COLOMBO: Towhid Hridoy’s half-century, followed by a combined effort from the bowlers led Jaffna Kings to a thumping 21-run victory over Colombo Strikers in the Lanka Premier League (LPL) curtain-raiser on Sunday.
The defending champions Kings scripted a solid start to their LPL campaign with a resounding victory over last edition’s runners-up.
Put into bat first, the Kings registered a commendable total on the board as Towhid Hridoy’s half-century bolstered them to 173/5 in the allotted 20 overs.
Hridoy top-scored for the Kings with a 39-ball 54 which featured four boundaries and a six.
Besides him, Dunith Wellalage (25*), Priyamal Perera (22) and Rahmanullah Gurbaz (21) made notable contributions.
Meanwhile, Kings’ skipper Thisara Perera played a crucial came at the death and bolstered his side’s total. He scored 14 from seven balls with the help of three boundaries.
For the Strikers, Naseem Shah, Matheesha Pathirana, Chamika Karunaratne and Lakshan Sandakan struck out a batter each.
Set to chase 174, Babar Azam-led Colombo Strikers’ batting lineup failed and could only raise 152 before bundling out in the final over despite Niroshan Dickwella’s half-century.
The Strikers had a dismal start to the run chase as the home side endured a massive blow in the fourth over with 33 runs on the board as Pakistan captain Babar Azam perished.
Babar could score a mere seven from eight deliveries before falling to Thisara Perera.
Following his dismissal, the Strikers ran into a collapse which halted the flow of runs for the home side.
Strikers’ captain Dickwella stood his ground firm and kept the scoreboard ticking singlehandedly before Nishan Madushanka finally got rid of him in the 11th over.
He remained the top-scorer for the Strikers with a 34-ball 58, laced up with nine boundaries and a six.
Besides him, Chamika Karunaratne (23 off 15) could make a notable contribution with the bat.
Hardus Viljoen led the bowling attack for the Kings with 3/31, followed by two each from Vijayakanth Viyaskanth and Dilshan Madushanka.
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