We got sent in to bat first and had a steady start though not quick, which worked out fine considering that we were able to mount a late charge with wickets in hand and get to 150/5. Lalith Sivakumar top scored with an unbeaten 52 off just 38 balls and played his innings well, starting off steady but accelerating at the end.
The Scots started at a quicker pace than us and had most of their wickets in hand, but then we got a timely runout which also slowed their runrate which then got us a 3rd wicket, before we managed to close the game out in the death overs and earn a narrow 7 run win that was looking unlikely for a large part of the 2nd innings. Susantha Cafoor was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4-0-21-1.
Lalith Sivakumar is the Player of the Day for his unbeaten 52 and 2 catches.
Match Ratings
Sri Lanka U20 Scotland U20
Batting - Top Order 8,789 9,037
Batting - Middle Order 7,490 6,927
Batting - Tail 4,004 4,168
Bowling - Seam 9,485 (12) 9,176 (16)
Bowling - Spin 10,324 (8) 9,320 (4)
Fielding/Keeping 10,287 10,379
Overall 157,099 153,524
Game 4 vs Ireland U20 was on an Even pitch with Sunny weather.
We won the toss and went in to bowl first.
First half of the game was all us as the bowlers dominated and picked up 5 wickets in the first 11 overs for 60 odd runs, before a good rally from Dennehy and O'Houlihan got them to 146/7, of which Dennehy managed 95 not out. Jeewan Jayampathi picked up 3 wickets but Niroshan Rifan and Bayya Jeewantha were the ones that kept things the most tight as both kept their ER below 6.5 and picked up a wicket each. Special mention also to keeper Hameen for his 5 catches.
We made a fast start in the PP and our middle order built on that start as they were able to guide us home to a good 7 wicket win. Lalith Sivakumar scored another half century and finished on 57 not out with contributions also from Hameen (36) and Piyadigama (26* off 13 balls).
Player of the Day is tough to pick so I'll give it to both Sivakumar and Hameen. Sivakumar for back-to-back unbeaten 50s and Hameen for his 5 catches and support to Sivakumar during their 78 run partnership.
Match Ratings
Ireland U20 Sri Lanka U20
Batting - Top Order 9,362 9,321
Batting - Middle Order 8,529 8,608
Batting - Tail 4,601 3,731
Bowling - Seam 9,458 (12) 9,157 (12)
Bowling - Spin 9,250 (8) 9,997 (8)
Fielding/Keeping 10,278 10,994
Overall 163,079 163,358
With wins in our first 4 games, we are on 16 points and more importantly have secured promotion back to Division 2
