In a thrilling limited-over encounter at the SSC grounds, Ananda College, led by Iruth Gimshan, showcased remarkable teamwork to secure a memorable victory over their traditional rivals Nalanda, reclaiming the prestigious P. de S. Kularatne Memorial Trophy after a seven-year hiatus.

Ananda College’s triumph was spearheaded by an outstanding batting display, with Dinada Athalage playing a pivotal role with a superb unbeaten knock of 70 runs.

Supported by Kanchana de Livera, who contributed a valuable 55 runs, Ananda College successfully chased down the target of 229 with 6.5 overs to spare.

Despite a strong start from Nalanda, with openers Sahan Lithmina scoring 46 runs in 54 balls, adorned with 8 fours, and in-form opener Sadew Samarasinghe achieving a milestone by completing a thousand runs this season with his contribution of 54 runs, forming an impressive partnership of 85 runs, Nalanda struggled to maintain momentum thereafter. Ultimately, they managed to post a total of 228 for 8 wickets in their allotted 50 overs.

Nalanda 228 for 8 wickets in 50 overs 

(Sahan Lithmina 46,Sadew Samarasinghe 54,Manupa Manmitha 12,Sajitha Vithanage 23, Osanda Pamuditha 13,Sathmina Serasinghe 18,Hasith Ratnayake 11,Tharuka Sooriyaarachchi 17*,Minod Caldera 19*, Ashinsa Nainayake 2/56,Ayesh Shashimal 2/39,Kithma Withanaparhirana 1/22,Kenul de Soyza 2/28)

Ananda 229 for 5 wickets in 43.1 overs 

(Kanchana de Livera 55, Dinada Athalage 70*, Iruth Gimshan 42, Kithma Withanaparhirana 10, Ayesh Shashimal 14, Kenul de Soyza 10*, Osanda Pamuditha 1/39, Minod Caldera 1/24, Hasith Ratnayake 1/24, Tharuka Sooriyaarachchi 1/12)

Awards
Best Fielder Ruvishan Perera (Ananda), Best Bowler – Ayesh Shashimal (Ananda), Best Batsman – Sadew Samarasinghe (Nalanda, Man of the Match – Dinada Athalage (Ananda)