Lanka Premier League Archives

Dambulla Aura crush B-Love Kandy in top-of-the-table LPL clash

COLOMBO: Dhananjaya de Silva’s bowling masterclass propelled leaders Dambulla Aura to a dominant 20-run victory in the top-of-the-table Lanka Premier League (LPL) clash on Monday.

In an enthralling clash between the top two sides of the ongoing edition of the LPL, Dambulla Aura emerged victorious to solidify their position as the table-toppers.

Put into bat first, Dambulla Aura piled up a massive total of 162/7 on the board, courtesy of a combined effort by Avishka Fernando, Sadeera Samarawickrama and Ben McDermott.

Aura openers Fernando and Samarawickrama gave their side a flying start to their innings as they raised 61 runs before Wanindu Hasaranga dismissed the latter in the eighth over.

The wicketkeeper batter scored a cautious 26-ball 31, laced up with six boundaries.

Fernando was then joined by Lakshan Edirisinghe and the pair could put on a brief 19-run partnership before both perished in the 10th over.

Avishka Fernando remained the top-scorer for the Aura with 41 from just 27 deliveries, hitting three boundaries and as many sixes.

McDermott took the reigns of Aura’s batting charge after Fernando’s dismissal and knitted brief partnerships with Dhananjaya de Silva (10) and Alex Ross (0) before finally perishing in the 18th over.

He scored 37 in 23 deliveries with the help of three boundaries and two sixes.

Before his dismissal, McDermott was involved in a vital 38-run partnership with Hayden Kerr, who scored a brisk 16-ball 26 which featured three boundaries and a six.

Set to chase 163, B-Love Kandy came up 20 runs as they could gather 142 before being bundled out in the final over despite Dinesh Chandimal’s half-century.

Experienced batter Chandimal waged a lone battle for B-Love Kandy with a 46-ball 50, hitting six boundaries.

However, his efforts were not enough to steer B-Love Kandy over the line.

Besides him, Wanindu Hasaranga (19), Angelo Mathews (26) and Isuru Udana (23) made notable contributions while the rest looked hapless against the Dhananjaya-led Aura bowling attack.

Dhananjaya de Silva returned astonishing figures of 4/6 in his two overs, followed by Pramod Madushan’s two while Sachitha Jayatilake, Hayden Kerr and Shahnawaz Dahani made one scalp each.

READ: Colombo Strikers edge B-Love Kandy to keep LPL playoffs hopes alive

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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Haris blitz sinks Jaffna Kings as B-Love Kandy storm into LPL playoffs

COLOMBO: Mohammad Haris’s swashbuckling 81-run knock powered B-Love Kandy into the Lanka Premier League (LPL) playoffs with a thrilling eight-run victory over Jaffna Kings on Saturday.

With LPL 2023 playoffs berth at stake, B-Love Kandy put on an all-round show to edge holders Jaffna Kings by eight runs, thanks to a berserk 81-run knock by Haris and Angelo Mathews’s 3/10.

Opting to bat first, B-Love Kandy piled up a commendable total of 178/8 in 20 overs with wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Haris leading the way with a brilliant knock.

The opening batter dominated the Kings’ bowlers right from the start with the belligerent hitting before finally perishing in the 15th over.

Haris smashed 10 boundaries and two sixes on his way to top score for B-Love Kandy with a 51-ball 81.

Mohammad Haris’s opening partner Fakhar Zaman and veteran all-rounder Angelo Mathews recorded the next best scores for B-Love Kandy, scoring 22 each.

Nuwan Thusara led the bowling attack for the Kings with 3/31, followed by two wickets each from Dunith Wellalage and Dilshan Madushanka.

Set to chase a daunting 179-run target, the Kings came up just eight runs short as they could accumulate 170/6 in the allotted overs despite Shoaib Malik’s gutsy half-century.

The Kings got off to a dismal start to the pursuit as they lost three wickets in quick succession.

