Jaffna Kings Archives

Rilee Rossouw’s ton powers Jaffna Kings to LPL 2024 title

COLOMBO: Rilee Rossouw scored a scintillating century to power Jaffna Kings to clinch the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024 title by thumping Galle Marvels on Sunday.

Chasing a huge 185, Jaffna Kings lost Pathum Nissanka on the first ball of the innings courtesy of Dwaine Pretorius.

However, that proved to be only success for Galle Marvels during the innings as Rossouw joined Kusal Mendis and together they launched an onslaught.

They struck 63 runs in the first six overs, with Mendis leading the charge with a 13-ball 32. Meanwhile, Rossouw switched the gears in the next over and took the game completely away from the Marvels.

Rossouw and Mendis created the record for the highest partnership for any wicket in the history of LPL with their 185-run stand as they led their team to the victory with 26 balls to spare.

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Mendis finished with a 40-ball 72, which featured eight boundaries and two sixes, while Rossouw scored 106 runs from 53 balls with nine fours and seven sixes.

Earlier, Galle Marvels reduced to 24-3 in 6.5 overs after being inserted to bat first. Tim Seifert and Bhanuka Rajapaksa then added 62 runs from 32 balls to help the team recover.

Asitha Fernando bowled Seifert after he had scored 47 off 37 to break the momentum, however, Rajapaksa remained unfazed.

Rajapaksa waged a lone war as he struck 82 runs from 34 balls with the help of eight boundaries and six sixes. His smashing knock came to an end courtesy of Fernando.

Galle Marvels managed to set a 185-run target for Jaffna Kings in the LPL 2024 final. Fernando returned with bowling figures of 3-35, while Jason Behrendorff claimed two wickets.

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Jaffna Kings edge Kandy Falcons to set LPL 2024 Final with Galle Marvels

COLOMBO: Asitha Fernando held his nerves calm to defend 17 runs in the last over and steered Jaffna Kings to the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024 final with a narrow one-run victory over Kandy Falcons in Qualifier 2 on Saturday.

However, it was not the easiest of defence for Fernando, who was hit for a six and a four as Ramesh Mendis had brought the equation down to four off one.

But Fernando somehow managed to get away despite bowling a low full-toss as Mendis could hit it towards mid-wicket and ran a couple.

Mendis remained unbeaten gutsy 30 off just 11 deliveries with the help of three fours and two sixes but his gutsy knock could not withstand the damage done by Fabian Allen and Vijayakanth Viyaskanth.

Allen led the bowling charge for the Kings with a four-fer while Viyaskanth made three scalps.

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West Indies international Andre Fletcher remained the top-scorer for the Falcons with a 21-ball 38 while Mohammad Haris (26) and Kamindu Mendis (32) were the other notable run-getters.

Earlier, Kusal Mendis’ unbeaten century powered the Kings 187/7 in the allotted overs after they were put into bat first.

Mendis smashed 12 fours and five sixes on his way to an unbeaten 105 off 54 deliveries and top-scored for the former champions.

Besides him, Azmatullah Omarzai contributed significantly to the Kings’ total with a quickfire cameo down the order.

He struck one four and three sixes on his way to a 13-ball 26.

Mohammad Hasnain, Ramesh Mendis and Chaturanga de Silva bagged two wickets each for the Falcons while Wanindu Hasaranga made one scalp.

Former champions Jaffna Kings will now face Galle Marvels in the LPL 2024 final, scheduled to take place at R Premadasa Stadium on Sunday.

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Jaffna Kings thump Kandy Falcons in rain-hit LPL clash

COLOMBO: Charith Asalanka’s belligerent hitting led Jaffna Kings to a six-wicket victory over Kandy Falcons in the 15th match of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024 here at R Premadasa Stadium on Saturday.

In a match that was reduced to seven overs per side, Jaffna Kings skipper Assalanka won the coin toss and put defending champions Falcons into bat.

The Falcons registered a decent total of 78/5 in the allocated seven overs, courtesy of Mohammad Haris’s blistering cameo.

The Pakistan international recovered the Falcons from a dismal start by launching a counterattack on the Kings’ bowlers.

Haris smashed two fours and three sixes on his way to a 13-ball 30.

He was involved in an important 56-run partnership for the second wicket with Dinesh Chandimal, who remained another significant contributor with a 13-ball 21, laced with two fours and a six.

Jason Behrendorff was the pick of the bowlers for Jaffna Kings, picking up three wickets for 10 while Asitha Fernando and Azmatullah Omarzai took one apiece.

