Sports
Scotland through to semi-finals, UAE keep their hopes alive
Scotland have joined Sri Lanka and Ireland in the semi-finals line-up of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier in Abu Dhabi.
On Friday afternoon, captain Kathryn Bryce once again, led from the front with an unbeaten 63 to guide Scotland through to the semis against Thailand at Tolerance Oval.
At Zayed Cricket Stadium, Samaira Dharnidharka produced a sensational spell with the new ball to keep the UAE’s hopes of edging past Netherlands and joining Ireland as the second Group B semi-finalist alive. UAE beat Vanuatu by 70 runs in their all-important clash.
Thailand vs Scotland
Choosing to put scoreboard pressure on the opposition in a must-win encounter for both teams, Thailand made a solid start, with Nattaya Boochatham hitting two boundaries off Rachel Slater in the second over. Slater once again went for runs in the penultimate over of the Powerplay, this time being hit for three boundaries, but still came away with the prized scalp of Boochatham (13).
Thailand lost their openers on either side of the end of Powerplay with Abtaha Maqsood removing Nannapat Koncharoenkai in her first over. Scotland’s bowlers were tight with their lines and lengths and kept a leash on the scoring, while Thailand’s batters had no answer to the swing and pace of Hannah Rainey, who struck twice in two overs to further hamper Thailand’s progress.
Thailand ended up scoring only one more boundary after the Powerplay as Scotland proved miserly with their bowling, restricting them to 99/5 in their 20 overs.
Defending a relatively low target, Thailand sought early breakthroughs and Chanida Sutthiruang delivered just that, dismissing both openers within the Powerplay to put the pressure back on the opposition.
Scotland only managed two boundaries in the first six overs and finished on 23/2 with the required run-rate climbing close to run-a-ball.
At a critical juncture, the Bryce sisters stepped up, forging a crucial 46-run partnership in 40 deliveries. Sarah Bryce initiated the counterattack immediately after the Powerplay with a boundary and Kathryn Bryce followed suit, hitting consecutive fours in the subsequent over, alleviating the mounting pressure on the team.
The partnership continued to flourish with boundaries flowing steadily until Onnicha Kamchomphu halted their progress, claiming the wickets of Sarah Bryce and Ailsa Lister in quick succession. Skipper Kathryn, however, was relentless at the other end, and soon brought up her fifty with a four off 43 deliveries, helping Scotland close in on their victory.
Fittingly, it was Bryce who hit the winning runs as Scotland punched their tickets for the semi-final with six wickets and 13 balls to spare.
UAE vs Vanuatu
UAE needed a win to stay alive in the semi-final race and captain Esha Oza led by example after being put in to bat first. Oza began the innings ardently, hitting two boundaries in the opening over. She continued to find the fence regularly, racing to 29 runs off 20 balls within the Powerplay. Her innings was cut short by Rachel Andrew, who also dismissed Khushi Sharma in the same over.
Theertha Satish and Kavisha Egodage sought to rebuild, putting together a 31-run partnership but Vanessa Vira then struck to remove the latter, courtesy of a stunning single-handed catch from Andrew.
Vanuatu staged a strong comeback in the latter half of the innings, claiming wickets frequently. Nasimana Navaika played a pivotal role, taking three wickets in her final two overs to revive Vanuatu’s chances in the game. Theertha top-scored for UAE with 44 as they set a target of 134 for Vanuatu.
In response, Vanuatu were rocked early by a brilliant spell by Samaira Dharnidharka, who claimed four early wickets to put UAE on top. Khushi added to the pressure with a wicket of her own, leaving Vanuatu reeling at 16 runs for the loss of five wickets within just seven overs.
With boundaries becoming scarce, UAE continued to chip away at the wickets, with Heena Hotchandani and captain Oza getting in on the act. Struggling at 37/8, Vanuatu’s Gillian Chilia and Vanessa Vira staged a resilient partnership, remaining unbeaten and adding 26 runs to the total without losing further wickets, they closed their innings at 63/8 after 20 overs.
UAE’s comprehensive 70-run victory significantly boosted their net run rate from 0 to +0.976, and levelled them on points with the Netherlands.
