Sports
Samarawickrama, bowlers help SL make winning start in Super 4s
An impressive 72-ball 93 from Sadeera Samarawickrama on a trying wicket, followed by three-wicket hauls for Dasun Shanaka and Maheesh Theekshana, helped Sri Lanka begin the Super Fours of the Asia Cup with a 21-run victory in Colombo on Saturday (September 9). Towhid Hridoy came up with a fighting 82 off 97 in the chase of 257 but regular wickets meant that Bangladesh ended up short, as they suffered their second successive defeat in the second leg of the tournament while Sri Lanka recorded their 13th successive victory in ODI cricket.
Mehidy Hasan and Mohammad Naim were involved in a half-century stand to help Bangladesh make a steady start in the chase. Mehidy cashed in on some loose deliveries to strike two fours off Theekshana while Naim was slightly jittery at the other end, playing and missing multiple times, and he was also slower with his scoring compared to his partner. Bangladesh, though, brought up the fifty in the 11th over, with Mehidy scoring at a run-a-ball. However, his stay came to an end when Shanaka bowled a short one and Mehidy was late on the pull, handing a catch to midwicket. Naim’s, 46-ball struggle for only 21 runs was ended by the Sri Lanka skipper, again with a short ball.
Bangladesh were in more trouble when Matheesha Pathirana removed Shakib Al Hasan in the 16th over. Shakib poked at a delivery outside off and ended up getting an edge to the ‘keeper, with Sri Lanka having to take the review route to send the Bangladesh skipper back to the hut. The procession continued as they slipped to 83/4 when Litton Das got an inside edge off Dunith Wellalage and the ball bounced off ‘keeper Kusal Mendis’s knee before he juggled and held on to it. The quick wickets meant that Towhid Hridoy and Mushfiqur Rahim had to minimise the risks in their rebuilding job, raising a half-century stand in 84 deliveries as the required rate rose past seven in the 33rd Over.
Hridoy and Rahim extended their partnership to 72 before Shanaka returned to dismiss the latter who failed to clear mid-off. Hridoy brought up a 73-ball fifty with a four and also struck two boundaries off Theekshana, with the equation reading 81 off the last 10 overs. After seeing Shamim Hossain out lbw to Theekshana, Hridoy struck a four off Pathirana and a six off Theekshana. But Sri Lanka got a huge advantage in the game when Theekshana had Hridoy out lbw in the 80s, with a review failing to help him. Pathirana cleaned up the tail to also pick up three as Bangladesh’s innings ended in the 49th over.
Earlier, Sri Lanka got off to a good start after being asked to bat, with Dimuth Karunaratne and Pathum Nissanka putting on a brisk 34-run partnership. Hasan Mahmud ended the stand by having Karunaratne caught behind but another good partnership ensued, between Nissanka and Mendis, setting up a good platform for Sri Lanka. Bangladesh did well to apply the brakes on the scoring but their catching left the bowlers disappointed as both Nissanka and Mendis got lucky breaks. Shoriful finally ended the 74-run stand by having Nissanka trapped leg-before, and also picked up the wicket of Mendis soon after the No.3 reached fifty.
Taskin Ahmed bowled a slower ball to have Charith Asalanka caught at mid-on and Dhananjaya fell to Mahmud attempting a backfoot punch. While wickets fell around him, Samarawickrama played a steady hand with good strike rotation and timely boundaries. Scoring at a good rate, he powered his team’s progress as he went past fifty in the 42nd over, with Sri Lanka crossing 200 in the next. Shanaka, who played second fiddle in a 60-run stand with Samarawickrama, became Mahmud’s third scalp. Samarawickrama entered the 80s by scoring the first six of the innings, off Mahmud, who then had Wellalage run out by kicking the ball onto the stumps. Taskin accounted for Theekshana in the final over but Samarawickrama responded with a four and a six, before getting out.
Brief scores:
Sri Lanka 257/9 in 50 overs (Sadeera Samarawickrama 93, Kusal Mendis 50; Hasan Mahmud 3-57, Taskin Ahmed 3-62) beat Bangladesh 236 in 48.1 overs (Towhid Hridoy 82, Dasun Shanaka 3-28, Matheesha Pathirana 3-58) by 21 runs.
Half-centuries from Gull Feroza and Sidra Amin helped Pakistan start their tour of Sri Lanka on a winning note. After restricting Sri Lanka to 210 for 9, thanks to Nashra Sandhu’s 3 for 42, Pakistan got home with five wickets and seven overs to spare in the first woman’s ODI in Hambantota.
Vishmi Gunaratne, reunited with captain chamari Athapaththu at the top of the order, helped Sri Lanka lay a solid foundation after they opted to bat. The hosts raced to 31 without loss in the first five overs. Gunaratne and Athapaththu soon brought up their fifth fifty-run partnership in ODIs, the most by an opening pair for Sri Lanka.
Once spin came on, the scoring slowed down. Gunaratne was the first to depart when she became Sandhu’s first victim. Athapaththu and Hasini Perera then added 53 for the second wicket before the Sri Lanka captain was bowled by Sandhu. Pakistan applied the squeeze when Sri Lanka were 109 for 2 in the 24th over. The only notable stand for Sri Lanka thereon was between Nilakshika Silva and Kavisha Dilhari, who added 42 for the fifth wicket. But Sri Lanka’s final surge never came and they lost 5 for 32 in the last seven overs to be restricted to a below-par total.
Pakistan hardly broke a sweat in their chase. Feroza struck her fourth successive ODI half-century. She was rapid in the first powerplay, and was the aggressor in the 58-run opening partnership with Sadar Shamas. Feroza then added 90 for the second wicket with Amin, who batted steadily. Feroza eventually fell for a breezy 77-ball 78 while Amin scored 57 off 94 before being dismissed, with victory in sight.
The win was Pakistan’s fifth consecutive ODI win, which put them second on the ICC Women’s Championship points table.
Scores:
Pakistan Women 211 for 5 in 43 overs (Gull Feroza 78, Sidra Amin 57; Kavisha Dilhari 2-37) beat Sri Lanka Women 210 for 9 in 50 overs (Nilakshika Silva 46, Chamari Athapaththu 46; Nashra Sandhu 3-42, Tasmia Rubab 2-34) by five wickets
(CRICINFO)
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