Sports

Jayasuriya wraps up victory, SL leapfrog NZ on WTC table

Published

3 weeks ago

September 23, 2024

editor

Sri Lanka didn’t need long on the final morning in Galle to wrap things up, taking just 15 minutes to grab the final two New Zealand wickets and secure a 63-run win in the first Test. The result means Sri Lanka go 1-0 up in the two-match series, while also leapfrogging New Zealand up to third place in the World Test Championship (WTC) points table.
Prabath Jayasuriya was unsurprisingly at the forefront of Sri Lanka’s charge, finishing with figures of 5 for 68 – his eighth five-wicket haul, and his seventh in Galle. He ended with match figures of 9 for 204, thus taking home the Player-of-the-Match award.

After having fought so hard the previous day, Rachin Ravindra lasted just eight deliveries into the first session of the final morning, as Jayasuriya trapped him in front with an arm ball for 92 off 168 balls. Coming around the wicket, Jayasuriya tossed one up on leg, as Ravindra was caught in the crease playing down the wrong line. He reviewed, but once it was confirmed to be pitching in line, there would be no saving him.

And any lingering hopes of a famous rearguard were then swiftly quashed, as Will O’Rourke kept out just five deliveries before the sixth slipped past his forward defence and on to off stump to hand Jayasuriya his fifth wicket of the innings.

O’Rourke wouldn’t quite be satisfied with how the game ended after an impressive showing in the game, as he finished with eight wickets to his name – the second-most across the Test, and the same as Ajaz Patel.

In terms of how this result impacts the WTC, it keeps Sri Lanka’s outside hopes of a berth in the final alive. But for New Zealand, it makes their task considerably tougher, with an away series against India and a home series England coming up in the next few months.

There will be no time to dwell on this result for either team, with just a two-day break before the second Test gets underway on Thursday – also in Galle.

(espncricinfo.com)

News

Nadal confirms retirement

Published

4 days ago

October 10, 2024

editor

Rafael Nadal, the 22-time Grand Slam champion, will retire from tennis at the end of this season.
The 38-year-old will represent Spain in his final appearance at next month’s Davis Cup Finals in Malaga.

Nadal has barely played over the past two seasons because of injuries and suggested last year he could retire at the end of the 2024 season.

In a video message released on Thursday, Nadal said: “I am here to let you know I am retiring from professional tennis.

“The reality is that it has been some difficult years, the last two especially.

“I don’t think I have been able to play without limitations.”

Nadal retires as the second-most successful men’s singles player of all time, behind only long-time rival Novak Djokovic.

Dubbed the ‘King of Clay’, Nadal won the French Open singles title a record 14 times, winning 112 of his 116 major matches at Roland Garros.

Nadal is also a four-time US Open champion and won both the Australian Open and Wimbledon twice.

He also won Olympic singles and doubles gold and helped Spain to five Davis Cup titles, most recently in 2019.

Alongside enduring rivals Djokovic and 20-time major champion Roger Federer, Nadal formed the ‘Big Three’ that dominated the men’s game from the early 2000s and drew in legions of fans.

(BBC Sport)

News

Sri Lanka announces 17-member squad for T20I series

Published

4 days ago

October 9, 2024

editor

The 17-member Sri Lanka squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against the West Indies has been approved by Prime Minister and Minister of Sports Dr. Harini Amarasuriya. The matches are scheduled to take place in Dambulla on October 13, 15, and 17.

Sri Lanka Squad:
1. Charith Asalanka (Captain)
2. Pathum Nissanka
3. Kusal Mendis
4. Kusal Janith Perera
5. Kamindu Mendis
6. Dinesh Chandimal
7. Avishka Fernando
8. Bhanuka Rajapaksa
9. Wanindu Hasaranga
10. Maheesh Theekshana
11. Dunith Wellalage
12. Jeffrey Vandersay
13. Chamidu Wickramasinghe
14. Nuwan Thushara
15. Matheesha Pathirana
16. Binura Fernando
17. Asitha Fernando

News

Warrant issued to arrest Upul Tharanga

Published

6 days ago

October 8, 2024

editor

The Matale High Court has issued a warrant against Upul Tharanga, Chairman of the Selection Committee at Sri Lanka Cricket, for failing to appear in court today (Oct. 08).

The warrant pertains to a match-fixing case that Tharanga himself had filed a complaint over related to the Legends League tournament played in Kandy.

Upul Tharanga is currently in the US playing in a franchise cricket tournament.