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LPL: Hasaranga six-fer lifts B-Love Kandy as Jaffna Kings crash out

COLOMBO: Wanindu Hasaranga, with impressive bowling figures of 6-9, scripted a thumping victory for B-Love Kandy as they defeated defending champions Jaffna Kings by 61 runs in the Eliminator of Lanka Premier League (LPL) on Thursday.

After winning the toss, Jaffna Kings opted to ball first and drew first blood early on as Nuwan Thushara castled Fakhar Zaman in the first over.

However, Dinesh Chandimal recovered Jaffna Kings as he played a quick cameo of 41 runs in 24 balls, featuring six boundaries and one six.

He departed at a total score of 69 in the eighth over, after knitting a solid 39-ball 68 runs partnership with Mohammad Haris.

Hasaranga joined Haris at the crease and started off well, hitting two sixes to Asela Gunaratne, however, the bowler got the last laugh as he was bowled two balls later after scoring 19 off 11.

Mohammad Haris, who anchored through the innings with 38 runs off 32 balls shifted gears in the 14th over hitting 18 runs off Gunaratne and completed his half-century in the process.

Kamindu Mendis rotated strike while Haris attacked Jaffna bowlers amid their 55 runs partnership off 33 balls.

Haris finally departed after scoring 79 runs off 49 balls with the help of eight fours and four sixes. Maheesh Theekshana picked up the prized wicket courtesy of stumping by Rahmanullah Gurbaz.

B-Love Kandy appeared to be in a position to breach the 200-run mark at the end of the 18th over with 180 runs on the board, however, Jaffna Kings’ bowlers pulled them back as they only managed eight runs in the final two overs to reach 188/8.

Nuwan Thushara topped the bowling card with 4-40, including three wickets in the final over of the innings. Meanwhile, Maheesh Theekshana and Asela Gunaratne picked up two wickets each.

Jaffna Kings started their chase horribly as they were reduced to 49-4 in seven overs after Wanindu Hasaranga’s double-wicket sixth over.

However, veterans Shoaib Malik and David Miller then knitted a partnership of 52 runs from 33 balls before the latter fell prey to Hasaranga after scoring 26 off 22. Asela Gunaratne followed him two balls later as Hasaranga registered another double-wicket over.

Jaffna Kings needed 88 runs from seven overs with Shoaib Maik and Thisara Perera at the crease, however, Perera perished without opening his account.

Ultimately, the whole team bundled out at a total of 127 in the 18th over as Hasaranga returned for his final over and once again picked two wickets in the over to complete his six-fer.

This was the first five-wicket haul in this year’s LPL and the best-ever bowling figures in the league’s history.

Shoaib Malik top-scored for Jaffna Kings with 31 runs from 23 balls with the help of three boundaries and one six.

After knocking out defending LPL champions Jaffna Kings, B-Love Kandy will now face Galle Titans in the Qualifier 2 of LPL on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Dambulla Aura has already qualified for the LPL final after winning Qualifier 1 against Galle Titans.

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Shamsi sinks Colombo Strikers as Galle Titans reach LPL playoffs

COLOMBO: Tabraiz Shamsi took a four-fer and guided Galle Titans to the Lanka Premier League (LPL) playoffs with a thumping eight-wicket victory over Colombo Strikers in the last group stage match on Tuesday.

Galle Titans and Colombo Strikers were placed in fourth and fifth positions in the LPL points table. With only one slot left in the playoffs, this match was a must-win for both teams.

Galle Titans won the toss and asked Colombo Strikers to bat first. Strikers had a horrible start as they were reduced to 19-2 in four overs with both openers back to the pavilion.

Lahiru Kumara bowled both Pathum Nissanka (2) and Babar Azam (6) to script the disaster for Colombo Strikers before Tabraiz Shamsi picked up two wickets in three balls of his first over to inflict further damage.

Nuwanidu Fernando (14) and Mohammad Nawaz (11) then attempted to anchor the innings by knitting a brief 26 runs partnership in 23 balls.

However, Tabraiz Shamsi removed both batters in consecutive overs to add further to the misery of the Strikers.

