SHARJAH – Malintha Perera smashed a solid unbeaten half-century while Sri Lanka ‘A’ squad star Kaushaliya Weerarathne turned in a fine all-round performance as Lanka Lions Sports Club defeated Seven Seas Strikers by seven wickets in a semifinal match of the 23rd Sharjah Ramadan Tournament for the Interface Transworld Cup at the Sharjah stadium on Tuesday night. The tournament, organised by the Sharjah Cricket Council, is supported by 106.2 HUM FM and CBFS as associate sponsors.
Playing with a cool head, Malitha cracked 77 not out off 71 balls with seven fours and one six to help his side achieve the challenging victory target of 152 with 10 balls to spare. He was well supported by Kaushaliya, who remained not out on 24off just 16 balls which included three fours and one six. Kaushaliya, who had earlier taken two wickets for 18 runs, has featured in 120 one-day internationals and 15 twenty20 matches for the Sri Lanka ‘A’ team and was also member of the team that recently toured India in January earlier this year.
Inspired by the presence of Kaushaliya in the side, Oshadha Warnapura also made his presence felt, contributing a fine 43 off 47 balls with three fours and one six as Lanka Lions saw off the Seven Seas Strikers challenge without much fuss. Earlier, Seven Seas Strikers, electing to bat first, scored 151 for nine in the allotted 25 overs, Mohsin Arshad top-scored with 33 off 18 balls with four
fours. Atiqur Rehman (25 off 26 balls), Ghulam Rasool (24 off as many balls) and Asfar Zaidi (20 off 26 balls) further consolidated the innings. Eranga Jayasekara and Madushan Kumara took two wickets each along with Kaushaliya. Lanka Lions batsmen, in reply, dominated the proceedings to make it to the final of this prestigious tournament.
Brief scores:
Lanka Lions SC beat Seven Seas Strikers by seven wickets:
Seven Seas Strikers 151 for nine in 25 overs
(Mohsin Arshad 33, Atiqur Rehman 25, Ghulam Rasool 24, Asfar Zaidi 20; Kaushaliya Weerarathne 2-18, Eranga Jayasekara 2-25, Madushan Kumara 2-25)
Lanka Lions 154 for three in 23.2 overs
(Malintha Perera 77 not out, Oshadha Warnapura 43, Kaushaliya Weerarathne 24 not out).
Man of the match: Malintha Perera.