Sports
Jayasuriya blitz from an umpiring perspective
by Rex Clementine
Kiwis hate losing to Aussies, Everton hate losing to Manchester United and Sri Lankans hate losing to India. In sports, there is a sensational feeling when you beat the big brother. Sri Lankan cricket at present may have fallen by the wayside but time was when India feared taking on Sri Lanka like the plague. There was one man who terrorized successive Indian teams – Sanath Jayasuriya. This week marked his brutal onslaught of Indian bowlers on his way to 189 – in the finals of the Champions Trophy in Sharjah.
The attack by the Sri Lankan captain was so brutal that it demoralized the Indians and they hardly made an effort to chase down the target of 300 runs. They were shot out for 54 as Sri Lanka secured a 245 run win. Just one Indian batsman managed double figures.
Australian umpire Daryl Harper officiated the game and he recalled the day in a chat with Sunday Island.
“Sanath won the toss and immediately batted brilliantly, almost carrying his bat with 189 runs. He was devastating and never looked in trouble. I anticipated a double century but he was out chasing runs for the team in the penultimate over,” Harper said.
The World Record for highest individual score then was 194 – established by Saeed Anwar. With two over left, Sri Lankan fans not only expected Jayasuriya to break the record but go onto establish the first double hundred in ODI cricket.
Tony Greig’s commentary was top class too. Thanks to YouTube, you can access it easily. “He’s hit that one into the gap and another four. He continues to plunder this Indian attack to all corners of the ground.”
“Jayasuriya is having the party of his life here in Sharjah. It may well be his wife’s birthday, but oh boy, he is taking all the presents himself smashing all over Sharjah,” Greig said at one point.
Sourav Ganguly, the Indian captain was a gutsy cricketer. With things falling apart, he brings himself on with Jayasuriya in devastating mood. The first ball he bowls, Ganguly dismisses Jayasuriya – stumped off a wide. Greig can not hide his disappointment.
“We have been privileged to see one of the best innings. Someone could have told him that you could have made the highest score ever. There are Indians, there are Arabs, there are Sri Lankans and Englishmen. They are all cheering him. We have witnessed a great innings.”
As for Harper, he remembers things vividly although it has been 20 years since that memorable day.
“India needed 300 runs to win on a very flat pitch. I was umpiring with George Sharp and we expected a serious run chase in the night session. Chaminda Vass demolished India by removing Ganguly, Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh and Kambli inside his fifth over,” Harper recalled.
“The end came quickly with only RR Singh reaching double figures. My most disturbing memory came in the airport later that night. Several Indian players informed me that they could expect to be pelted with rotten fruit when they reached their home airports, such was the embarrassment of being bowled out for such a paltry score. That could never happen in Australia. I was shocked at the thought but began to understand the absolute passion of Indians for the game.”
“It was a fantastic final even if one sided. I counted myself lucky to be out on the field in the middle of the carnage,” Harper concluded.
North Korea has held the Pyongyang International Marathon for the first time in six years, welcoming some 200 foreign runners to the streets of the reclusive country’s capital.
The marathon, which was launched in 1981, took place annually in April to celebrate the birth of its founding leader Kim Il Sung.
Before Sunday’s marathon, the race was last held in 2019, wherein 950 foreigners participated. North Korea sealed itself off the following year, when the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
North Korea has been slow to reopen since, allowing only Russian tourists into its capital since last year.
Runners have had to enter the country as part of an organised tour group, as was the case before the pandemic.
Koryo Tours, a Beijing-based travel agency listed as an “exclusive partner” on the event website, offers six-day marathon tours at 2,195 euros ($2,406) including flights to and from Beijing.
“The Pyongyang Marathon is an extremely unique experience as it provides an opportunity to interact with locals,” the agency wrote on its website.
Sunday’s marathon route took participants past landmarks across the city, including the Kim Il Sung stadium, the Arch of Triumph built to commemorate Kim Il Sung’s role in resisting Japanese rule, and the Mirae Future Scientists’ Street said to be a residential district for scientists and engineers.
Pictures online show the stadium – where runners start and finish their race – filled with spectators, many of them cheering and waving gold-coloured paper flags.
Pak Kum Dong, a North Korean runner, told Reuters news agency: “The eyes of our people on me helped me to bear the difficulties whenever I feel tired.”
There is no publicly available information on race results.
North Korea had only statred to scale back Covid-19 restrictions in the middle of 2023.
In Feburary, it allowed some Western tourists into the remote, eastern city Rason, but suspended those tours just weeks after.
