Star-studded Nondescripts Cricket Club (NCC) convincingly beat Tamil Union Cricket and Athletic Club by 44 runs to win the Premier Limited Over Championship at the Sinhalese Sports Club Grounds today. The close tussle that was expected between the sides was never there as NCC took a firm grip on the game right from the start.
The strong Tamil Union bowling attack, spearheaded by Muttiah Muralitharan had to curtail the free scoring NCC batsmen to put them in a strong position in the match as the Tamil's batting was fragile. But the bowlers failed to contain the NCC batsmen as they went onto score a mammoth 278 for eight wickets, in 50 overs and from then on the Tamils were fighting a losing battle.
Muralitharan, who had just claimed 400 Test wickets and 30 wickets in the recent three-match Test series against Zimbabwe, mesmerizing the visiting batsmen was made to look like an ordinary bowler by a master batsman.
Aravinda de Silva, who had become a father, the previous night, celebrated the birth of his child with a brilliant 65. De Silva who has been just recalled to the Sri Lankan training squad for the tours of Sharjah and England played the main role in making Muralitharan look an ordinary bowler. The 36 year old, who opened the innings with Pradeep Hewage initially struggled with the timing, but once he spend sometime in the middle, those nudges on the on-side returned and the power packed cuts were executed with perfection.
Murali's 10 overs cost 62 runs and the bowler who had made a mockery of the Zimbabwean and West Indian batsmen in recent months failed to get a single wicket. De Silva who's been playing with Murali for close to a decade now handled him really well. He played the sweep shot quite often against Muralitharan and more importantly he picked the gaps to score off him. Murali's straighter one was picked perfectly by this master batsman and for a moment one wondered that playing Murali is not as difficult as the visiting players say. Since NCC had quite a few left-handers in their ranks, people expected that the left-handers would play most of his deliveries. But everyone was proved wrong as De Silva countered Muralitharan. The six he smashed against Muralitharan walking down the track over mid-wicket was an absolute beauty.
Silva and Kumar Sangakkara, who batted at number three put up a 153 run partnership for the third wicket after the early dismissal of Pradeep Hewage, who was run out by a direct hit from Upul Chandana trying to steal a single. Sangakkara narrowly missed out on a well-deserved hundred, as he was dismissed two short of the three-figure mark. He played equally well scoring a run a ball. His knock of 98 which came in 84 minutes and 98 balls contained two massive sixes and seven fours. Most of the boundaries were hit straight down the ground and both the sixes were massive pulls.
When the pair of Silva and Sangakkara were in, one expected the NCC side to go pass the 300 mark with ease. With the front line bowlers failing to make early inroads, Tamil Union skipper Niroshan Bandaratilleke turned to Anil Rideegammanagedera to put the breaks. He got rid of the dangerous Aravinda de Silva for 65 in his very first over. The delivery that got rid of the master batsman was not a great one, but the first mistake by De Silva during the knock was enough to send him back to the pavilion. The batsman tried to work the ball, which pitched on the off-stump to the vacant fine-leg area, but he mistimed the delivery and got an outside edge and was caught by wicketkeeper Indika Gallagoda. His 65 came in 95 balls and 130 minutes with four fours and a six.
Rideegammanagedera also picked up the wickets of Sangakkara and Naveed Navaz in quick succession and put the NCC on the back foot for a while, but it only prevented them from getting closer to the 300 mark.
Fast bowler Ravindra Pushpakumara was sent in at number four to accelerate the run rate and he responded well with a quick fire 21 from 15 balls and 23 minutes with a six and two fours. But it was captain Russel Arnold playing at number six, stayed till the end and ensured NCC would get 278. Arnold made 35 in 42 balls and 45 minutes with four boundaries.
In the bowling department only Anil Rideegammanagedera retained good figures claiming three wickets for 48 runs.
When the Tamils replied, they had a bad start as opener Indika Gallagoda was trapped in front by Ravindra Pushpakumara with a delivery that swung in for a duck. They also lost the other opener Nuwan Shiroman for four, when the right-hander having played the ball straight into the hands of Ishara Amarasinghe at extra-cover set out for a single. Kumar Sangakkara sensing the run out opportunity hurried towards the wicket and brought down the stumps before the batsman reached the mark.
The day was not over for Aravinda de Silva as he picked up the wicket of Ruvin Pieris with his very first delivery of the match. Pieris who had made a solid 24 in 33 balls with two fours and a six was trapped in front trying to work the ball on the back foot.
The Tamils lost wickets at regular intervals and never were in the match. However top scorer Upul Chandana(43) and Malintha Gajanayake through a 49 run partnership for the sixth wicket and skipper Niroshan Bandaratilleke and Anil Rideegammanagedera with a 64 run partnership for eighth wicket restored some pride and helped the side to lose with respectability. Tamil Union could only make 234 in 45.3 overs losing all their wickets.
Ravindra Pushpakumara and Russel Arnold picked up two wickets each. Kumar Sangakkara was declared the man of the match.
© CricInfo Ltd.
| Teams | Sri Lanka. |
| Players/Umpires | Muttiah Muralitharan, Aravinda De Silva, Kumar Sangakkara, Upul Chandana, Anil Rideegammanagedera. |
| Season | Sri Lankan Domestic Season |
| Scorecard | PLOT Final: Nondescripts CC v Tamil Union C & AC, 19 Jan 2002 |
| Grounds | Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo |
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