Sports

Gajanayake’s seven wicket haul guides Bens to first victory

Published

11 months ago

2025/02/20

Sahan Weerasooriya

Ayesh Gajanayake ripped through the Lumbini batting lineup with a seven wicket haul.

Under 19 Division I Limited Overs Cricket

by Reemus Fernando·

St. Benedict’s College recorded a crushing eight wickets victory over Lumbini College as paceman Ayesh Gajanayake came up with his best figures since joining the team in the Under 19 Division I Tier ‘A’ limited overs tournament match at Kotahena yesterday.

Gajanayake ‘used the morning conditions to good effect’ to rattle Lumbini for 60 runs.

The seven wicket haul by former Dharmadutha College, Badulla speedster is the best bowling performance so far in the ongoing limited overs tournament as Bens look for some consolation in this format after fairing badly in the two-day tournament (innings format).·

After Gajanayake’s nine over heroics (9-2-27-7) bundled out Lumbini, the Bens’ reached the target in 69 balls.

They conceded a heavy 69 runs defeat at the hands of St. Sebastian’s Moratuwa in their previous limited overs match but will now· · · look to gain momentum from their first victory.

St. Benedict’s are currently fighting for their place in Tier ‘A’ of the premier Division I tournament after D.S. Senanayaka College handed them a first innings defeat in the relegation match.·

The team captained by Sri Lanka Under 19 batsman Sharujan Shanmuganathan will be looking to gain a morale boost from their first victory ahead of the next relegation match.

Meanwhile, in the other Tier A limited overs tournament match Gurukula beat Maliyadewa Kurunegala by five wickets after restricting the latter to 66 runs.

In a Tier ‘B’ match, Sri Sumangala College Panadura beat St. Sebastian’s Katuneriya by 61 runs.·

Results·

St. Benedict’s record eight wickets win at Kotahena

Scores

Lumbini

60 all out in 17.2 overs (Dinal Sewmina 27, Kanishka Rangana 12n.o.; Ayesh Gajanayake 7/27)

St. Benedict’s

64 for 2 in 11.3 overs (Jaindu Nandasena 32, Tehan Bitar 16n.o.; Praveen Maneesha 2/10)

Gurukula beat Maliyadewa at Kadirana

Scores·

Maliyadewa

66 all out in 28.5 overs (Chandupa Abeysinghe 21; Daham Vimukthi 2/10, Poorna Kalhara 2/16, Ohas Sadew 3/01)

Gurukula

67 for 5 in 17.2 overs (Daham Vimukthi 21, Thathsara Eshan 18n.o.; Nethra Nirmala 4/35)

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U19 World Cup: Japan defeat Tanzania by nine wickets

Published

17 hours ago

2026/01/25

Priyan

Nihar Parmar hit an unbeaten fifty in Japan's chase [Cricinfo]

Nihar Parmar produced an excellent all-round display as Japan comfortably defeated Tanzania by nine wickets at Windhoek in the first playoffs for the 13th to 16th-places.

After Tanzania elected to bat, opener Karim Kiseto departed for a duck, but Acrey Pascal and Ayaan Shariff steadied the innings with a productive 79-run stand. Pascal top-scored with a patient 55 before falling to Kazuma Kato Stafford, but it was Parmar who turned the game on its head.

The Japanese all-rounder struck twice in consecutive deliveries to remove Shariff for 40 and Agustino Mwamele for a golden duck, sparking a dramatic collapse. From a relatively comfortable 118/2, Tanzania capitulated to 131 all out inside the next seven overs. Parmar finished with excellent figures of 4 for 30, while Nikhil Pol chipped in with 3 for 23 as the duo tore through the lower order.

Chasing a modest target, Japan made light work of the run chase. Parmar and Taylor Waugh constructed a clinical 122-run opening partnership, putting the result beyond doubt. Waugh fell short of a half-century, run out for 47, before Parmar reached his fifty and remained unbeaten on 53. Pol joined him to finish the job, guiding Japan home with more than 24 overs to spare.