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In response, Jaffna Kings chased down the 79-run target for the loss of six wickets and seven balls to spare.

The Kings, however, had a contrasting start to the pursuit as they lost three wickets on just 13 in 2.1 overs.

Coming out to bat at No.5, Kings’ skipper Charith Asalanka turned the game on its head with belligerent hitting.

The right-handed put the Kings in touching distance with a nine-ball 26 before Azmatullah Omarzai provided the final touches with 24 off six.

Asalanka hit four sixes while Omarzai smashed one four and three sixes.

Angelo Mathews and Wanindu Hasaranga bagged two wickets each for the Falcons while Dasun Shanaka claimed one.

The four-wicket victory solidified Jaffna Kings’ grip at the summit of the LPL 2024 standings with 10 points in seven matches while Kandy Falcons remained at the bottom with four points in as many matches.

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Rilee Rossouw’s ton propels Jaffna Kings to ease past Colombo Strikers

DAMBULLA: Rilee Rossouw’s unbeaten century led Jaffna Kings to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over Colombo Strikers in the 13th match of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024 here at Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium on Wednesday.

Chasing a 189-run target, the Kings comfortably marched to the victory for the loss of just three wickets and nine balls to spare.

The Kings, however, had a contrasting start to the pursuit as they lost both their openers Pathum Nissanka (6) and Kusal Mendis (5) inside five overs with just 30 runs on the board.

Rossouw then turned the tide in the Kings’ favour with a belligerent knock which featured 12 fours and six sixes.

He was involved in a match-defining 120-run partnership with Avishka Fernando, who supported him brilliantly with a brisk half-century.

Fernando scored 58 off 35 deliveries, peppered with seven fours and two sixes before walking back to the pavilion in the 15th over.

Rilee Rossouw then put together a one-sided partnership with skipper Charith Assalanka (11*) and sealed the deal for the Kings in the penultimate over.

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He top-scored for the Kings with an unbeaten 108 off just 50 balls.

Shadab Khan, Taskin Ahmed and Dunith Wellalage could pick up a wicket apiece for the Strikers.

Earlier after being put into bat first, the Strikers registered a decent total of 188/8, mainly due to the efforts of their top-order batters.

Leading the way was in-form Glenn Phillips with a well-crafted half-century. He top-scored for the Strikers with a 32-ball 58, laced up with six fours and three sixes.

Besides him, openers Angelo Perera (34) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (27) made notable contributions.

Azmatullah Omarzai and Asitha Fernando led the bowling charge for the Kings with two wickets. Tabraiz Shamsi, Fabian Allen and Pramod Madushan, on the other hand, made one scalp each.

The seven-wicket victory strengthened Jaffna Kings’ hold at the summit of the LPL 2024 standings with eight points in six matches while Colombo Strikers remained third with four points in five matches.

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LPL 2024: Galle Marvels edge Jaffna Kings in last-ball thriller

PALLEKELE: Zahoor Khan’s brilliant bowling figures of 3/34, followed by Alex Hales’ anchoring half-century powered Galle Marvels to down Jaffna Kings in a last-ball Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2024 thriller here on Tuesday.

Set to chase 178, Sahan Arachchige hit the winning runs for the Marvels on the final delivery when he smashed Asitha Fernando for a four under pressure.

Experienced openers Alex Hales and Niroshan Dickwella earlier gave the Marvels a solid start, putting together 66 before the latter departed on the first delivery of the eighth over after a quickfire knock.

Dickwella remained a notable run-getter for the Marvels with a 27-ball 47, laced up with eight boundaries and a six.

Hales then put on a one-sided partnership with Tim Seifert (10), which yielded 44 runs before both perished in quick succession with the scoreboard reading 127/3 in 15 overs.

Alex Hales remained the top-scorer for the Marvels with 65 off 47 balls, hitting seven boundaries and two sixes.

Later, Janith Liyanage’s 25-run cameo, followed by vital contributions from Dwaine Pretorius (9*) and Sahan Arachchige (5*), which sealed the deal for the Marvels.

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Fabian Allen and Asitha Fernando bagged two wickets each for the Kings while Dhananjaya de Silva chipped in with a wicket.

Opting to bat first, Jaffna Kings registered 177/7, courtesy of Pathum Nissanka and Avishka Fernando’s half-centuries.

The duo recorded an anchoring 81-run partnership for the second wicket to recover the Kings from a shaky start.

Nissanka walked back in the 13th over after 33-ball 51 which featured six fours and two sixes while Fernando fell in the 17th over after top-scoring for the Kings with 59 off 48.

