Sports
Rajapaksa axed from Australia T-20s
Hard-hitting top order batsman Bhanuka Rajapaksa has been axed from the side for the upcoming five match T-20 series in Australia starting next month. Rajapaksa had reversed his decision to retire a fortnight ago after an appeal by Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa. The Island learns the 30-year-old left-hander had failed to meet the necessary fitness standards.
It is believed that it took Rajapaksa more than nine minutes to complete the two kilometer run while his skinfolds were as high as 110. Players need to finish the two kilometer run under eight minutes and 35 seconds to be eligible for selection and they need to have skinfolds below 80.
There was no room for Kusal Janith Perera as well, who was overlooked for the home series against Zimbabwe as he was recovering from injury.
Aviska Fernando, Kamil Mishara and Janith Liyanage, who all had tested positive for COVID have been named in the squad while Danushka Gunathilaka is making a comeback after his suspension ended early. Niroshan Dickwella was overlooked.
Meanwhile Charith Asalanka has been named as Vice-Captain to Dasun Shanaka.
SLC also announce that Interim Coach Rumesh Ratnayake will not travel with the team to Australia as he had tested positive for COVID. Ratnayake is expected to join the team on a later day.
The five match series will be played at MCG, SCG and Canberra.
Sri Lanka squad for Australia T-20s:
Dasun Shanaka (Captain), Charith Asalanka (Vice-Captain), Avishka Fernando, Pathum Nissanka, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Chamika Karunaratne, Janith Liyanage, Kamil Mishara, Ramesh Mendis, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lahiru Kumara, Nuwan Thushara, Dushmantha Chameera, Binura Fernando, Maheesh Theekshana,. Jeffrey Vandersay, Praveen Jayawickrama and Shiran Fernando.
Alishan Sharafu’s composed half-century under pressure and Haider Ali’s splendid spell of 3 for 7 led UAE to a historic series win against Bangladesh in Sharjah. The hosts chased down 163 with seven wickets in hand to clinch the series 2-1, having already beaten the visitors by two wickets on Monday. It is UAE’s second T20I series win against a Full Member team, having beaten Ireland by the same margin in 2021.
Left-arm spinner Haider led the charge to reduce Bangladesh to 84 for 8, before they recovered to reach 162 for 9. Bangladesh, however, couldn’t quite use the momentum with the ball, as Sharafu, only 22, struck his eighth half-century in T20Is to anchor the chase. He struck five fours and three sixes in his unbeaten 47-ball 68 as the chase went down to the last over. He added 87 runs for the unbroken fourth-wicket stand with Asif Khan, who damaged Bangladesh with five sixes in his unbeaten 26-ball 41.
UAE didn’t quite get their chase off to the best of starts, though. After consecutive fifties in the first two games, captain Muhammad Waseem fell early in for 9 this time. Shoriful Islam got him to drive at a slightly wide one, edging to Tanzid Hassan at slip. Muhammad Zohaib then struck Hassan Mahmud for consecutive sixes in the fifth over, both times hitting through the line, one over long-on, and the other through extra cover.
Sharafu got his big-hitting going with a top-edged six off Tanzim Hasan in the seventh over, before Rishad Hossain cleaned up Zohaib for 29 with one that spun back into the left-hand batter. Rahul Chopra was the next to go just after the halfway mark, heaving at a slower bouncer from Tanzim to midwicket for 13.
Sharafu didn’t get bothered by UAE being three down and the equation reading 84 required off 56. He ramped Tanzim for a six over deep third two balls after Chopra’s wicket. He pinged the same bowler in his next over for a four through point, but then UAE were kept quiet for about 16 deliveries that left UAE to get 53 to win from 30.
Sharafu then hammered Rishad down the ground at the start of the 16th over, with Tanzid parrying the catch at long-off for a six. Asif, always on the prowl for big hits, also smacked Rishad for consecutive sixes in the same over to make it a 19-run over. It brought the required run rate down from 10.60 to 8.50 and 34 to get from the last four.
Sharafu finished the next over with a cracking four through the covers and Asif smashed Mahmud over midwicket next ball to bring it close to a run-a-ball equation. With 14 to win from 12, Asif clubbed two more sixes in the penultimate over off Tanzim on the off side before Sharafu aptly struck the winning runs next over, a blistering cover drive off Mahmud.
Waseem used four different bowlers to bowl the first four overs after winning the toss, and the fourth of those did the trick. Haider struck with his first ball, trapping the Bangladesh captain Litton Das lbw for 14. Litton missed his sweep after going across too far that exposed his middle and leg stumps, but he was disappointed on being given out.
