Sports
India restricted to below par 240
Rex Clementine in Ahmedabad
Many had expected a belter for the World Cup final, but Ahmedabad produced a wicket not so easy to score runs and at one stage a total in the range of 260 looked on par. However, India could manage only 240 as Australia’s seamers were on the money and their fielding was superb to keep the competition’s unbeaten team in check.
India had cruised to the World Cup final with ten wins in a row and although Australia had gained some momentum having won their last eight games, on paper India looked to be too strong.Captain Rohit Sharma was India’s key player. Not that he posts big hundreds, but he produces quick starts to his side and yesterday too he raced to 47 off 31 balls with four fours and three sixes.
Having hit Glenn Maxwell for a four and a six, Rohit miscued one in the same over and Travis Head from covers ran backwards and pulled off a stunning diving catch.
Rohit’s dismissal slowed down India’s scoring. They had scored 76 runs inside the first ten overs but there was little momentum once the skipper was dismissed. In the last 40 overs, India managed just four boundaries.
All hope wasn’t lost once Rohit was gone as Virat Kohli was expected to bat deep and post yet another hundred to give his side a competitive total.
But soon after scoring a half-century, Kohli chopped a Cummins delivery onto the stumps and Australia were elated. Kohli ended the competition as the highest run getter with 765 runs with an average of 95.
K.L. Rahul with a half-century pushed India’s total beyond 200, but they needed much more from him. The big hitting Suryakumar Yadav was held back when India lost the fourth wicket and Ravindra Jadeja came in at number six.
The ploy was obviously to let T-20 specialist Suryakumar smash a few in the last ten overs but that didn’t pay off as he struggled with his timing and was dismissed for 18 off 28 balls.
Mitchell Starc was the pick of the bowlers finishing with three wickets while he was well backed up by Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, who took two wickets each.
The venue was packed with 132,000 fans with all tickets sold out. People all across India and overseas flew in to Ahmedabad to witness the team winning their third World Cup, but the batting wasn’t up to scratch.
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Renuka, Mandhana consign West Indies to record loss
After a T20I series that went to the decider, the first of three ODIs between India and West Indies was a thoroughly one-sided fare. The hosts dominated from start to finish despite not batting to full potential, while still scoring an imposing 314 for 9, and then hardly flexed their bowling muscle to run past a West Indies line-up that folded like nine pins.
The architects of the win were Smriti Mandhana who top scored with 91, and Renuka Singh who had an unchanged opening spell of 8-1-19-4 en route a maiden ODI five-for. Two of those strikes happened to be of Hayley Matthews and Deandra Dottin inside the first five overs of the chase. The game was decided right there.
India will look back at their batting performance with mixed emotions despite the massive victory margin. For the first half of their innings, they appeared to be stuck in second gear, with that safety-first approach that has troubled them in ODIs lately yet again taking precedence despite Mandhana looking in sparkling form, like she has in the format all through the year.
The caution at the start was largely down to a nervous debutant – Pratika Rawal – auditioning to be Mandhana’s batting partner at the top of the order after a number of experiments earlier in the month in Australia – most notably Richa Ghosh opening – fell flat.
Rawal made 40 in a 110-run opening stand but was aided by plenty of luck along the way. On 1, she gloved a tickle to the wicketkeeper, but West Indies didn’t review. On 3, Afy Fletcher dropped a sitter at mid-off as she attempted her first aggressive shot. In between the two, she survived a tight run-out opportunity. To Rawal’s credit, she overcame all of these to slowly build her innings, before falling to an unreal return catch to Mathews, as she threw herself full-stretch to pluck a one-handed stunner.
Mandhana brought up her half-century off 62 balls, her 28th in ODIs, and shifted gears to sweep and drive imperiously, but Harleen Deol’s struggles forced her into attempting cheeky strokes, one of which had her lbw. Harleen’s cautious approach at No. 3 despite a solid start made you wonder if India miscalculated by not promoting Jemimah Rodrigues or Harampreet Kaur.
This became evident almost immediately when Harmanpreet changed the tempo of the innings upon arrival, dashing to 32 off 20 through her trademark sweeps and ferocious lofted hits, before a mix-up with Richa Ghosh, while attempting a run to short third, cut short her innings.
Ghosh and Rodrigues played fine cameos that helped provide India the finishing kick, while also allowing them to paper over the muddle in the middle overs, with the last 20 overs bringing 160. Ghosh showed off her full range of power, timing and fineness – all in one, as she made a 13-ball 26, while Rodrigues, now seen as a finisher, made 31 off 19.
