Sports
Rishad and Taskin bowl Bangladesh to 2-0 lead against Zimbabwe
Towhid Hridoy kept his calm and hit pressure-releasing boundaries to steer Bangladesh to a six-wicket victory in the second T20I against Zimbabwe in Chattogram. The home side chased down the target of 139 with six wickets and nine balls in hand to go 2-0 up in the five-match series.
Hridoy struck two sixes and three fours in his unbeaten 25-ball 37, adding 31 runs for the fourth wicket with Jaker Ali, and another 49 for the fifth with Mahmudullah, who struck a massive six in his unbeaten 26 off 16 balls.
The victory was once again underpinned by Bangladesh’s bowlers, who restricted Zimbabwe for the second successive game. Taksin Ahmed was the best of the attack, taking 2 for 18 in four overs, while legspinner Rishad Hossain struck twice in an over to jolt Zimbabwe’s middle order.
Zimbabwe owed most of their runs to newcomers Johnathan Campbell and Brian Bennett who added 73 runs off 43 balls for the sixth wicket to rescue them from 42 for 5. Campbell’s 45 is now Zimbabwe’s highest score on T20I debut, while Bennett scored an unbeaten 44.
The Zimbabwe top order struggled to get going in the powerplay. Though they lost only one wicket – Tadiwanshe Marumani pinned lbw by Taskin – they kept hitting the fielders or were late on shots. They scored only 22 runs in the first six overs and did not hit a boundary in that phase for only the second time in T20 cricket. It was also only the second time that Bangladesh did not concede a boundary in the powerplay.
Joylord Gumbie finally found the boundary in the seventh over but fell in the next, holing out to mid-off for 17, the lowest score for a Zimbabwe opener in an innings of at least 30 balls. Rishad ‘s double strike in the tenth over was a crucial phase of the game, as he got rid of Zimbabwe’s captain Sikandar Raza and Clive Madande, their top-scorer from the first T20I
Craig Ervine’s mis-timed sweep off Mahedi Hasan reduced Zimbabwe to 42 for 5 in the 11th over and another sub-par total seemed inevitable.
Johnathan Campbell, the son of former Zimbabwe captain Alistair, gave his team something to bowl at with a brisk innings on debut. He was dropped when he was on 1 – wicketkeeper Jaker Ali ran towards square-leg but could not catch the mis-hit off Mahedi Hasan – and went on to hit three sixes and four fours in his innings off 45 off 24 balls, adding 73 for the sixth wicket with Bennett.
Campbell swung Shoriful Islam for Zimbabwe’s first six in the 13th over and Bennett smacked Taskin over midwicket in the 15th. Campbell then hammered Rishad and Saifuddin for sixes in the next two overs; Bennett slammed Shoriful straight in the 18th over.
After Campbell’s dismissal, Bennett gave Zimbabwe a strong finish, hitting a four and a six as they took 18 off the final over. He finished on an unbeaten 44 off 29 balls, and Zimbabwe ended on 138 for 7.
Bangladesh made a decent start in their chase. Litton Das, struggling for runs in white-ball cricket this year, ramp-scooped Blessing Muzarabani for a six over the wicketkeeper in the second over. His opening partner Tanzid Hasan slugged Ainsley Ndlovu for his first six in the fourth over. But left-arm spinner Ndlovu made the first breakthrough for Zimbabwe in the sixth over when Tanzid mistimed a slightly quicker delivery to the midwicket.
Just when it looked like Bangladesh had the chase in their grasp, things started to happen. Litton was dropped by Luke Jongwe off Raza on 21. Jongwe then made up for the mistake with two wickets in his following over: captain Najmul Hossain Shanto caught at long-and Litton at backward point for 23
Towhid and Jaker Ali steadied the chase before picking up boundaries from the 12th over. Jaker launched Jongwe over midwicket for his first six after Hridoy slapped him through point for four. Hridoy’s finesse came to the fore when he lightly cut Raza for four through third-man.
When Richard Ngarava dismissed Jaker in the 14th over, it brought Bangladesh’s best finishers together. With 33 needed in the last four overs, Hridoy and Mahmudullah brought the chase under control by scoring 16 off the 17th over from Jongwe.
Mahmudullah launched Richard Ngarava over midwicket for a 103m six, and then Hridoy’s dispatched him over fine leg for six more to all but end the game.