Later, skipper Charith Assalanka bolstered the Kings’ total with a brisk cameo. He hit three fours and two sixes on his way to a 15-ball 33.

Zahoor Khan led the bowling charge for the Marvels with three wickets, followed by Isuru Udana and Pretorius, who claimed two each.

The five-wicket victory took Galle Marvels to the second in the LPL 2024 standings while Jaffna Kings claimed the third spot.

READ: All-round Shanaka propels Falcons to sink Sixers in LPL 2024 opener

Kasun Rajitha powers Galle Titans to thump Jaffna Kings in LPL

COLOMBO: Right-arm pacer Kasun Rajitha’s four-for led Galle Titans to register a thumping seven-wicket victory over Jaffna Kings in the 17th game of the ongoing Lanka Premier League (LPL) on Sunday.

Opting to bat first, Jaffna Kings lost their first wicket on the third ball as Rajitha sent attacking opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz back to the pavilion.

The defending champions soon slumped to 7-4 as they lost three wickets within eight deliveries.

This opened the floodgates as Kings fell into the abyss with wickets crumbling at regular intervals.

Dunith Wellalage anchored through the innings with 22 runs off 31 balls amid chaos on the other end as he kept losing partners.

Only three players, other than Wellalage managed to reach double figures and Jaffna Kings were consequently bundled out for a meagre 89 runs.

Rajitha led the bowling attack for Galle Titans, picking up four wickets for 20 runs, while Tabraiz Shamsi and Lahiru Kumara chipped in with two wickets each.

Galle Titans started the chase strongly as they swiftly raced to 33 runs off four overs before Bhanuka Rajapaksa was caught by Shoaib Malik off Maheesh Theekshana.

Tim Seifert then led the chase and carved a sensible 51-ball partnership with Chad Bowes off 48 deliveries to lead his team to 84-1 in 12 overs.

With only, six runs needed, Seifart attempted to finish things in style however he was caught at short cover by Perera off Madushanka.

His 42-ball 55 featured five boundaries and one six.

Captain Dasun Shanaka hit the winning runs in the next over, as Galle Titans comfortably chased the total with 39 balls remaining.

Galle Titans are placed at number four in the LPL points table below third-ranked Jaffna Kings, due to net run rate difference.

However, Galle Titans have one more game to play in the LPL against Colombo Strikers on August 15, while Jaffna Kings have played all their group-stage games in the current LPL.

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Tabraiz Shamsi defends ‘world-class’ Babar Azam amid criticism

South African left-arm wrist spinner Tabraiz Shamsi has defended Pakistan captain Babar Azam, who is often criticised for his performance against left-arm spinners.

Tabraiz Shamsi in a recent interview showered praises on Babar Azam for averaging fifty in international cricket, while being labelled as weak.

“Well if people are saying that he [Babar] is weak and he’s averaging fifty, I wouldn’t like to see him when he’s not weak,” he said.

He called Babar Azam a ‘world-class player’ and stressed the fact that maintaining an average of fifty is not an easy feat in international cricket.

“He’s a world-class player, it’s not a joke averaging fifty in International cricket, so I think those kinds of things that people are saying it’s uncalled for,” Shamsi said.

He further added: “He’s obviously a class player and yeah at any given day any bowler can get any batsman out, and at any given day any batsman can make a hundred, so anybody that is playing at that level is very good, so I think we need to appreciate that.”

Recently, Afghaistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who is playing for Jaffna Kings in the ongoing Lanka Premier League (LPL), has also voiced the same kind of sentiments for Babar Azam.

“Babar is the favourite player of most of the young fans, even for me. I like the way he bats, everyone likes his way of batting, and I can say he is a legend right now,” he said.

Notably, Babar Azam, who is currently representing Colombo Strikers in the LPL, has been in stellar form in the tournament. He is the highest run-scorer in the tournament, amassing 235 runs in five games, maintaining an impressive average of 47.00 and strike rate of 143.29.

He showed his impressive batting prowess in his innings of 104 off 59 deliveries against Tabraiz Shamsi’s Galle Titans. Babar’s remarkable century was laced with eight fours and five sixes, at a strike rate of 176.27.

Meanwhile, Tabraiz Shamsi has managed to pick up five wickets in as many games, at an average of 31.40.

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Madushka, bowlers propel Jaffna Kings to sink Colombo Strikers in LPL

PALLEKELE: A collective effort from the bowlers, followed by Nishan Madushka’s 46-run knock, propelled Jaffna Kings to thump Colombo Strikers by six wickets in the Lanka Premier League (LPL) on Tuesday.