[BBC]
Noor Ahmad, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) left-arm wristspinner, continues to head the Purple Cap table with ten wickets from four games. His spell of 4 for 18 in CSK’s first game against MI, remains his best so far.
DC’s Mitchell Starc who picked up his maiden five-for in T20s, against SRH remains second on the list with nine wickets in three games.
GT’s Mohammed Siraj equalled Starc’s tally on Sunday night with his own IPL best, albeit he has played four games to Starc’s three. Siraj picked up 4 for 17 against SRH to hand them their four successive loss, and was named the Player of the Match.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) suffered another batting malfunction, this time on a slow, black-soil surface at home, crashing to their fourth successive defeat in IPL 2025. Having lost Travishek in the powerplay, SRH waited until the 13th over to see the first six of the innings, and managed only one more after that Mohammad Siraj caused irreparable damage right from the start, ending with his career-best IPL figures of 4 for 17.
Pat Cummins’ cameo (22* off nine balls) and then his dismissal of Jos Buttler for a duck in Gujarat Titans’ (GT) chase of 153 gave SRH some hope, but that faded away once Washington Sundar clattered 23 off nine balls in the powerplay. Earlier in the day, GT didn’t need Washington with the ball, but his attacking enterprise at No. 4 settled their chase on a slow pitch. Washington fell agonisingly short of a maiden IPL half-century, but his captain Shubman Gill ushered GT home, with an unbeaten 61 off 43 balls, along with Sherfane Rutherford.
Siraj had sparked the Border-Gavaskar Trophy to life when he gave Travis Head a send-off in Adelaide last December. Four months on, Siraj was bowling to Head for the first time in T20s, and the battle lasted just five balls. After Head scored two fours off Siraj, the fast bowler struck with his trademark wobble-seam delivery, having him chip a catch to midwicket for 8.
Abhishek Sharma hit four fours before Siraj had him miscuing a catch to mid-on in his third over of the powerplay. It was Siraj’s 100th wicket in the IPL and sixth in the powerplay, the most by a bowler in that phase so far this season, with an economy rate of 6.27.
Siraj then returned in the death to york both Aniket Verma, the last recognised batter for SRH, and Simarjeet Singh, their Impact Player.
With both Head and Abhishek gone early,Rashid Khan, who was coming into this game on the back of figures of 4-0-54-0, could afford to ease himself in. He started fairly well by giving away just 10 runs in his first two overs, but when he erred in length, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Heinrich Klassen dispatched him to the fence. Rashid finished with 4-0-31-0, going wicketless for a third successive game, and with tournament figures of 1 for 143 in 14 overs at an economy rate of 10.21
Left-arm fingerspinner Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, on the other hand, showed remarkable control over his length and variations. He claimed the big wicket of Klaasen by knocking him over with a quick dart, which skidded off the pitch, for 27 off 19 balls. Sai Kishore also had Reddy holing out for 31 off 34 balls and finished with 4-0-24-2.
That SRH passed 150 was down to Cummins’ late blows. He was the only SRH batter in the top eight to have a strike rate of over 160.
It appeared like GT had handed a franchise debut to Washington to primarily match his offspin up with SRH’s left-hander heavy top order. But with Siraj dominating the powerplay and Sai Kishore taking care of the middle overs, GT ended up not using his offspin.
Washington then walked out to bat at No. 4 after his childhood friend B Sai Sudarshan and Buttler fell cheaply in successive overs. Washington took advantage of the last over of the powerplay, smoking Simarjeet for two sixes and two fours. It provided a throwback to Washington of 2016, when he opened the batting, alongside Abhinav Mukund, in the TNPL and showed the intent to hit over the top. Just like that, Washington dumped SRH’s Impact Player out of the attack.
Washington continued to attack even after that. When the ambidextrous Kamindu Mendis darted one on the stumps with his right hand, Washington manufactured swinging room and laced him over extra-cover for four. Washington seemed set for a fifty until he holed out one shy of the landmark in the 14th over.
Gill, who had already crossed 50 by that point, finished the job along with Rutherford, who hit an unbeaten 35 off 16 balls.
Brief scores:
Gujarat Titans 153 for 3 in 16.4 overs (Shubman Gill 61*, Washington Sundar 49, Sherfaine Rutherford 35*; Mohammed Shami 2-28, Pat Cumminss 1-26) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 152 for 8 in 20 overs (Abhishek Sharma 18, Ishan Krishan 17, Nitish Kumar Reddy 31, Heinrich Klassen 27, Aniket Verma 18,Pat Cummins 22*; Mohammed Siraj 4-17, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore 2-24, Prasidh Krishna 2-25)by seven wickets
[Cricinfo]
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