Brief scores:
Bangladesh 142 for 4 in 18.3 overs (Litton Das 23, Towhid Hridoy 37*, Mohammad Mahmudullah 26*; Richard Ngarava 1-32, Luke Jongwe 3-35, Ainsley Ndlovu 1-25) beat Zimbabwe 138 for 7 in 20 overs (Jonathan Campbell 45, Brian Bennett 44*, Shoriful Islam 1-26, Mahedi Hasan 1-18, Taskin Ahmed 2-18, Mohammad Saiffudin 1-37, Rishad Hossain 2-33) by six wickets
The India and Zimbabwe women’s teams are all set to play an international fixture against each other for the first time when Zimbabwe tour India for white-ball fixtures this October.
The tour comprises three T20Is and three ODIs and will be Zimbabwe’s first visit to India; India are yet to tour Zimbabwe for bilateral fixtures.
The three T20Is will be played in Raipur on October 16, 18 and 20, and the ODIs are on October 23, 25 and 28 in Baroda.
The fixtures were announced by the BCCI on Wednesday, along with two home series for the India A women’s side against Australia A in September and England A in December. Both those series comprise three T20s, three List A games and one multi-day fixture.
The India Under-19 women’s team will also host Sri Lanka U-19 in June and July for three T20s and three 50-over games, and England U-19 in November and December for five T20 fixtures.
The Australia A men’s side will tour India for two multi-day fixtures and three one-dayers in September and October, while the Australia U-19 side will visit India for two multi-day fixtures and three one-dayers also in September and October.
[Cricinfo]
Sports
Fast bowlers to get more opportunities as new format introduced for Under-15 Division I tourney
The Inter-Schools Under-15 Division I cricket tournament will be conducted under a revamped format this year, with organisers shifting the focus back to limited-overs cricket while introducing new rules aimed at promoting fast bowling.
The tournament, organised by the Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association (SLSCA), will see only the top-tier Division I competition played in a 50-over format. Meanwhile, Division II and Division III matches will continue under the one-day, four-innings structure.
SLSCA Secretary Saman Hettiarachchi said the changes were made following consultations with experts from Sri Lanka Cricket, with a clear objective of providing greater opportunities for pace bowlers.
”We opted for the limited-overs format for Division I in consultation with Sri Lanka Cricket. The lower divisions will copete in the innings format as we have observed matches ending early without utilizing the full quota of overs,” Hettiarachchi told ‘The Island’.
A key feature of the revised rules is the compulsory allocation of overs for fast bowlers. In a full 50-over innings, a minimum of 20 overs must be bowled by pacemen. Additionally, during the first 10 overs, at least eight overs must be delivered by fast bowlers. If an innings is reduced to 30 overs or fewer, at least six of the first eight overs must be bowled by pace.
”It was made mandatory to give more opportunities to pacemen,” Hettiarachchi explained.
Meanwhile, the official draw for the Division I tournament has been released, featuring 70 teams divided into 16 groups from Group A to Group P for the preliminary round. Each team is guaranteed multiple matches during the opening stage.
Defending champions St. Joseph’s College headline Group A, where they will meet Nalanda College, Dharmapala College, St. John’s College, Lumbini College and De La Salle College.
With traditional cricketing powerhouses spread across the groups, it will be interesting to see how the first round pans out in the new-look tournament.
Under 15 Division I Tournament First Round Groups
GROUP A
St. Joseph’s College, Colombo
Nalanda College, Colombo
Dharmapala College, Pannipitiya
St. John’s College, Nugegoda
Lumbini College, Colombo
De La Salle College, Colombo
GROUP B
D.S. Senanayake College, Colombo
S. Thomas’ College, Mt. Lavinia
Presidents’ College, Kotte
Wesley College, Colombo
Carey College, Colombo
Sri Dharmaloka College, Kelaniya
GROUP C
St. Anthony’s College, Wattala
St. Sebastian’s College, Moratuwa
Dharmapala Vidyalaya, Kottawa
St. Peter’s College, Colombo
C.W.W. Kannangara MV, Colombo
Ashoka College, Colombo
GROUP D
St. Benedict’s College, Colombo
Royal College, Colombo
Gurukula College, Kelaniya
Lyceum International School, Wattala
Bandaranayake MMV, Gampaha
St. John’s College, Panadura
GROUP E
De Mazenod College, Kandana
Isipathana College, Colombo
Christ King College, Ja-Ela
Thurstan College, Colombo
Ananda Shastralaya NS, Kotte
St. Joseph Vaz College, Vennappuwa
GROUP F
Mahanama College, Colombo