Contrary to the tradition in the LPL 2023, Colombo Strikers’ captain Babar Azam won the toss and elected to bat first.

Pathum Nissanka and Babar Azam, who scored a hundred in the last game, started things on a high with a solid opening partnership of 57 runs in seven overs, before the former fell prey to Wellalage. Nissanka’s 36 off 27 was laced with seven boundaries.

Babar Azam soon followed him as he was caught by David Miller off Madushanka at backward point, after scoring 24 off 21 balls. Nuwanidu Fernando (2) also fell in the same over, thanks to a brilliant catch by Maheesh Theekshana at deep square leg.

Wellalage castled Iftikhar Ahmed (2) in the next over, who was playing his first game of LPL, after leading Surrey Jaguars to the final of the recently concluded GT20 Canada.

Lahiru Udara and Mohammad Nawaz, then knitted a brief partnership of 30 runs before Udara holed one back to Theekshana. He scored a cautious 29 off 25 with the help of two boundaries and one six.

Nawaz and Chamika Karunaratne’s 40-run stand for the sixth wicket saw the Strikers’ score reach 139 before Nawaz departed in the 19th over. He scored 27 runs off 21 deliveries.

Karunaratne, on the other hand, carried his bat all the way through with an unbeaten 21 and led the Strikers to finish at 146/8 in 20 overs.

Dunith Wellalage and Dilshan Madushanka spearheaded Jaffna Kings’ bowling charge, taking two wickets each, while Theekshana, Thushara and Shoaib Malik chipped in with one wicket each.

The Kings had a flying start to the chase, as they quickly raced to 50 runs in the fifth over.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz was the core aggressor of the opening stand as he scored 39 runs off 21 balls at a strike rate of 185 before falling to Pathirana in the sixth over. His innings featured three boundaries and as many sixes.

Gurbaz’s opening partner Dilshan Madushanka, who had a cautious start to his knock as he anchored amid Gurbaz’s onslaught, shifted gears after the former’s dismissal.

He partnered with Charith Asalanka (12) for a 39-run partnership, while added 30 runs for the third wicket with captain Thisara Perera (17).

With Madushka and Perera firm on the crease, it appeared to be a straightforward pursuit for the Kings, requiring 20 runs off eight overs but Naseem Shah caused a stir as he dismissed both set batters in his third over.

Madushka top-scored with 46 off 32 deliveries, courtesy of three boundaries and three sixes.

Towhid Hridoy gave the final touch to an already illustrated run-chase as he finished the game with a four off Naseem to guide Jaffna Kings to a dominant six-wicket win. He scored 14 runs off nine balls with the help of three boundaries.

Naseem picked two wickets for Strikers, while Pathirana and Sandakan contributed with one wicket each.

Jaffna Kings will now face B-Love Kandy on August 12 in the 15th match of the LPL, while Colombo Strikers will face Dambulla Aura in the 16th game on the same day.

READ: Hasaranga powers B-Love Kandy to thrash Galle Titans in LPL

Hasan eclipses Malik’s heroics as Dambulla Aura edge Jaffna Kings in LPL

PALLEKELE: Shoaib Malik’s late fireworks went in vain as Hasan Ali ran through Jaffna Kings’ batting line-up to guide Dambulla Aura to a thrilling nine-run win over Jaffna Kings in the 11th match of the ongoing Lanka Premier League (LPL) on Monday.

Dambulla Aura jumped to the top of the table in the ongoing LPL, after they defended the joint-second lowest total in the LPL history.

Requiring 34 off the last over of Afghanistan prodigy Noor Ahmed, Jaffna Kings had their hopes alive with Shoaib Malik on the crease.

He started the over on a high, hitting two sixes, but the young bowler held on to his nerves and bowled two dot balls to seal the deal for his team.

Malik however hit a boundary and a six off the last two balls but the game was already over by then, as Dambulla Aura won by 9 runs.

He waged a lone battle against Aura’s bowlers, scoring more than half of his team’s total of 125.

Shoaib Malik’s innings of 74 off 56 balls was laced with five boundaries and six sixes. Besides Malik, only Dunith Wellalage (16) managed to reach double figures.

After winning the toss, Jaffna Kings put Dambulla Aura into bat, and they got off to a flying start as the first over of Maheesh Theekshana saw both openers going back to the pavilion.

Avishka Fernando ran himself out on the first delivery, while Kusal Mendis holed one straight to Malik at deep midwicket.

Sadeera Samarawickrama and Kusal Perera knitted a formidable partnership of 51 runs for Dambulla Aura before the former was castled by Dunith Wellalage. Samarawickrama’s anchoring 30 off 25 featured four boundaries.

