Sports
Milan steers 3DH International Group to MCA ‘E’ Division title
A determined knock of 76 runs in 72 balls, inclusive of two sixes and eight fours, by captain, Milan Abeysekera, steered 3DH International Group to their first MCA cricket title, as they nudged Fairfirst Insurance by three wickets, with five deliveries to spare, in the 19th David Pieris Group of Companies sponsored, ‘DPGC’ Challenge Trophy – Mercantile Cricket Association (MCA), ‘E’ division 30 Over League Tournament 2022, final at the MCA Grounds.
Fairfirst Insurance sent into bat, were tied down by 3DH veteran left arm off spinner, Denam Cramer (06-27-02) and right arm off spinner, Kolitha Nayanananda (06-27-03) as they failed to finish their quota of overs being all out for 180 runs in 28.1 overs. Their inning was anchored by their opening batsman, Inesh Fernando who scored a responsible 72 runs in 51 balls, inclusive of three sixes and eight fours.
3DH International started off badly losing their openers Johanne de Zilva (06) and Nilantha Wijekoon (00) for 17 runs. Captain Abeysekera, playing one drop, steadied the innings with a 52 runs stand for the fourth wicket in 45 balls with Shevon Fonseka (13, 101 for 4).
Fairfirst fought tooth and nail and got back to the game, bagging two quick wickets, that of captain Milan Abeysekera, trapped LBW by Dulip Silva and he followed up by getting Sachintha Mahindasinghe stumped at 147 (147 for 7).
3 DH now needing 34 runs to win in five overs with three wickets in hand, crossed the line, as their eighth wicket pair, Vishan Gunasekera (16 not out) and Kolitha Nayanananda (13 not out) bravely defied the rampaging Fairfirst Insurance pace attack , Sampath Perera and Ishara Perera (05-27-03), with an unbroken 36 runs stand.
MCA appointed Match Referee, Imran Thahir had easy pickings by adjudicating, 3DH International Group captain, Milan Abeysekera as his Man of the Match.
The other three special awards, based on performances up to the Semi-Finals, went to Anura Pradeepitha Jayasinghe from MBSL Insurance (best bowler / 7 matches, 36 overs, 124 runs, 15 wickets) and Rashmika Mevan Ranasinghe from Softlogic Finance (Best Batsman and Man of the Series/7 innings 317 runs and 34 overs, 169 runs, 14 wickets).
The awards were given away by the Chief Guest, Executive Director, David Pieris Motor Co., Jayantha Ratnayake, and Guest of Honour, Director /CEO, Assetline Leasing Co., Ashan Nissanka, Nalin Wickramesinghe (President) , Tarindra Kaluperuma (Gen. Secretary) and Lakmal de Silva (Secretary Tournament Committee all from MCA).
Chief Scores:
Fairfirst Insurance
180 in 28.1 overs (Inesh Fernando 72, Preshein Fernando 18, Isuru Sampath 29, Ashen Shamika 23; Denam Cramer 2/27, Nilantha Wijekoon 2/25, Kolitha Nayanananda 3/27)
3DH International Group
183 for 7 in 29.5 overs (Milan Abeysekera 76, Dineth Jayakody 19, Vishan Gunasekera 16 not out; Ishara Perera 3/27, Dulip Silva 2/14)
Brazil are the unlikely candidates to have claimed two cricket records as one of their bowlers took a record nine wickets – including five in a row – in their 189-run T20 Women’s International victory against Lesotho in Botswana.
Having won the toss on Thursday, at the BCA Kalahari Women’s T20 International Tournament, Brazil posted a daunting 202-8 with wicketkeeper Monnike Machado hitting 69 off 41.
The fun, for the Brazilians, was only just beginning, though, as Laura Cardoso claimed a hat-trick with the last three deliveries of her first over – the second of the Lesotho innings – to set in motion the incredible feat that eventually saw the Africans bowled out for 13.
The 21-year-old then continued her wicket-taking achievement with a Women’s T20 International first of five dismissals in a row as she struck with the first two balls of her second over. This was all part of claiming the first nine Lesotho wickets to fall, but being denied the chance to take all 10 after a change of bowling following her third over. Her final wicket was Ret’sepile Limema, who fell to the fifth ball of the fifth over, with Cardoso replaced for the following over at that end. Her nine wickets, nevertheless, is the best return in either men’s or women’s T20 internationals.
The right-arm seamer did, indeed, come close to another hat-trick, when she claimed wickets with the last two balls of her second over, which itself totalled four victims.
Cardoso, who has has taken 55 wickets in 48 T20 matches for Brazil, replaces Indonesia’s Rohmalia Rohmalia at the top of the Women’s T20 best bowling rankings, as she finished with figures of 3-2-4-9.
Rohmalia had claimed seven wickets in 2024 in a match against Mongolia in Bali. Only three other women have claimed seven in a T20 international.
The men’s record, and the overall in the format, had been held by Bhutan’s Sonam Yeshey after he took eight wickets for seven runs against Myanmar last year.
The previous record for the number of wickets in consecutive deliveries was four, and was jointly held with the most prominent occasion in women’s cricket being when Shakera Selman pulled off the feat for the West Indies against Pakistan in 2018. Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan and Sri Lanka’s Lasith Malinga are among the most notable bowlers from the men’s game to have claimed four consecutively in the format.
Although a huge winning margin, Brazil’s overall win does not compare with Argentina’s record after they beat Chile by 364 runs in 2023. The Argentinians had struck 427-1 to set up their victory.
Lesotho’s part in the record extends to no further than Cardoso’s haul, with the record-lowest total belonging to Mali, who were bowled out for 6 in 2019 by Rwanda.
Brazil, who lead the six-team tournament with five straight wins, play Mozambique on Friday.
[Aljazeera]
| Date | Match |
|---|---|
| May 3 | 1st ODI |
| May 6 | 2nd ODI |
| May 9 | 3rd ODI |
| May 12 | 1st T20I |
| May 14 | 2nd T20I |
| May 15 | 3rd T20I |
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