Monday Apr 20, 2026
Monday Apr 20, 2026
Monday, 20 April 2026 02:15 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Sadeera Samarawickrama and Ahan Wickramasinghe during their 166-run liaison for Galle
Janith Liyanage and Sharujan Shanmuganathan rescued Colombo with an unfinished double-century stand
By Sa’adi Thawfeeq
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Kavindu Pathiratne returned career-best figures of 5/41 |
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Dinura Kalupahana caused flutters in the Colombo camp with three early wickets
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Last year’s runner-up Dambulla did well to dismiss defending champions Galle for 255 and put themselves in a position to gain the vital first innings lead on the opening day of their National Super League (NSL) 4-day match at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium yesterday.
Winning the toss and batting first, Galle placed themselves in a position to run up a big total at 226-3 courtesy a delicate century from Sadeera Samarawickrama (113* off 169 balls, 13 fours) and a compact 70 off 122 balls (4 fours, 2 sixes) from Ahan Wickramasinghe. The pair added 166 for the fourth wicket. But no sooner was the partnership broken by Vishwa Fernando, forcing Wickramasinghe to edge a catch behind the wicket, the rest of the innings simply fell apart and Galle lost their remaining seven wickets for just 29 runs in a sensational collapse.
The wrecker-in-chief was former Royal College right-arm seamer Kavindu Pathiratne, who returned career-best figures of 5/41 off 12.4 overs. Dambulla lost opener Thanuka Dabare for a second ball duck but closed the day at 36-1, with two in-form batters, Lasith Croospulle and Kavin Bandara, at the crease. They trail by 219 runs with nine wickets in hand.
Janith Liyanage and Sharujan Shanmuganathan rescued Colombo from a top order collapse to end the first day of their match against Kandy on a strong footing at 250-4 at the Rangiri Dambulla Cricket Stadium.
Winning the toss and choosing to bat first, Colombo were pushed onto the back foot by former Sri Lanka Under-19 Captain Dinura Kalupahana, who snapped up three early wickets with his right-arm medium-paced deliveries to have Colombo reeling at 32-4.
Liyanage (130* off 230 balls, 13 fours) and Shanmuganathan (82* off 190 balls, 5 fours, 1 six) mounted a counterattack to produce an unfinished fifth wicket partnership of 218, which enabled Colombo to breathe easily by the end of the day, brought forward by bad light which clipped off 11 overs. Kalupahana was easily the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3/36 off 11 overs.
Both matches continue on their second day today.
Day One scores
Galle 255 (Niroshan Dickwella 28, Sadeera Samarawickrama 113*, Ahan Wickramasinghe 70, Muditha Lakshan 20, Vishwa Fernando 2/40, Kavindu Pathiratne 5/41, Shakthi Udara 2/80)
Dambulla 36-1 at close
Colombo 250-4 at close (Janith Liyanage 130*, Sharujan Shanmuganathan 82*, Dinura Kalupahana 3/36) vs. Kandy