Towhid Hridoy was also given out lbw two balls later, as he charged down and missed the ball, which struck the front pad. The raised finger caused pandemonium in the UAE side, with Haider jumping all over the place.
Haider finished with a double-wicket maiden, before removing Mahedi Hasan, who was trying to cut against a delivery that came back to hit the top of leg stump. Haider remained accurate in his next two overs too, giving him magical figures in just his third T20I.
Tanzid batted exactly the opposite to how his team-mates had been going about it. He started with a couple of big hits in the first over, he lofted Matiullah Khan for his second six in the third over, before hammering Dhruv Parashar for consecutive sixes in the fifth over after Bangladesh had lost three wickets. Tanzid sweetly timed two more fours off Akif Raja before the seamer bowled him with the around-the-wicket angle in the seventh over.
Both Parashar and Raja supported Haider, as did Matiullah after the halfway mark. Matiullah, who was expensive in the first two games, removed Shamim Hossain and Rishad in the space of four balls. Saghir Khan then had Tanzim caught at long-on, as Bangladesh were in risk of getting bowled out for less than 100.Jaker struck a couple of sixes to get Bangladesh past the 100-run mark, all the while needing the physio’s attention due to exhaustion. Mahmud struck Matiullah for his first six in the 18th over, before Jaker struck his third six, a blast down the ground in the penultimate over. Jaker, however, fell next ball, slicing Saghir to deep backward point for an easy catch. No. 11 Shoriful then deposited Saghir over the midwicket fence and Bangladesh had started to put up a respectable total.Waseem’s decision to bowl the last over backfired, as he went for 23 runs in five balls. He was taken off the attack for bowling too many high full-tosses. Sharafu had to complete the over, as his only delivery went for three runs.
Brief scores:
United Arab Emirates 166 for 3 in 19.1 overs (Muhammad Zohaib 29, Alishan Sharafu 68*, Rahul Chopra 13, Asif Khan 41*; Shoriful Islam 1-24, Tanzim Hasan Sakib 1-40, Rishad Hossain 1-42) beat Bangladesh 162 for 9 in 20 overs (Tanzid Hasan 40,Litton Das 14, Jaker Ali 41, Hasan Mahmud 26*, Shoriful Islam 16*; Akif Raja 1-27, Dhruv Parashar 1-24, Matiullah Khan 2-41, Haider Ali 3-07, Saghir Khan 2-36) by seven wickets
[Cricinfo]
Mumbai Indians (MI) secured the last remaining IPL 2025 playoffs spot thanks to a late onslaught from Suryakumar Yadav and Naman Dhir followed by crafty three-fors from Mitchell Santner and Jasprit Bumrah. Delhi Capitals, led by Faf du Plessis with regular captain Axar Patel ruled out by flu, were knocked out of contention. Having won each of their first four matches of the season, they have won just two of their next nine.
Put in to bat on a spin-friendly Wankhede Stadium pitch with rain on the cards, MI were in some trouble at 132 for 5 but Suryakumar and Dhir smacked 48 runs off the last two overs to lift them to 180.
DC’s chase never got going with Faf du Plessis and KL Rahul falling cheaply. A comeback seemed to be on the cards, with Sameer Rizvi and Ashutosh Sharma putting on 38 as a drizzle began, but Santner ensured that it wasn’t to be.
MI’s innings started with Rohit Sharma and Ryan Rickelton punishing full balls in the first two overs before Mustafizur Rahman’s angle away from Rohit’s bat found the edge when he tried to drive him.
Vipraj Nigam brought on in the fourth over, found turn but was pulled for two fours by Will Jacks when he dropped short. Jacks hit a four and a six in the next over, off Mustafizur, before Mukesh Kumar undid him by going pace-off in the sixth over, and Nigam completed the job with a good catch running back. MI finished the powerplay 54 for 2.
Suryakumar survived a top-edged sweep that landed safely behind short fine leg but Rickelton was less fortunate next ball as he toed his slog-sweep to deep backward square leg to hand Kuldeep Yadav his 100th IPL wicket.
Nigam mixed up his lengths and created two near-chances in the tenth over while Kuldeep bowled consistently and kept the batters quiet. DC gave away just 26 runs in the first four post-powerplay overs, leaving MI 80 for 3 at the halfway mark.
The return of pace helped MI release some pressure, with Tilak Varma lapping Dushmantha Chameera for six in the 11th over and Suryakumar stepping out to drive Mustafizur over mid-off for another maximum in the 14th. In between, though, Nigam and Kuldeep conceded just nine in two overs.
Suryakumar pulled Mukesh for four to start the 15th over, but Tilak fell four balls later, too early into a pull off a slower ball. When Hardik sliced a lofted drive to short third off Chameera in the 17th, MI were 123 for 5.
