COLOMBO: Colombo Stars’ Kusal Perera hit a brilliant half-century before Jeffrey Vandersay took six wickets to lead their side to a thumping victory over Kandy Warriors in their Lanka Premier League (LPL) fixture.
Stars’ leggie, Vandersay, put on a show with the ball; claiming his first five-fer in the T20 format. The bowler returned with the match winning figure of 6/25.
Vandersay’s heroics halted the run chase for the Warriors, chasing 183, bundled out for a skimpy 124; losing the match by 58 runs.
Warriors’ batters struggled throughout the innings, with none of their batter could go big. Ravi Bopara, however, showed fightback, with his valiant 47 off 31 balls, including five boundaries and a six. Rest of their batters had no answers to Stars’ bowling attack.
For Stars, Vandersay bagged six-fer, while Seekkuge Prasanna took two wickets. Naveen-ul-Haq, on the other hand, struck out a batter.
Batting first, the Stars, also started poorly; losing their first wicket for just one run. Perera, however, showed his class; scoring an astonishing half-century, the batter scored 58 off just 38 balls laced with six boundaries and two sixes.
Dhananjaya de Silva was also impressive with his brilliant 40 off 28 balls; smashing seven boundaries. de Silva, along with Perera, provided a solid 80-runs partnership for the second wicket.
Later, Dinesh Chandimal, and the skipper, Angelo Mathews, also chipped in, assisting their side to post a commendable total of 182/6 in 20 overs. Mathews scored a quick 29 off just 16 balls, including four boundaries, while Chandimal anchored the innings with his unbeaten 44 of 29 balls, the batter smashed three boundaries and two maximums.
Nimesh Vimukthi was the star performer with the ball for Warriors; claiming three wickets. Al-Amin Hossain and Sachindu Colombage, on the other hand, each took a wicket.
The Stars will now lock horns with Dambulla Giants in the first eliminator, scheduled on Sunday. Whereas, the Warriors are knocked out of the tournament.
