BASSETERRE: Sri Lankan captain – Dinuth Wallalage displayed all-round effort as Sri Lanka thumped Australia by four wickets in their ICC Under 19 World Cup fixture, here on Monday.
Set to chase 177, Sri Lankan top-order failed as the side lost their first four wickets for just 49 runs; glimmered a ray of hope for the Kangaroos. The valiant effort of Wellalage and Anjala Bandara, however, pulled the Lions back into the hunt. The pair put on an important 70-runs partnership to anchor the run chase.
Bandara scored a brilliant 33 before falling victim to Joshua Garner, while Wellalage kept going and went on to score a gritty half-century. He scored 52 off 71 balls; smashing four boundaries and a six.
Ranuda Somarathne’s unbeaten 32 in the end, guided the Lions to chase down the target in 37 overs.
For the Kangaroos, Tom Whitney and Garner claimed two wickets each, while Nivethan Radhakrishnan and William Salzmann shared one wicket apiece.
Batting first, the Australian batting line failed again as the Kangaroos could only score 175 before getting bowled out on the final delivery of the innings. Campbell Kellaway fought valiantly with his outstanding 54, but, could not take his side to a commendable total.
For Sri Lanka, Wellalage also starred with the ball; taking a five-fer, while Matheesha Pathirana and Treveen Mathew claimed two wickets each. Sadisha Rajapaksa, on the other hand, made one scalp.
In another match, West Indies beat Scotland by seven wickets after the home side put Scotland to bat first. Shiva Sankar bagged three wickets, while Onaje Amory and Anderson Mahase picked two wickets each. Matthew Nandu and McKenny Clarke shared one wicket apiece.
For Scotland, Oliver Davidson fought valiantly with his 43, while the rest of the batters were helpless in front of the West Indian bowling attack; resulting in Scotland getting dismissed for a skimpy 95.
The hosts then easily chased down the target in the 20th over and with seven wickets in hand. Teddy Bishop scored 23, followed by the top-scorer for the side – Shaqkere Parris; scoring 26.
READ: Pakistan beat Zimbabwe by 115 runs in ICC U19 World Cup
