Sports

Hiran creates history against Royal, Chamindu’s marathon effort saves Petes

Published

3 years ago

2023/01/16

Thilina Walpola

St. Sebastian’s, Nalanda record victories

by Reemus Fernando

St. Joseph’s batsman Hiran Jayasundara, St. Peter’s opener Chamindu Perera and Nalanda bowler Minod Caldera recorded remarkable achievements for their respective schools in the Under 19 traditional matches completed over the weekend.

Jayasundara became the first batsman from any school in the history to score a double century against Royal in their traditional cricket encounter ended in a draw at Darley Road. According to Royal College statistician M.L. Fernando, the 199 runs scored by R. David from Wesley (1990) remained the highest score by a batsman from a rival school against Royal until Jayasundara scored the double century on Saturday. His unbeaten knock of 200 runs came in 309 balls (18x4s, 3x6s).

The Josephian also broke nearly a century old batting record in the historic Royal-St. Joseph’s series as he took under his belt the record for the highest individual score overtaking the 194 runs scored by L.D.S Gunasekara for Royal in 1925. The Josephian record in the series was the 174 runs scored by Milroy Brohier in 1952. The Joes amassed 414 runs for six wickets against Royal. The visitors made 311 for seven wickets at close as the 126th encounter, which is one of the oldest traditional matches in the country ended in a draw at Darley Road.

At Bambalapitiya, St. Peter’s were rescued by their open bat Chamindu Perera who batted the whole second day for the home team to force a draw to their match against Trinity. After Petes were reduced to 67 runs, Trinity took a firm grip posting 285 for six wickets declared. The Petes commenced the final day with a huge first innings deficit and Perera rose to the occasion as he anchored the batting line up with a dogged knock. His marathon innings propelled the home team to post 247 for five wickets at close. The Philip and Eddie Buultjens Trophy remained at Bambalapitiya.

At Campbell Place, Nalanda laid their hands on the Bandula Warnapura memorial trophy as Caldera collected a match bag of nine wickets to lead the team to ten wickets victory against Dharmaraja.

St. Sebastian’s pulled off a stunning two wickets win over formidable Mahanama in their match at Moratuwa as Sandeesh Fernando bagged nine wickets to for them to fight back. At Mount Lavinia, S. Thomas’ took batting honours against Wesley as Mahith Perera top scored for the home team in the Mahadevan Sathasivam memorial trophy encounter.

Match Results

S. Thomas-Wesley ends in draw at Mount Lavinia

Scores:

S. Thomas’ 312 for 6 decl. in 81 overs (Romesh Mendis 37, Romesh Mendis 37, Senesh Hettiarachchi 66, Mahith Perera 152n.o., Charuka Peiris 32n.o.; Sanithu Amarasinghe 2/53) and 204 for 5 in 42.4 overs (Sadev Soysa 32, Thisen Ehaliyagoda 22, Romesh Mendis 81, Dineth Goonewardene 47; Sanithu Amarasinghe 2/35)

Wesley 226 all out in 69.4 overs (Sanithu Amarasinghe 58, Chamath Gomez 37, Anuga Pahansara 30, Nilupul Liyanage 25n.o.; Abheeth Paranawidana 2/47, Charuka Peiris 2/48, Kavindu Dias 2/28, Akash Fernando 3/43)

A draw at Sooriyawewa

Scores:

Lumbini 217 all out in 65.4 overs (Dhanitha Sandeth 49, Shahan Kaushalya 62, Yasiru Yugath 30; Puljith Wathuska 4/79, Irushka Thimira 4/68) and 169 for 9 in 47 overs (Dhanitha Sandeth 55, Malith Kawindu 35, Dumindu Sewmina 26; Irushka Thimira 3/38, Pathum Shaminda 2/24, Gimhan Rasanjana 3/32)

Devapathiraja 295 all out in 84.2 overs (Yasiru Lakshan 24, Pawan Sandesh 90, Jeewaka Shashen 54, Gimhan Rasanjana 35, Irushka Thimira 47; Dumindu Sewmina 2/51, K B Sathmina 2/24, Sasanka Nethmina 2/82, Malith Kawindu 4/71)

Chamindu saves St. Peter’s at Bambalapitiya

Scores:

St. Peter’s 67 all out in 29 overs (Nimutu Gunawardana 14, Sanshay Gunathilaka 14; Manula Kularathna 2/26, Kavindu Jayaratne 3/26, Dinuka Tennakoon 2/01, Theeraka Ranathunga 2/06) and 247 for 5 in 105 overs (Chamindu Perera 82n.o., Vishen Helambage 43, Nimutu Gunawardana 23, Kavika Jayasundara 28, Shennan Rodrigo 17n.o.; Wathila Udara 2/28)

Trinity 285 for 6 decl. in 71 overs (Kusal Wijethunga 45, Supun Waduge 65, Dinusha Peiris 70, Manula Kularathna 55; Shennan Rodrigo 2/83, Nimutu Gunawardana 3/32)