Dhananjaya de Silva (4) joined Perera but was soon bowled by Malik with just 69 on the board in the 11th over.

Perera then attempted to shift gears and take on Malik with a reverse sweep but missed the length ball and was cleaned up.

Subsequently, no batter posed any real threat to Jaffna Kings except Hayden Kerr, who scored 25 off 20 at the backend to guide his team to a modest total of 134.

Shoaib Malik and Nuwan Thushara picked two wickets each for the Kings, while Maheesh Theekshana and Dunith Wellalage managed one apiece.

Jaffna Kings started the chase in contrast to their brilliant bowling performance as they were reduced to 10-3 in four overs.

Hasan Ali removed opening batters Rahmanullah Gurbaz (3) and Charith Asalanka (5), whereas Towhid Hridoy perished for a first-ball duck off Binura Fernando.

David Miller was then involved in a brief 17-run partnership with Malik until chipping one straight to the bowler, Hayden Kerr and left the Kings reeling at 27/4 just after the powerplay.

Malik then formed a crucial partnership for the Kings when he added 39 runs for the fifth wicket with Dunith Wellalage before Hasan Ali came back into the attack and crashed the top of Wellalage’s off-stump.

With the Kings in heaps of trouble after losing wickets at regular intervals, Shoaib Malik batted cautiously in the middle phase and the required run rate kept rising.

With the Kings requiring 50 off 18 deliveries, Shoaib Malik finally shifted gears in the 18th over, as he hit 10 runs off Hasan Ali to bring up his fifty in 44 balls.

However, Malik’s heroics came a touch too late as the Kings fell just nine runs short of pulling a miraculous victory.

Defending champions Jaffna Kings are now placed at the fourth spot in the LPL standings and will face Colombo Strikers in the next game on Tuesday, while table-toppers Dambulla Aura will face second-positioned Galle Titans on Wednesday.

READ: Babar Azam’s maiden LPL ton lifts Colombo Strikers to edge Galle Titans

Hasaranga leads B-Love Kandy to a crushing victory over Jaffna Kings in LPL

PALLEKELE: Wanindu Hasaranga followed his 3/9 with a quickfire half-century and helped B-Love Kandy to sink Jaffna Kings by eight wickets in the ninth game of Lanka Premier League (LPL).

After winning the toss, B-Love Kandy opted to bowl first and reduced Jaffna Kings to 7-2 in 2.1 overs, removing Rahmanulla Gurbaz (0) and Charith Asalanka (5) quickly, thanks to an amazing display of pace bowling by Angelo Mathews. He picked up two wickets in his two overs for eight runs.

Towhid Hridoy (19 off 22) tried to anchor the Kings’ innings with a brief third-wicket partnership with David Miller but was removed by Hasaranga with the scoreboard reading at 34 in seven overs.

Miller and Priyamal Perera then made notable contributions – 21 each – in the middle but failed to pull their side out of danger.

Following their departure, the Kings lost wickets at an alarming rate and were consequently slipped to 86/9 in the 17th over before Dunith Wellalage added valuable runs at the backend.

Wellalage’s gutsy knock recovered the Kings to 117/6 in 20 overs. His 27-ball 38 featured six boundaries and a six.

Wanindu Hasarnga returned with impressive figures of 3-9 in his four overs, while Nuwan Pradeep picked three wickets for 36 runs.

B-Love Kandy got off to a cautious start to the run chase as they could score 31 runs in the powerplay.

Nandre Burger then castled Chandimal (22 off 16) on the first delivery after the powerplay to draw a much-needed success for the Kings.

Promoting himself up the order, Hasaranga joined Fakhar in the middle and turned the game on its head with belligerent hitting.

He baton charged the Kings’ bowlers while Fakhar Zaman held his end firm.

The duo added 71 runs off 36 balls for the second wicket before Fakhar faltered with B-Love Kandy requiring just 16 in eight overs.

He scored an anchoring 42 off 39, laced up with two boundaries and two sixes.

Hasaranga did not hold back despite Fakhar’s dismissal as he finished the game in the same over by hitting 15 runs off the last four deliveries.

His 22-ball 52 feature five boundaries and three maximums.

B-Love Kandy are slated at fourth position in the LPL standings, while Jaffna Kings are at three, thanks to their better net run rate.

Jaffna Kings will face Dambulla Aura on Monday, whereas, B-Love Kandy will square off against Galle Titans on August 8.

READ: LPL: Kusal Mendis guides Dambulla Aura to edge Colombo Strikers