The Dutch team holds a net run rate of +1.117 and must either win their upcoming match against Ireland or maintain their net run rate above UAE’s to secure a spot in the semi-finals.
Scores in brief:
Match 17:
Scotland beat Thailand by six wickets
Thailand 99 for 5 in 20 overs (Naruemol Chaiwai 36 not out, Nattaya Boochatham 13; Hannah Rainey 2-12, Abtaha Maqsood 2-15)
Scotland 100 for 4 in 17.5 overs (Kathryn Bryce 63 not out; Chanida Sutthiruang 2-18, Onnicha Kamchomphu 2-33)
Player of the Match – Kathryn Bryce
Match 18:
UAE beat Vanuatu by 70 runs
UAE 133 for 7 in 20 overs (Theertha Satish 44, Esha Oza 29; Nasimana Navaika 3-21, Rachel Andrew 2-17)
Vanuatu 63 for 8 in 20 overs (Gillian Chilia 21, Selina Solman 10; Samaira Dharnidharka 4-12, Heena Hotchandani 2-10)
Player of the Match – Samaira Dharnidharka
(ICC)
91st Battle of the Saints
St. Joseph’s hold the edge when they meet arch rivals St. Peter’s in the 91st Battle of the Saints’ big match starting today. After having beaten Petes by nine wickets in the Under 19 Division I Tier ‘A’ quarter-final at Polonnaruwa the Joes arive at the SSC ground to prove that the victory registered two months ago was not a fluke.
St. Joseph’s captained by wicketkeeper batsman Kenath Liyanage are concluding a successful season after having remained unbeaten until they were eliminated in the semi-final by St. Sebastian’s .
A strong batting lineup and a dynamic spin department are making them a formidable outfit.
Experienced campaigner Yenula Dewthusa and Demion de Silva with their left-arm spin and Aveesha Samash and Nushan Perera with off spin provide the Joes variety in the spin department. Dewthusa, Demion de Silva and Nushan Perera are their leading wicket takers. Spinners doing well at schools matches have not been effective at the SSC during the last few big matches. It will be interesting to watch as to how the spinners in these two teams would fare during the three days.
For pace the Joes will look to Maanasa Madubashana and Dunick Perera who are expected to share the new ball.
Abishek Jayaweera and Aveesha Samash will open batting, while Senuja Wakunugoda, skipper Liyanage, Dewthusa and Rishma Amarasinghe form the rest of the top order batting lineup.
St. Joseph’s registered three outright victories this season (beat St. Servatius’, St. Benedict’s and St. Peter’s) and remained unbeaten.
St. Peter’s under Oween Salgado’s captaincy did well to reach the business end of the Tier ‘A’ tournament. But the Petes were uncertain of Salgado’s participation in the big match as they were yet to assess his fitness yesterday morning. He was wounded during a match and the stitched wound had not fully healed according to team sources.
Petes beat Gurukula, St. Aloysius’ and Holy Cross this season. Their only defeat was at the hands of their arch rivals. They will look forward to avenge the defeat at the big match.
The Petes will rely on the likes of Dilana Damsara, Thareen Sanketh, Nathan David and Jason Fernando to take a greater share of batting responsibilities. The middle order batsman Sanketh is their leading batsman and has maintained an average of over 50 runs.
Speedsters Ethan Ransilige and Joshua Sebastian will share new ball duties for the Petes.
Lashmika Perera and Sanketh will share most of the slow ball duties.
St Peter’s are in the possession of the coveted Rev. Fr. Maurice J. Le Goc Trophy having last won the big match under the captaincy of Vinu Mohotty in 2016.
St. Joseph’s lead the series tally 12-10. They last won under Ruwantha Fernandopulle’s captaincy in 2008.
St. Peter’s College Team
(Seated from left) Harsha Prabath Perera (Asst. Physio/Trainer & Massuer), Thushara Maduhanka (1st XI Asst. Coach),
Nalin Wijesinghe (Head Coach), Priyadarshana Cooray (MIC – Senior & Junior), Oween Salgado (Captain), Rev. Fr.
