Defending champions Jaffna Kings had a smooth start in the Lanka Premier League curtain-raiser beating Colombo Strikers by 21 runs at RPS in front of 15,000 fans on Sunday.

Jaffna were without their two overseas signings – South Africa’s David ‘Killer’ Miller and Pakistani’s Shoaib Malik, who are yet to reach Colombo as they are still engaged in other T-20 franchise cricket. But that didn’t stop the three-time champions from making an impressive start to this year’s campaign.

Jaffna Kings have been the most organized team in the competition. They posted 173 for five batting first and then bowled out Colombo Strikers for 152 with two balls remaining.

The tournament’s most expensive signing, left-arm quick Dilshan Madushanka was used sparingly, and he accounted for Niroshan Dickwella in the middle overs before coming back for a final spell to dismiss Matheesha Pathirana to finish with two for 18.

Pathirana himself put up a show bowling with fire and finishing with one wicket and not many were scored off his four overs.

Jaffna’s bowling has been always formidable and the addition of Madushanka makes it sharper. It was leg-spinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth who bagged the Man of the Match award finishing with two for 17 in his four overs.

South African Hardus Viljoen, the brother-in-law of former captain Francois du Plessis, claimed three wickets as Jaffna bowlers had complete control of things. Maheesh Theekshana was expensive with his four overs costing 39 runs for no wickets. But more often than not he makes it count during the business end of the competition.

Charith Asalanka being called up to bowl is a move in the right direction. The national cricket team at present doesn’t have too many batters who could bowl and Asalanka can turn out to be a handy bowler filling up a few overs.

He may have been sidelined from national duty, but Thisara Perera made his presence felt with a quick 14 off seven balls and then shared the new ball with Madushanka and accounted for the big wicket of Babar Azam.

Colombo Strikers were never in the hunt. Dickwella played a lone hand, scoring 58 runs that came off 34 balls with nine fours and one six. He finished with an impressive strike rate of 170.

Bangladesh top order batter Towhid Hridoy top scored for Jaffna with 54 runs that came off 39 balls with four fours and one six. More importantly, others batted around him to enable the defending champions to reach a match-winning total.

Brief Scores:

Jaffna Kings 173 for five in 20 overs

(Towhid Hridoy 54, Priyamal Perera 22, Dunith Wellalage 25; Naseem Shah 1-30, Matheesha Pathirana 1-32)

Colombo Strikers 152 all out in 19.4 overs

(Niroshan Dickwella 58, Chamika Karunaratne 23, Hardus Viljoen 3-31, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth 2-17, Dilshan Madushanka 2-18)

Result:

Jaffna Kings won by 21 runs