SRI LANKA CRICKET NEWS
(FEBRUARY 2019
Compiled by Victor Melder
Australia beat the touring Sri Lankans by 366 runs to win the second and final day/night Test, played at Manuka Oval, Canberra. Scores”
Australia, 1st Innings – 534/5 dec (Burns 180, Head 161, Patterson 114no, Paine 45no, Fernando 3/126, Karunaratne 1/130)
Sri Lanka, 1st Innings – 215/9 dec (Karunaratne 59, Thirimanne 41, De Silva 25, Dickwella 25, Starc 5/54, Lyon 2/70, Cummins 1/32)
Australia, 2nd Innings – 196/3 (Khawaja 101no, Head 59no, Rajitha 2/64, Fernando 1/43)
Sri Lanka, 2nd Innings – 149 (Mendis 42, Thirimanne 30, Dickwella 27, Starc 5/46, Cummins 3/15, Labuschagne 1/6, Richardson 1/29)
Australia won the 2-match series 2-0.
Man of the match: Mitchell Starc (Australia)
The touring Sri Lankans beat South Africa by 1 wicket to win the first Test played at Kingsmead, Durban. Scores:
South Africa – 1st Innings – 235 (de Kok 80, Bavuma 47, du Plessis 35, Fernando 4/62, Rajitha 3/68, Lakmal 1/29, Embuldeniya 1/51)
Sri Lanka – 1st Innings – 191 (Perera 51, Karunaratne 30, Embuldeniya 24, de Silva 23, Steyn 4/48, Philander 2/32, Rabada 2/48)
South Africa, 2nd Innings – 259 (du Plessis 90, de Kok 55, Elgar 35, Embuldeniya 5/66, Fernando 4/71, Rajitha 1/54)
Sri Lanka, 2nd Innings – 304/9 (Perera 153no, de Silva 48, Fernando 37, Thirimanne 21, Maharaj 3/71, Steyn 2/71, Olivier 2/35)
Man of the match: Kusal Perera (Sri Lanka)
World Cup-winning skipper and Minister Arjuna Ranatunga failed to take control of Sri Lanka Cricket, yesterday. Ranatunga, 55, contested for one of two vice-president posts but only came third in voting. His brother, Nishantha, who was nominated as secretary, was also defeated. Ranatunga ally Jayantha Dharmadasa also failed in his bid to become Sri Lanka Cricket president, losing out to Shammi Silva a loyalist of former SLC chief Thilanga Sumathipala, Ranatunga’s arch-rival. Ranatunga, who led Sri Lanka to victory at the 1996 World Cup, had vowed to clean up the board, which the International Cricket Council recently described as the sport’s most corrupt national body. The former skipper had hoped to wrest control of the SLC ahead of the World Cup tournament, which commences in England on May 30. Former SLC chief Sumathipala was in power for more than two years until early 2018 and decided against contesting again. He backed Silva and other candidates opposed to Ranatunga. Ranatunga had promised to “kick out” players he accused of being corrupt. (Daily Island, 22.2.2019)
The touring Sri Lankans beat South Africa by 8 wickets to win the second and final Test played at St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth. Scores:
South Africa, 1st Innings – 222 (de Kok 86, Markram 60, du Plessis 25, Rabada 22, Fernando 3/62, Rajitha 3/67, de Silva 2/15)
Sri Lanka, 1st Innings – 154 (Dickwella 42, Thirimanne 29, Perera 20, Rabada 4/38, Olivier 3/61)
South Africa, 2nd Innings – 128 (du Plessis 50no, Amla 32, Lakmal 4/39, de Silva 3/36, Rajitha 2/20)
Sri Lanka, 2n d Innings – 197/2 (Mendis 84no,Fernando 75no, Olivier 1/46, Rabada 1/53)
Sri Lanka won the 2-match Test series, 2-0.
Player of the match: Kusal Mendis (Sri Lanka)
Player of the series: Kusal Perera (Sri Lanka)
Cricket legend Sanath Jayasuriya has been banned from all cricket for two years after admitting two breaches of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Anti-Corruption Code, the sport’s governing body announced. The 49-year-old — regarded as one of the greatest One Day International batsmen of all time and was pivotal in winning the 1996 World Cup — accepted the punishment. “This conviction under the Code demonstrates the importance of participants in cricket cooperating with investigations,” said Alex Marshall, ICC General Manager of the Anti-Corruption Unit in a statement. “Compelling participants to cooperate under the Code is a vital weapon in our efforts to rid our sport of corruptors. These rules are essential to maintain the integrity of our sport.” Jayasuriya was charged in October after failing to provide his mobile phones to the ACU. He was also accused of obstructing or delaying any investigation into corruption in the game. Jayasuriya in a statement said he had pleaded guilty to the charges expecting a mitigated punishment. “Consequent to correspondence between the ICC ACU officials and my lawyers we agreed to a sanction of a period of ineligibility of two years, which period is to take effect from the 15th of October 2018,” Jayasuriya said. Jayasuriya who also captained the country played 110 Tests, 445 one-day internationals and 31 Twenty20s during his illustrious career between 1989-2011. Sri Lankan cricket has been mired in corruption allegations in recent years, including claims of match fixing ahead of an international Test against England last year. In November, former Sri Lankan fast bowler Dilhara Lokuhettige was suspended for corruption linked to a limited-over league in 2017. Lokuhettige was the third Sri Lankan player charged for violating the ICC’s anti-corruption code, following those levelled against Jayasuriya, and former paceman Nuwan Zoysa. (Daily Island, 27
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