Coming out to bat with his side reeling at 16/3 in the fifth, Shoaib Malik knitted an anchoring 35-run partnership with Chris Lynn, who could score 27 off 26 deliveries.

Malik was then joined by hard-hitting batter David Miller, who glimmered a ray of hope for the Kings with a brisk start but could not continue and fell to Isuru Udana in the 13th over.

He scored 24 off 16 deliveries, hitting four boundaries.

Kings’ captain Thisara Perera then joined Malik in the middle and stitched a vital 60-run partnership before Nuwan Pradeep dismissed him in the 18th over.

Perera’s dismissal was a major momentum booster for B-Love Kandy as he was breathing fire amid his brief yet crucial 20-ball 36. His knock featured two boundaries and two sixes.

The Kings missed the firepower in the death overs despite Shoaib Malik being set at the crease and they eventually fell a mere eight runs short of pulling a thrilling victory.

Malik remained unbeaten with his 37-ball 55, laced up with four boundaries and a six.

Angelo Mathews led the bowling attack for B-Love Kandy with 3/10 in his three overs while Pradeep had two to his name.

A narrow nine-run victory over Jaffna Kings propelled B-Love Kandy to book their spot in the LPL 2023 playoffs as they sit at the second position with eight points in six matches.

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Fernando-inspired Dambulla Aura sink Galle Titans in LPL

COLOMBO: Avishka Fernando played a swashbuckling 70-run knock in the run chase and powered Dambulla Aura to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over Galle Titans in the 14th match of the Lanka Premier League (LPL).

Set to chase a modest 134, Dambulla Aura comfortably amassed the total for the loss of just three wickets and 14 balls to spare, thanks to Fernando’s unbeaten and match-winning knock.

Avishka Fernando alongside his captain Kusal Mendis scripted a decent start to the run chase as the pair added 47 runs before the latter perished in the eighth over.

Mendis played a cautious 18-run knock from 24 balls, hitting a boundary.

Fernando spearheaded Aura’s pursuit single-handedly and received meagre support from Sadeera Samarawickrama (25), Kusal Perera (5) and Dhananjaya de Silva (6*).

The right-handed opener carried his bat all the way through and top-scored for the Aura with a 49-ball 70 which featured three boundaries and three sixes.

Lahiru Kumara led the bowling attack for the Titans with 2/31 while Shakib Al Hasan picked one.

Put into bat first in the 14th match of the ongoing LPL, the Galle Titans’ batting lineup failed to put a defendable total on the board as a combined bowling effort from Dambulla Aura restricted them to 133/9 in 20 overs.

Titans’ captain Dasun Shanaka waged a lone battle with a counter-attacking knock. He top-scored for his side with a 26-ball 36, smashing five boundaries before Hasan Ali got rid of him in the 19th over.

Besides him, Chad Bowes (22), Tim Seifert (15), Shakib Al Hasan (13) and Sohan de Livera (12) were the other notable run-getters.

The rest, however, failed to make it into the double figures.

A dominant seven-wicket victory propelled Dambulla Aura to the top of the LPL standings with eighth points in six matches while Galle Titans remained at the bottom with four points in as many matches.

The leaders next face fourth-placed Colombo Strikers in Saturday’s second fixture while the Titans will square off against defending champions Jaffna Kings on Sunday.

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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

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

Pallekele: Wanindu Hasaranga’s all-round exploits guided B-Love Kandy to a thumping 89-run victory against Galle Titans in the 12th game of the ongoing Lanka Premier League (LPL).

Hasaranga, who has been in tremendous form in LPL this year, played a blitzing knock of 65 off 27, before decimating Galle Titans’ batting lineup with figures of 4-17.

Galle Titans captain Dasun Shanaka opted to bowl first after winning the toss. They drew first blood as Richard Ngarava sent Mohammad Haris back to the dugout.

However, they failed to capitalize on the early damage as Fakhar Zaman and Dinesh Chandimal stitched a solid 49-run partnership before the latter was removed by Tabraiz Shamsi with 75 runs on the board in nine overs.