The scoreboard read 64-6 in 12.4 overs when Mohammad Nawaz departed.

However, the Strikers lost the remaining four wickets in 18 balls, adding only 10 runs and hence were bundled out for a mere 74 runs in 15.4 overs.

Seekkuge Prasanna picked three out of the final four wickets to finish with figures of 3-14, while Tabraiz Shamsi picked four wickets for 20 runs.

Galle Titans lost two early wickets in their pursuit of a small total as Bhanuka Rajapaksa (6) and Litton Das (1), went back to the pavilion with only 19 runs on board.

However, Lasith Croospulle attacked from his end, while Shakib Al Hasan anchored the innings to lead Galle Titans to a comfortable eight-wicket victory inside nine overs. They scripted an unbeaten 56 runs stand in 30 deliveries.

Croospulle top-scored with 42 off 25 deliveries with the help of four boundaries and three sixes, whereas, Shakib scored a cautious 17 off 15 with two boundaries.

This victory rocketed Galle Titans to the second position on the LPL points table, and they will now face Dambulla Aura in Qualifier 1 tomorrow.

Meanwhile, B-Love Kandy and Jaffna Kings will square off in the Eliminator game of LPL on the same day.

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

COLOMBO: Pathum Nissanka’s anchoring half-century, followed by a combined bowling effort from the bowlers led Colombo Strikers to a narrow nine-run victory over B-Love Kandy and remained in contention to reach the Lanka Premier League (LPL) playoffs.

Opting to bat first, the Strikers posted a commendable total of 169/9 on the board, thanks to a sensible half-century by Pathum Nissanka and Nipun Dhananjaya’s brisk 40-run knock.

Earlier, the home side got off to a poor start as they lost two quick wickets inside the powerplay as star batter Babar Azam (9) and Lahiru Udara (1) perished cheaply.

With the home side reeling at 28/2 in 4.1 Overs, Nissanka was joined by Dhananjaya and the pair knitted an anchoring 69-run partnership for the third wicket.

The pair appeared in complete control as they scored at a brisk rate before Chaturanga de Silva dismissed Dhananjaya in the 12th over.

The left-handed batter smashed one boundary and three sixes on his way to a 29-ball 40.

Meanwhile, Nissanka stood his ground firm and notched up another vital partnership for the Strikers as he added 30 runs for the fourth wicket with Mohammad Nawaz before finally perishing in the 16th over soon after amassing his gutsy half-century.

He top-scored for the Strikers with a 38-ball 51 which featured four boundaries and a six.

Following his departure, Mohammad Nawaz (21), Chamika Karunaratne (17) and Naseem Shah (15) made important contributions at the death to bolster their team’s total.

For B-Love Kandy, Angelo Mathews, Isuru Udana and Wanindu Hasaranga bagged two wickets each while de Silva and Nuwan Pradeep picked one apiece.

Set to chase 170, B-Love Kandy, placed second in the LPL 2023 standings, fell just nine runs short as they could accumulate 160/8 despite Hasaranga and Asif Ali’s blitz.

The visitors, after losing early wickets, batted cautiously which resulted in the required run rate mounting.

B-Love Kandy were 70/4 halfway through despite a brisk 40-run knock by their skipper Hasaranga. The all-rounder conceded just 21 balls and struck six boundaries and a six.

Following his departure, B-Love Kandy once again went into defensive mode and slipped to 92/5 in 13 overs when Asif came out to bat.

The hard-hitting batter glimmered a ray of hope for B-Love Kandy with a quickfire cameo but his effort was not enough to steer his side to glory.

He smashed two boundaries and three sixes amid his entertaining 33-run cameo from just 15 deliveries before perishing in the 18th over.

B-Love Kandy then needed 26 runs off the last two overs with three wickets in hand but they lacked the firepower to score at a rapid pace after Asif’s dismissal.

Colombo Strikers’ bowlers held their nerves calm to lead their side to a close victory over B-Love Kandy.

Jeffrey Vandersay and Matheesha Pathirana led the bowling attack for the Strikers with two wickets each while Chamika Karunaratne, Iftikhar Ahmed and Naseem Shah had one each to their name.

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