Gunaratne, Pradeep shine for Kandy Tuskers as Steyn sizzles on LPL 2020 debut
Shoaib Malik's fifty was in vain as Jaffna Stallions were bowled out for 150 batting first
Shoaib Malik's fifty was in vain as Jaffna Stallions were bowled out for 150 batting first
Commentator: @afidelf
Stallions are trying out various combinations, but you still have to say this was a bit of an upset. Their batting just never got moving today, despite a half century from Shoaib Malik. Tuskers bowlers kept making breakthroughs and kept a lid on the scoring.
That's it from our coverage of this match. Join us for the Dambulla Viiking v Galle Gladiators match that's due to start shortly.
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Gunaratne is man of the match: "I'm really happy that this kind of tournament happened with everything that is happening in the country. I was bowling well but I hadn't batted well before today, so I'm glad I was able to do that."
Kusal Perera: "We didn't have to take too many risks, and because we were only four wickets down, I was confident. Asela and Irfan did well. We're not thinking about winning or losing tomorrow. We'll come to try to do our best."
Thisara Perera: "We are trying to bat first because we were chasing really easily. It was an experiment. We were 15-20 runs short today."
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Gunaratne was immense with bat and ball this match. His spell of 21 for 2 kept the Stallions pinned during the middle overs, with Dilruwan Perera bowling nicely at the other end as well. Then with the bat, he came in with three wickets having fallen in the Powerplay, put on a measured fifty-plus stand with Kusal Perera, then made sure he stuck around to usher Tuskers past Stallions' modest total. The game-clinching six also took him past fifty.
It's a vital win for Tuskers who are of course in that neck-and-neck battle for the fourth semi-final position with Galle Gladiators, whom they play tomorrow. That will be Tuskers' last league game, but a win here means that even if they lose tomorrow, they are not necessarily out, as long as Gladiators lose their last game by a substantial margin (Gladiators' NRR is not as bad as Tuskers). If they win tomorrow, though, Tuskers are definitely through to the semi-finals.
Shoaib Malik's fifty was in vain as Jaffna Stallions were bowled out for 150 batting first
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