St. Sebastian’s stun Mahanama at Moratuwa

Scores:

Mahanama 211 all out in 58.1 overs (Kavindu Amameth 41, Inuka Karannagoda 35, Anjala Bandara 57; Sandeesh Fernando 3/41, Manuja Chanthuka 5/52) and 121 all out in 28.1 overs (Banula Algawatte 32, Rashmika Perera 50; Manuja Chanthuka 2/56, Sandeesh Fernando 6/44, Yashin Fernando 2/13)

St. Sebastian’s 135 all out in 53.5 overs (Adesh Almeda 35, Sanesh Fernando 35, Mahen Silva 25; Duvindu Ranathunga 3/43, Viranga Yeshan 4/38, Inuka Karannagoda 2/23) and 198 for 8 in 54 overs (Vimath Dinsara 69, Mahen Silva 31, Sasindu Prarthana 41; Viranga Yeshan 4/76)

Hiran breaks records at Darley Road

Scores:

St. Joseph’s 414 for 6 in 116.4 overs (Naren Muralidaran 47, Hiran Jayasundara 200, Muditha Dissanayaka 73, Hirun Matheesha 21, Lahiru Amarasekara 21; Dan Poddiwela 2/42, Anush Polonowita 2/36)

Royal 311 for 7 in 84 overs (Sineth Jayawardena 27, Rehan Peiris 62, Sanvidu Senaratharachchi 78, Uvindu Weerasekara 64, Dasis Manchanayake 27; Yenula Dewtusa 2/95, Gagan Chamodh 2/24)

Nalanda win Bandula Warnapura memorial trophy at Campbell Place

Scores:

Dharmaraja 97 all out in 44.5 overs (Onajith Siva 26; Minod Caldera 6/32, Sajitha Vithanage 2/11) and 167 all out in 45.4 overs (Pulindu Perera 36, Isuru Pannala 31, Dulara Bandulasena 26, Thisaru Wanninayake 43; Minod Caldera 3/70, Eranga Jayakodi 3/32)

Nalanda 208 all out in 66.1 overs (Yasiru Samarakoon 49, Sadew Samarasinghe 45, Eranga Jayakody 26, Sajitha Vithanage 25, Thisara Dewdunu 20; Nisala Abeyrathne 2/32, Thisaru Wanninayake 2/62, Pulindu Perera 4/08, Kalana Herath 2/42) and 57 for no loss in 11.4 overs (Rusiru Vilochana 30n.o., Yasiru Samarakoon 27n.o.)

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England elect to field first at Wankhede

Published

2 hours ago

2026/03/5

Priyan

England won the toss and chose to field first in the 2nd semi-final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup

India XI: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah

England XI: Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook (capt), Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid.

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Daren Sammy issues plea as West Indies remain stuck in Kolkata hotel

Published

4 hours ago

2026/03/5

Priyan

The Dubai airport, among other airports in the Gulf region, were affected by the crisis in West Asia [Cricinfo]

As West Indies continue to remain stuck in Kolkata four days after being eliminated from the 2026 T20 World Cup, their head coach Daren Sammy has put out a post on X, saying “I just wanna go home”.

He followed it up with another post a little later, saying, “At least an update, tell us something. Today, tmw, next week. It’s been five days.”

West Indies are one of the teams stranded in India in the wake of the crisis in West Asia. ESPNcricinfo has learned that initially, the ICC had informed West Indies that attempts were being made for the squad to return home to the Caribbean via a charter flight to London. The plan, it is believed, was for West Indies to fly out of India mid-week, though no specific date was given. However, West Indies continue to remain in Kolkata where they lost to India in the final match of the Super Eight on March 1.

With the usual airspace corridors closed owing to the crisis, which began last weekend, the ICC has been confronted with a severe logistical challenge of arranging return flights for teams.

On Wednesday, though, there was good news for Zimbabwe, with the first batch of their squad members leaving for home from Delhi after the ICC reworked their travel arrangements.

Like West Indies, Zimbabwe played their last match at the T20 World Cup on March 1, losing to South Africa in Delhi. Zimbabwe were originally scheduled to depart on March 2, but that plan was cancelled.

There is no official word on the travel plans for the rest of their squad members.

“Zimbabwe Cricket confirms that the Zimbabwe senior men’s team participating in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 are on their way home from India after the International Cricket Council secured alternative travel arrangements following recent transit disruptions,” Zimbabwe Cricket said in a statement on Wednesday. “Due to flight availability and revised routing, the squad will return to Harare in batches.

“Zimbabwe’s original travel route was via Dubai on an Emirates flight but it had to be altered. It has been learnt that Zimbabwe are now travelling to Harare via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.”

South Africa were eliminated in the semi-final by New Zealand on Wednesday night, and will now wait to know their schedule for getting back home. In case England lose to India in the second semi-final on Thursday, their travel plans back will also have to be worked out.