Zaman was joined by Angelo Mathews in the middle and cautiously, while the opener anchored the innings before hitting a four and six off successive deliveries of Tabraiz Shamsi to bolster the total.

He added three more runs to his tally before falling to a magnificent catch at long-on by Ngarava off Lahiru Samarakoon. Zaman’s 35-ball 45 featured three boundaries and two sixes.

The scoreboard read 103-3 in 12.1 overs when Hasaranga came out to bat, fancying his match-winning half-century (52* off 22) against Jaffna Kings in the last match.

Hasaranga dominated the Titans’ bowlers and soon raced to 38 off 15 before Angelo Mathews joined the party with a six off Kasun Rajitha. Together, they stitched a vital partnership of 87 off 38 balls.

The destructive partnership was broken when Mathews was removed at a total of 190 by Samarakoon, courtesy of a brilliant catch by Kasun Rajitha. Mathews scored a 23-ball 40, featuring three boundaries and two sixes.

Hasaranga was still on the crease, eyeing a 200-run landmark, but he was caught at mid-wicket by Shevon Daniel off Rajitha. His blistering knock of 64 off 27 was laced with nine boundaries and two sixes.

Isuru Udana scored two off the next delivery to reach the 200-run mark, the first of LPL 2023, before the innings ended at 203 with the loss of five wickets.

Lahiru Samarakoon picked two wickets for 31 runs, while Shamsi, Rajitha and Ngarava picked one apiece.

Galle Titans started the mammoth chase on a high as Lasith Croospulle scored 11 runs off the first over, bowled by Mathews.

However, Mujeeb Ur Rahman cut their flying start short by removing Shevon Daniel (0) and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (5) in his successive overs.

Lasith Croospulle continued to attack from the other end, before being cleaned up by Hasaranga in his first over. Croospulle played a quick cameo of 27 off 17.

Wanindu Hasaranga then removed a struggling Shakib Al Hasan (11 off 12), which reduced Galle Titans to 47-6 in the ninth over.

Ashan Priyanjan and Lahiru Samarakoon then formed a solid partnership of 62 off 45 balls, however, the mounting required run rate maintained pressure on both batters.

Subsequently, the asking run rate got the better of both batters, sent packing by Nuwan Pradeep in the span of three deliveries, leaving Titans requiring 93 runs from four overs with two wickets in hand.

Hasaranga then picked the final two wickets off consecutive deliveries in the next over to seal a dominant triumph for B-Love Kandy.

Samarakoon top-scored for the Titans with 36 off 25 balls, hitting one boundary and four sixes.

Wanindu Hasaranga finished with figures of four wickets for 17 runs, while Pradeep picked up three wickets.

The victory helped B-Love Kandy improve their net-run rate and jump to the top of the table in LPL 2023, while Galle Titans sank to the bottom.

Galle Titans will face Dambulla Aura in their next game on August 11, while B-Love Kandy will square off against holders Jaffna Kings on August 12.

READ: Hasan eclipses Malik’s heroics as Dambulla Aura edge Jaffna Kings 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

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

PALLEKELE: Babar Azam scored his maiden Lanka Premier League (LPL) century and powered Colombo Strikers to a thrilling seven-wicket victory over Galle Titans.

Set to chase a massive 189, the Strikers completed the pursuit on the penultimate delivery for the loss of three wickets, courtesy of a sensational century by Babar Azam.

Strikers’ openers Babar and Pathum Nissanka scripted a solid start to the pursuit as they added 111 runs before Tabraiz Shamsi drew a much-needed breakthrough for the Titans by dismissing Nissanka.

Nissanka scored an anchoring 54 off 40 deliveries, laced up with five boundaries and a six.

Babar Azam was then joined by Nuwanidu Fernando at the crease and the pair knitted a vital 55-run partnership for the second wicket.

The second-wicket stand was massively dominated by Babar while Fernando batted cautiously before falling to Shamsi in the 18th over. He could score eight off 13.