Piliyandala MMV, Piliyandala
Ananda College, Colombo
Sri Jayawardenapura NS, Kotte
Presidents College, Maharagama
St. Thomas’ College, Kotte
GROUP G
Wadduwa MMV, Wadduwa
Sri Sumangala College, Panadura
Prince of Wales College, Moratuwa
Moratu Vidyalaya, Moratuwa
Revatha College, Balapitiya
Royal College, Panadura
GROUP H
Dharmaraja College, Kandy
St. Mary’s College, Kegalle
Kegalu Vidyalaya, Kegalle
Kingswood College, Kandy
Vidyartha College, Kandy
Ibbagamuwa MMV, Ibbagamuwa
GROUP J
Maris Stella College, Negombo
Maliyadeva College, Kurunegala
Harischandra College, Negombo
Maliyadeva Adarsha MV, Kurunegala
Galahitiyawa MMV, Ganemulla
Sandalankawa MMV, Sandalankawa
GROUP K
St. Anthony’s College, Kandy
St. Sylvester’s College, Kandy
Trinity College, Kandy
Royal College, Polonnaruwa
St. Thomas’ College, Matale
Jaffna Hindu College, Jaffna
GROUP L
Sri Pangnananda MMV, Raddoluwa
St. Anne’s College, Kurunegala
St. Mary’s College, Chilaw
Sri Sumangala NS, Wariyapola
St. Peter’s College, Negombo
St. Xavier’s College, Marawila
GROUP M
Devapathiraja College, Rathgama
St. Aloysius College, Galle
Holy Cross College, Kalutara
Dharmasoka College, Ambalangoda
Kalutara Vidyalaya, Kalutara
Vidyaloka College, Galle
GROUP N
Mahinda College, Galle
Tissa MV, Kalutara
Rahula College, Matara
Debarawewa NS, Debarawewa
St. Thomas’ College, Matara
Meepawala Amarasuriya MV
GROUP P
St. Servatius’ College, Matara
Richmond College, Galle
Sri Devananda College, Ambalangoda
Karandeniya MMV, Karandeniya
P. De S. Kularathna MV, Ambalangoda
President’s College, Embilipitiya.
by Reemus Fernando
With the success the seven MCA men’s cricket tournaments have achieved, the Executive Committee of Mercantile Cricket Association (MCA) have decided to give Women’s Cricket in Sri Lanka a boost by introducing a hard ball Women’s Cricket Tournament for the corporate sector.
With the international recognition women’s cricket has gained at present, it is no secret that there still are many talented lasses aspiring to reach the zenith of the game.
Even with the measures Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) the game’s governing body through the Schools Cricket Association (SLSCA) have taken to promote girls cricket in schools, a considerable number of talented players, specially in the provinces do not have an opportunity to be recognized.
It is the MCA’s belief that with the introduction of a MCA Women’s Cricket Tournament, the corporate sector will be encouraged to field teams, and in doing so will give a hand to talented lasses and school leavers by providing them with employment as well as the opportunity to realise their aspirations in the Women’s Cricket arena.
At present in addition to the seven major Men’s tournaments the MCA organise the
Mercantile Six-a-Side tournament, the Over-40 Sixes competition, the 20×20 league, and the esteemed MCA Inter Academy Invitational tournament,
As an initial step, the MCA will be conducting a Women’s six and side soft ball cricket tournament for the corporate sector teams on Saturday 23rd May 2026 at the Mercantile Cricket Association grounds.
For further information please contact Chamara on 0759592488 or Prasad 0759809777.
Joint programme between President’s Fund and Janashakthi Foundation to expand healthcare facilities for children
Maldivian President concludes state visit to Sri Lanka
India to host Zimbabwe for maiden women’s bilateral series
Showers above 75 mm are likely at some places in the Sabaragamuwa, Central, Uva, Southern and North-central provinces
Govt. draws flak over Rs. 500 mn excess Aswesuma payments
NDB fraud: Ravi asks govt. to appoint independent forensic auditor
‘Dates have the highest sugar content to fight Coronavirus’
Sunday Island 27 December – Headlines
#SundayIsland 17th December – Headlines
Sunday Island – 28th March
Sunday Island Headlines – 21 March
Sunday Island – 21st February – Headlines
-
News2 days agoCJ urged to inquire into AKD’s remarks on May 25 court verdict
-
News6 days ago“Three-in-one blood pressure pill can significantly reduce risk of recurrent strokes”
-
News3 days agoUSD 3.7 bn H’tota refinery: China won’t launch project without bigger local market share
-
News6 days agoAlarm raised over plan to share Lanka’s biometric data with blacklisted Indian firm
-
News4 days agoEaster Sunday Case: Ex-SIS Chief concealed intel, former Defence Secy tells court
-
News5 days agoTen corruption cases set for court in May, verdict ordered in one case – President
-
News6 days agoUSD 2.5 mn fraud probe: Interdicted MoF official found dead at home
-
Editorial3 days agoDeliver or perish