[Cricinfo]

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India’s momentum meets Wankhede’s memory in big semifinal bout

Published

6 hours ago

2026/03/5

Priyan

India have a bunch of players who call the Wankhede Stadium 'home' during domestic cricket or the IPL [Cricbuzz]

A World Cup semifinal at the Wankhede Stadium has, historically, not been kind on India, the 2023 game against New Zealand aside. They’ve lost two of their three ICC knockout games at this venue, one of them to England in 1987, the very opponents awaiting them tonight. If there is any equilibrium to be found, it lies in the present: Harry Brook’s England have appeared just as fragile in this tournament as Suryakumar Yadav’s India, making this less a clash of invincibles and more a test of which side can steady itself under the heaviest lights.

India have leaned heavily on individual brilliance rather than collective cohesion to reach the last-four stage. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav (vs USA), Ishan Kishan (vs Namibia and Pakistan), Shivam Dube (vs Netherlands and South Africa), the Abhishek Sharma-Hardik Pandya combine (vs Zimbabwe), and most recently Sanju Samson (vs West Indies) have each stepped in to rescue the side at different moments. As a unit, however, India have not quite lived up to their ‘favourites’ tag.

India’s struggles have largely been down to some key players blowing hot and cold – Abhishek Sharma with the bat and Varun Chakaravarthy with the ball. Even skipper Suryakumar, barring the opening game, has not delivered in the manner expected of him. More gallingly, fielding – particularly catching – has been awful.

Jasprit Bumrah’s mastery has often come to India’s aid when the situations were seemingly slipping away. At times, Arshdeep Singh with his wide yorkers and Hardik Pandya with his slower bouncers have delivered in crunch moments, but their effectiveness with the ball has been rather sporadic. India will be hoping for a more collective output – shared heroics rather than individual brilliance – to administer the coup de grace against England and book the March 8 date at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

“That is something we haven’t really spoken about, about the perfect game. I think the quality of this team has been shown that, on the day somebody can put their hand up and put up a performance. And then hopefully now in the last two games, especially now tomorrow night, we can put that special performance in,” Morne Morkel, India bowling coach, said on the eve of the match.

“Unfortunately we all know how the game goes, that success is never guaranteed. But if we can give ourselves the best chance to go out and perform. That is what we strive for. And a big occasion tomorrow night here, semifinal, a great stadium to play a great game of cricket. So hopefully the boys can rock up tomorrow and just be calm and execute those skills.”

Thursday’s face-off may be India’s first designated knockout match for them, but they have already overcome two knockouts situations – against Zimbabwe and West Indies in the Super Eights. On both occasions, they raised the bar, momentum they’ll hope to carry into this high-stakes contest.

Another advantage for the hosts is their familiarity with the Wankhede Stadium, which serves as a home ground for several Indian players, starting with Suryakumar himself. Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Shivam Dube and Ishan Kishan have all represented Mumbai, Mumbai Indians, or both here.

If India have struggled into semifinals, England have been no showstoppers, although Harry Brook oozed extreme confidence on the eve of the contest. “We don’t feel like we’re ever out of a game so far. All it takes is one of the top seven to get a decent score or one of our five or six bowlers to have an amazing day out there. And all of a sudden you’re walking away with a victory and that’s what we’ve done so well so far,” the England skipper said.

England needed an extraordinary century from the skipper himself to get over the line against Pakistan and were on the ropes against New Zealand before being bailed out by a superb cameo from Rehan Ahmed. They won a low-scoring thriller against Sri Lanka and were nearly upset by Nepal before West Indies humbled them here in Mumbai, incidentally on the same pitch that will be used today.

The pitch carries a tinge of grass, but Morne Morkel anticipates a high-scoring contest. It was against this very opposition, at this very venue, that Abhishek Sharma blazed a stunning century a year ago. India will hope for a similar explosion from their opener, although this World Cup has already reinforced a familiar truth – ICC tournament games are a different beast altogether from bilateral contests.

Having comfortably beaten West Indies in their last outing, India are unlikely to tinker with their XI, despite murmurs advocating for Rinku Singh to replace Abhishek Sharma

England drafted in an extra spinner in Rehan Ahmed last time and he repaid the call with a decisive all-round performance against New Zealand last Friday. But that was at the R Premadasa Stadium, a surface that offered significant grip and turn. Conditions this time are unlikely to demand a second leg spinner, especially against a batting line-up stacked with left-handers.

England already possess three contrasting spin options – a leg spinner in Adil Rashid, a left-arm orthodox bowler in Liam Dawson, and an offspinner in Will Jacks, the latter particularly handy against an out-of-form Abhishek Sharma at the top and as a tactical match-up option through the line-up. All of which is set to open the door for the return of Jamie Overton.

India Probable XI: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy

England Probable XI:Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (c), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid

[Cricbuzz]