Rohitha Rodrigo (Rector), Rev. Fr. Praveen Wijesekara (Priest in Charge – Cricket), Lashmika Perera
(Vice Captain), Dilana Damsara, Rohan Fernando (MIC – 2nd XI), Dinuka D. Godakanda (2nd XI Coach).
(Standing 1st row from left) Dinsara Rathnaweera, Dineth de Silva, Tharin Senvidu, Nathan David, Hiruka Silva, Thareen
Sanketh, Virul Amarapala, Yatheendra Jayaweera, Salith Gallage, Raphael Hettige. (Standing 2nd row from left) Jason Fernando,
Joshua Sebastian, Savi Fernnado, Ethan Ransilige, Asadisa De Silva, Sadeesha Kariyawasam, Enosh Peterson
by Reemus Fernando
120th Lovers’ Quarrel
The stakeholders of the Lovers’ Quarrel Big Match were still pursuing to make the historic 120th edition a reality on the eve of the match after Richmond authorities threatened to pull out citing that Mahinda had violated an accepted norm by included a newly recruited player in the big match team.
The historic edition was scheduled to commence as a three day encounter at the Galle International Stadium today. But the match remained doubtful at the time this edition went to press. The officials of both teams were unavailable for comments on the eve of the match. According to sources close to the two teams the joint big match committee was scheduled to meet in the evening yesterday to take a final decision regarding the match.
Richmond threatened to pull out after Mahinda included Charya Paranavithana in their big match team. Paranavithana captained St. Aloysius’ this season. He is not eligible to play matches that come under the purview of Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association as he is yet to be registered as a Mahinda player. Big Matches are not played according to SLSCA rules but Richmond authorities had raised concerns over the player registration citing that the two schools had honoured the norm even at the big match.
According to sources Richmond were threatening to pull out if Paranavithana’s name was included in the playing XI on the match day morning.
Mahinda concluded a highly successful season as the team captained by Kaveen Rukshan earned the Under 19 Division I Tier ‘A’ promotion this year. They were also the joint champions of the Tier ‘B’ tournament with Thurstan. In contrast former Division I champions Richmond had to fight relegation scares. The team captained by Thamindu Pradeeptha later successfully retained their Tier A position by recording an outright victory.
Mahinda College Team
Seated left to right: T.D. Ajantha Kumara (Head Coach), Y. Nishantha Kumara (Master in Charge – Senior), L. P. Weeraman (Deputy Principal –
Sports), Kaveen Rukshan (Captain), Mr. Janaka Peduruheva (Principal), Arosha Udayanga (Vice Captain), Mr. M.W. Ajith (Prefect of Games), Mr.
Jagath Samarakoon (Master in charge – Junior), Mr. Sachith Lakmal (Asst. Coach)
Standing (Middle row) – left to right – Dineth Pahasara, Thiyon Helika, Vinupa Nethmira, Sahanjith Irugalbandara, Dulisth Darshana, Senuka
Dangamuwa, Sadew Nethmina, Manitha Rajapaksha, Vishmitha Sathsara, Charya Paranavithana, Randula Mabarana
Standing (Back row) – left to right – Sajeew Punsara, Sehas Ashinsa, Kaveesha Githmal, Thevindu Rashmika
by Reemus Fernando
CR & FC huffed and puffed before beating Havelocks Sports Club 25-24 in a keenly contested Clifford Cup semi final game worked off in Colombo yesterday before booking their berth in Sunday’s rugby final, scheduled to take place in Kandy.
In Sunday’s final, CR will meet Kandy SC, the winner of the first semi final.
CR dominated the first half, but Havies came from behind in the second half to be in contention of pulling the game off till the last minute. Havelocks’ chances were boosted with two powerful tries coming from Chathura Dilshan late in the second half. But unpardonable mistakes by the men in the pink and chocolate jerseys helped CR to slip away with the game. Havelocks gave away two yellow cards during extra time in the second half.
The winners collected their points through three tries, two conversions and two penalties while Havelocks responded with three converted tries and a penalty. The winners led 15-10 at half time. Referee Raveen Alexander controlled the game.
By A Special Sports Correspondent
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