India could’ve scored a lot more if not for a series of rash shots towards the end that brought Zaida James the young left-arm spinner, a maiden five-for ODIs. That, as it turned out was one of the few positives for West Indies on a forgettable night as they had no answers to Renuka’s devious in-duckers that kept missing.
The effect of Renuka’s spell has a mesmeric effect on the others too. Titas Sadhu picked up her first ODI wicket and young legspinner Priya Mishra delivered 4.2 crafty overs for two wickets. All told, the look of horror on Shemaine Campbelle’s face when she nailed a lofted hit only for an acrobatic Harmanpreet to intercept the ball at mid-on by leaping high and pulling off a one-handed grab summed up the evening for the West Indies.
It was no less than a horror show with the bat, which they’d hope to improve on as they build towards a 50-over World Cup on these very shores in 10 months.
Brief scores:
India Women 314 for 9 in 50 overs (Smriti Mandhana 91, Pratika Rawal 40, Harleen Deol 44, Harmanpreet Kaur 34, Jemimah Rodrigues 31; Zaida James 5-45, Hayley Mathews 2-61) beat West Indies Women 103 in 26.2 overs (Afy Fletcher 24; Renuka Singh 5-29, Priya Mishra 2-22) by 211 runs
[Cricinfo]
Sports
Kandy, CH, Havies impress during second week of club rugby
By A Special Sports Correspondent
Kandy Sports Club continued impressively for the second week in the domestic league rugby tournament when they thrashed Army Sports Club by 70 points to 5 at Nittawela grounds on Saturday.
The winners were unstoppable in both halves and ran down nine tries in total out of which eight were converted by place kicker and fly half Tharinda Ratwatte. He also slotted in three penalties to swell the Kandy SC score. Army responded with a solitary try through Sudaraka Dikkumbura early in the first half. The soldiers were forced to play catch-up rugby for the rest of the game after that impressive try.
Former Trinitian and national player Ratwatte was in fine form with his kicking boots and also chipped in with a try. His overall contribution to his team’s score was 30 points.
In the other match played on Saturday at Ratmalana, Havelocks SC did well to down a fighting Air Force Sports Club outfit by 30 points to 19. The winners were leading 18-11 at half time.
Havies collected their points through five tries, one conversion and one penalty while the losing team responded with two tries and three penalties.
On Friday, CH & FC recorded their maiden win for the season by beating Police Sports Club by 39 points to 27 at Police Park. CH collected their points through five tries, four conversions and two penalties while Police ran down three tries and converted all three. The policemen also got points through two penalties. The tournament is conducted by Sri Lanka Rugby.
Sports
St Sylvester’s, Hemamali Youth Boxing Champions
St. Sylvester’s College, Kandy and Hemamali Girl’s College, Kandy emerged champions in the BASL Youth Boxing Championship to retain the General Jagath Jayasuriya Challenge Trophy conducted by the Boxing Association of Sri Lanka at Sahas Uyana, Kandy.
Stubbs Shield champions St Sylvester’s won a total of nine medals inclusive of four gold medals, three silver and two bronze medals while Hemamali won five gold medals and one silver medal.
Formerly a tournament for Cadet boxers, this tournament is for 17-18 year olds.
Royal College, Colombo were runners up in the boys division also winning a total of nine medals comprising two gold, two silver and five bronze medals.
Sripalee College, Horana were runners-up in the girls category winning a total of eight medals consisting of four gold medals, one silver and three bronze medals.
IND Thathsara of Nalanda College, Colombo who won the fly weight (51kg) title defeating Sylvestrian PGTP Maduwantha was adjudged the Best Boxer (men) while KMN Sandeepani of Hemamali who won the fly weight (52kg) title was picked as the Best Boxer (women).
There were outstanding performances from Stubbs Shield Best Boxer Royalist Thenuwan Meegalle who outpointed Sylvestrian TL Dharmapriya in the feather weight (57kg); Best Boxer at this meet last year Sylvestrian KGSK Heshan who won a tough duel against Sri Lanka junior international and medallist A Azil of Zahira College, Colombo in the light weight (60kg) final; and Trinitian Shezan Odayar who scored a stunning first round win over another Sri Lanka junior international Royalist Malith Bandara in the middle weight (75kg) final.
NM Abdulrahaman (54kg), JMT Deshan (63.5kg) and SGM Azhar (71kg) were the other gold medal winners for St Sylvester’s.
All Island National School Games Best Boxer and Best Boxer at this meet last year Chathuni Siriwardena (50kg), HGS Sewwandi (57kg), UGSD Perera (63kg) and AMU Devindi (81kg) were the other gold medal winners for Hemamali.
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