Despite Babar Azam’s blitz, the high-scoring encounter came right down to the wire with the Strikers needing 14 off the final over.

Kasun Rajitha, set to defend 14, bowled a fuller delivery outside off and Babar Azam holed it straight to the long-off fielder.

He smashed eight boundaries and five sixes on his way to a 59-ball 104.

The Strikers, with their mainstay back in the hut, looked in deep trouble but Mohammad Nawaz smashed Rajitha for a six and a boundary to seal the deal for the Strikers with one ball to spare.

Shamsi led the bowling attack for the Titans with 2/27 while Rajitha made one scalp.

Earlier, after opting to bat first, the Titans put on a commendable total of 188/3 in the allotted 20 overs at the back of a brilliant half-century by Tim Seifert and opening batter Shevon Daniel’s 49.

Seifert top-scored for the Titans with an unbeaten 54 off 35 deliveries, hitting four boundaries and three sixes. Whereas, Daniel scored 49 from 31 deliveries with the help of five boundaries and two sixes.

Besides them, Lasith Croospulle (36 off 19) and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (30 off 31) made notable contributions.

For the Strikers, Naseem Shah, Ramesh Mendis and Lakshan Sandakan picked up one wicket apiece.

A close seven-wicket victory lifted Colombo Strikers to the third in the LPL standings with four points in as many matches while the Titans remained at the second spot due to a superior net run rate.

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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

LPL: Kusal Mendis guides Dambulla Aura to edge Colombo Strikers

PALLEKELE: Nuwanidu Fernando’s unbeaten half-century failed to trump Kusal Mendis’s 46-ball 87 as Dambulla Aura edged Colombo Strikers by 10 runs in the eighth match of the ongoing Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2023.

In a high-scoring game, Colombo Strikers fell 10 runs short of the 193-run target. They needed 31 runs off the final over but managed to score only 20.

Nuwanidu Fernando remained not out at 56 off 39 deliveries, while his partner Chamika Karunaratne scored 20 off seven balls. Noor Ahmed picked two wickets, while Hayden Kerr and Dhananjaya de Silva picked one wicket each.

After winning the toss, Colombo Strikers opted to bowl first, they inflicted early damage on Dambulla Aura in the form of Avishka Fernando’s wicket.

However, what followed that wicket was a clinical partnership between captain Kusal Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama. They added 120 runs for the second wicket.

Kusal Mendis scored 87 off 46 before falling to Naseem Shah, while Samarawickrama scored 59 runs from 35 balls as both fell in successive overs.

The Aura appeared to be in complete control to breach the 200-run landmark but a tight death bowling from Colombo Strikers restricted them to 192/6.

Matheesha Pathirana picked three wickets, while Naseem Shah bagged two wickets. Chamika Karunaratne gave 55 for his single wicket, whereas, Mohammad Nawaz conceded 37 runs off his three overs without any wicket.

Colombo Strikers got off to a poor start to the run chase as they lost their captain Niroshan Dickwella early with just 17 runs on the board.

Babar Azam was then joined by Pathum Nissanka and the pair knitted an anchoring 62-run partnership for the second wicket which lasted when the former was trapped leg-before wicket by Noor Ahmad.

He smashed seven boundaries amid his 24-ball 41.

Nissanka, who could contribute a mere 19 amid his second-wicket stand with Babar, failed to switch gears and finally perished in the 13th over.

He scored a cautious 22 off 28 deliveries, hitting one boundary and a six.

Following his departure, Fernando glimmered a ray of hope for the Strikers to pull off the run chase with belligerent hitting but his efforts came up as his side succumbed to a 10-run defeat.

His unbeaten 56-run knock featured four boundaries and as many sixes.

Noor Ahmad led the bowling attack for the Aura with 2/34 followed by Dhananjaya de Silva and Hayden Kerr picking up one wicket apiece.

Dambulla Aura will face Jaffna Kings in their next LPL game, while Colombo Strikers will battle against Galle Titans. Both games will be played on August 7.