challenging, target.
The calls for Sana to bat higher up the order seem to grow with every passing day, and when you watch innings like the one she produced on Friday it’s not hard to see why.
For her first six deliveries, she sought to get her eye in – even in a semifinal where her side had nearly lost half the batting – and played out six dot deliveries. With most other players, you might assume this would build pressure. But Sana is made of sterner stuff, a ball of self-belief and willpower.
The seventh ball she faced, she drilled four down through, hard to Chamudi’s left – the youngster perhaps saved some pain by not getting a hand on it. On her 10th she swept Dilhari for four, and then on her 11th she skipped out and launched a maximum over square leg.
And just like that Sana was on her way, and the momentum was shifting.
When Gull Feroza fell at the end of the 16th over, it wasn’t ideal. Feroza had clawed her way to a 32-ball 21, but with the death overs approaching Sana would have been hoping for Feroza to finally unleash. Sana however adjusted her plans and made the most of what was on offer; after a quiet 16th over, she managed a boundary in two of the final three overs, while Tuba Hasan also chipped in with a valuable 12 off 10 to push Pakistan to 130 for 5 with 78 runs coming off the final 10 overs.
An above waist-high no-ball, a first six of her career for Kaushini Nuthyangana, the equation suddenly down to 5 needed off 11. It was cruel irony that that moment had occurred off Sana’s bowling, because up until then she had been the almost solitary barrier between Sri Lanka and a second successive Asia Cup final.
She had removed two of Sri Lanka’s top three – including Athapaththu – in her first spell, and then returned late in the chase to get rid of the set pair of Samarawickrama and Dilhari. But in between Sri Lanka had done just about enough to get across the line in a hard-fought semi-final.
Losing four wickets inside the opening 10 overs is never ideal, and there would have been a time when Sri Lanka would have folded quite easily in such a scenario. But this Sri Lanka side is one with a growing belief that there will always be someone to step up.
Samarawickrama had been the one against Bangladesh, and here she was there again – this time flanked by the always involved Dilhari. With the required rate reaching about eight an over midway through the chase, the pair took to heart the words offered by coach Jamie Siddons during the drinks break and came out with a plan.
With boundaries in front of square not forthcoming, the pair looked behind. Two quick boundaries got the ball rolling, and the indefatigable pair also ran hard between the wickets.
It was a low target, and in that sense only a few good overs were required to keep the rate within touching distance, but Pakistan were bowling well. Sri Lanka however proved once again that they have the wherewithal to weather tough in-game situations and shift pressure back on to their opponents – a skill that will likely come very handy against India on Sunday.
Scores:
Sri Lanka Women 134 for 6 in 18.4 overs (Imesha Dulani 24, Harshitha Samarawickrama 36, Kavisha Dilhari 33, Nilakshika Silva 18*, Kaushini Nuthyangana 10*; Sadia Iqbal 1-21, Fatima Sana 4-38, Umm-e-Hani 1-19) beat Pakistan Women 130 for 5 in 20 overs (Shawal Zulfiqar 24, Gull Feroza 21, Fatima Sana 47*, Tuba Hassan 12*; Sugandika Kumari 1-20, Chamari Athapaththu 2-24, Chamudi Praboda 2-25) by four wickets
[Cricinfo]
Mohammad Rizwan and Imam ul Haq were questioned by Pakistan’s National Cyber Crimes Investigation Agency (NCCIA) in Lahore, as the fallout from Pakistan’s disastrous Test tour of England continued.
The two, who were in the group of seven players who were dropped from the Pakistan squad and sent back home after the defeat in the second Test at Lord’s, were sent summons to appear before the NCCIA. They appeared on Thursday. At least one of the players is believed to have been there for several hours.
It is not clear yet what the questioning was about, or whether it is related to the PCB’s own inquiry, which they announced earlier this week. The board did not name any players then but said it had “initiated an internal disciplinary inquiry following media reports concerning discipline and conduct, which are currently being reviewed internally”. That process, the board said, was being “conducted under PCB regulations”.
Cricinfo understands that at least one of the players has been given a questionnaire to respond to and return to the NCCIA next week.
At the end of the Lord’s Test, which Pakistan lost by 194 runs after losing the first by an innings and 103 runs, seven players as well as the head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and bowling coach Umar Gul were removed from the squad. In their place, seven other players travelled to England, five of whom were uncapped at international level.
Rizwan’s form with the bat on this tour had been poor, with scores of 12, 41, 7 and 1, following low returns in two Tests in the Caribbean as well. His glovework, however, has been exemplary on both tours and until the West Indies series, he had been Pakistan’s leading Test run scorer since January 2024. But an ungainly hoick to be dismissed for 1 in the second innings at Lord’s attracted plenty of criticism.
Imam, meanwhile, was diagnosed with a grade-1 tear in his left calf after the conclusion of the first day’s play at Lord’s and did not appear on the field during either of Pakistan’s innings. On the final morning, during pre-game warm-ups, he came out to attempt some gentle knockdowns but struggled physically. Aaqib Javed, the PCB’s chief selector and director of high performance publicly questioned Imam’s injury and warned then of an inquiry into it.
In defending the squad changes, the PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi alluded to wider factors at play, without expanding. “We have had a discussion to ascertain the reasons behind it. They include factors beyond performance and we will get to the bottom of it.”
The selection of both the players for the West Indies and England tours was also the subject of a notice sent by the PCB to selectors after the Lord’s Test. The notice asked for a written explanation outlining the reasons for their selection and the process through which it was arrived at, within 24 hours of the receipt of notice. Misbah-ul-Haq, one of the selectors, resigned from the post following the changes to the squad.
[Cricinfo]
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