Suryakumar brought up a 36-ball fifty at the start of the 19th over, launching Mukesh over the covers for six. Then Dhir let loose, going 4, 6, 6, 4 to end a 27-run over, as Mukesh, suffering from cramps, missed three yorkers and then offered room when he went into the pitch.
The onslaught continued in the final over where Suryakumar dined on Chameera’s pace-on offerings. This time, he farmed the strike and whacked two sixes over deep midwicket and two fours through the off side to finish on a high. A highlight was a dab off a near-perfect yorker that rolled wide of the keeper for four. Suryakumar scored 28 off the last eight balls of his innings, while Dhir walked off unbeaten on 24 off eight.
Suryakumar’s unbeaten 73, meanwhile, was his 13th successive 25-plus score in T20s, a joint record alongside Temba Bavuma.
KL Rahul and du Plessis, DC’s most experienced batters, made their intent clear by putting away the first balls they faced to the boundary. But their attack was shortlived as du Plessis holed out to long-on off a slower ball from Deepak Chahar and Rahul – who charged early and made too much room – was caught behind off Trent Boult.
Will Jacks spun his first ball square and then got one to go straight, beating Abishek Porel to have him stumped, a close call that went in the bowler’s favour. Jacks then bowled a no-ball, which allowed the promoted Nigam to get off the mark with a six over cover.
Nigam hit three more fours in his next four balls, but with DC 49 for 3 at the end of the powerplay with all four of Bumrah’s overs remaining, MI were well ahead.
Santner capitalised on MI’s start and the conditions, ripping the ball away from Nigam’s bat before firing the next one in quicker to have him caught and bowled. Bumrah then got an offcutter to beat Tristan Stubbs’ inside edge to reduce DC to 65 for 5 in the tenth over.
DC seemed all but done when a drizzle began and eased things up a bit. Ashutosh whacked loopy deliveres from Karn Sharma for a four and a six in the 11th over, and Rizvi picked up another four in between when Jacks ran too in too far from long-off and overran the ball.
Santner then beat Ashutosh and almost had Rizvi caught and bowled but the batters survived, and DC kept chipping away, going past 100 in the 14th over. Their task was still steep, though: 78 off the last six overs.
With the drizzle in the background, Santner darted a full ball at Rizvi before slowing the pace down to 77kph to beat his sweep and hit middle stump. The game was effectively over three balls later when Santner had Ashutosh stumped. It was a juicy length ball angling in towards the stumps that spun away a mile and beat the inside-out drive.
Santner’s three-for came at the cost of just 11 runs in four overs, the joint-fewest conceded by a spinner in an IPL match at Wankhede. Bumrah and Karn then cleaned up the tail, helping MI qualify for the playoffs for the 11th time in 18 seasons.
Brief scores:
Mumbai Indians 180 for 5 in 20 overs (Suryakumar Yadav 73*, Tilak Varma 27, Ryan Rickelton 25, Will Jacks 21, Naman Dhir 24*, Mukesh Kumar 2-48, Dushmantha Chameera 1-54, Mustafizur Rahman 1-30, Kuldeep Yadav 1-22) beat Delhi Capitals 121 in 18.2 overs (KL Rahul 11, Sameer Rizvi 39, Vipraj Nigam 20, Ashutosh Sharma 18; Trent Boult 1-29, Deepak Chahar 1-22, Will Jacks 1-16, Mitchell Santner 3-11, Jasprit Bumrah 3-12, Karn Sharma 1-31)by 59 runs
[Cricinfo]
Sprinter Aruna Dharshana, whose participation at the upcoming Asian Athletics Championship was in doubt due to an injury, proved his fitness for next week’s event with an impressive performance at the fitness test conducted in Colombo on Wednesday.
Dharshana completed 300 metres in a time of 33.41 seconds at the Sugathadasa Stadium to the satisfaction of track and field authorities.
Sri Lanka Athletics announced Dharshana’s effort as ‘successful’ after the 26-year-old completed the test. That will make him eligible for his pet event the 400 metres and the two relay events, the men’s 4×400 metres and the 4×400 metres mixed relay.
He had to prove his fitness for the event in South Korea following an injury he sustained at the recently held World Relays in China.
Dharshana was a key member of the team that established a new championship record in winning the men’s 4×400 metres relay at the last edition. He was also part of the team that won silver in the mixed relay.
The Asian Championship is vital for all track and field athletes as it opens a valuable opportunity to improve their world rankings and earn qualifying standards for the World Championships which will be held in Tokyo, Japan later this year.
by Reemus Fernando
Poson Week will be observed from June 7 to June 13
Haider and Sharafu lead UAE to historic series win against Bangladesh
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