Brief scores:
Tanzania 131 in 38.3 overs (Acrey Pascal 55; Nihar Parmar 4-30, Nikhil Pol 3-23) lost to Japan 136/1 in 28.2 overs (Nihar Parmar 53*, Taylor Waugh 47) by nine wickets

[Cricbuzz]

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U19 World Cup: Ambrish’s four-fer powers India to third straight win

Published

17 hours ago

2026/01/25

Priyan

India secured their third win in the group stage [Cricbuzz]

India bundled out New Zealand for a mere 135 in their final Group B fixture of the Under-19 World Cup before waltzing home to a comfortable seven-wicket win at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. The comprehensive victory was set up by RS Ambrish’s four-wicket haul (4 for 19) and well-supported by Henil Patel’s three scalps (3 for 23) and ensured India finished the group stage with a perfect record of three wins from three matches.

After winning the toss, skipper Ayush Mhatre had no hesitation in bowling first on an overcast morning in Bulawayo. The decision was vindicated immediately as the Indian bowlers ran through the New Zealand top order. New Zealand slumped to 22 for 5 inside 10 overs.

The game was twice interrupted by rain, reducing it to a 37-over contest, but India’s bowlers maintained relentless pressure throughout. New Zealand’s lower-order mounted a brief recovery thanks in large part to an unbeaten 37 from Callum Samson but their total of 135 was never going to test a strong Indian batting line-up.

In response, India chased down the DLS-altered target of 130 with seven wickets in hand, with Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Ayush Mhatre leading the charge with a 76-run partnership off just 39 balls. Mhatre hit half-a-dozen sixes in his 27-ball 53 while Suryavanshi added 40 off 23. The win was completed in just 81 balls, showcasing India’s dominance with the bat.

While the win consolidated India’s position heading into the Super Six after a nervy game against Bangladesh, for New Zealand, who had their previous two matches washed out, this was a disappointing return to action against a quality Indian bowling attack.

Brief Scores:
New Zealand 135 in 36.2 overs (RS Ambrish 4-29, Henil Patel 3-23) lost to India 130/3 in 13.3 overs (Vaibhav Suryavanshi 40, Ayush Mhatre 53) by 7 wickets [DLS Method]

[Cricbuzz]

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Josh Hoey breaks world 800m short track record with 1:42.50 in Boston

Published

18 hours ago

2026/01/25

Priyan

Josh Hoey had said he was excited to take a shot at the world 800m short track record in Boston and he was right on target as he clocked 1:42.50* to improve the 28-year-old mark at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix – the first World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting of the season – on Saturday (24).

Seven weeks on from setting a world 600m short track best, also in Boston, the US world indoor champion made more history as he took 0.17 off the world record of 1:42.67 set by Wilson Kipketer at the World Indoor Championships in Paris in 1997.

Hoey went into the race as the second-fastest indoor 800m runner of all time thanks to the North American record of 1:43.24 he ran at the US Indoor Championships in New York last year. But paced by his brother Jaxson, he leapt to the top of that all-time list, winning the race by more than two seconds.

Jaxson led his brother through the first 200m in 24.81 before 400m was reached in 50.21. Jaxson then stepped aside and Josh passed 600m in 1:16.19, holding on to cross the finish line in 1:42.50.

“We did a lot of pacing work,” said Josh, reflecting on his preparations for the race. “Just kind of kept steadily improving, taking it week by week, block by block, and we were able to make
this work.”

A world best had been set earlier in the programme, USA’s 2024 world indoor 1500m bronze medallist Hobbs Kessler clocking 4:48.79 to break the 2000m short track world best of 4:49.99 set by Kenenisa Bekele almost 19 years ago.

World short track 3000m record-holder Grant Fisher also dipped under the old world best, finishing second in 4:49.48.

[World Athletics]