Police SC outplay Colts and enter final

SLC Major Club 50-over semi-final

Saturday, 26 July 2025 02:58 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Ashen Bandara steered Police SC to the final with a captain’s knock of 55*

Vishad Randika helped Ashen Bandara in a valuable partnership of 49

Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya Lakshan batting for Colts

Dilum Sudeera ran through the Colts batting taking 4/36

By Sa’adi Thawfeeq

Ashen Bandara played a captain’s knock of 55* off 84 balls (5 fours) on a difficult CCC pitch to steer Police SC to a four-wicket win against fancied Colts in the first semi-final of the SLC Major Club 50-over tournament played under lights yesterday.

Colts invited to bat first struggled right throughout their innings to score 143, and Police SC lost six wickets in overhauling that total using up 36 overs. The pitch didn’t offer the batsmen the chance of any free stroke play as the bowlers were largely on top extracting whatever life there was following the morning rains.

It required a patient knock from one of the batters to see the team home and Bandara provided it for Police SC when they were in some kind of a spot losing three wickets for 46. He stitched together a valuable 49-run stand with Vishad Randika (36 off 46 balls, 2 sixes) – the highest of the match, and hung around while wickets fell at the other end to see his side into the final.

Dilshan Madushanka and Dunith Wellalage with two wickets apiece threatened at times to take the game away from Police SC, but Bandara’s perseverance paid in the end.

Colts invited to bat were off to a bad start losing both openers Ravindu Rasantha and Sangeeth Cooray to seamer Charuka Pramod in his second over to be 8-2. At the end of the first power play, Colts were 48-3 having lost the important wicket of Dinesh Chandimal for 30. The former Sri Lanka captain was batting with a lot of conviction having taken 14 off an over from Naveen Fernando until a peach of a delivery from left-arm spinner Dilum Sudeera saw him being bowled through the gate.

Dhananjaya Lakshan tried to hit himself out of trouble with 33 off 37 balls (3 fours, 1 six) but eventually fell to a catch in the deep. Colts failed to get their momentum going largely due to some excellent bowling and fielding by Police SC who kept them pegged down. They failed to put together any noteworthy partnerships which was the cause of their poor total.

Angelo Mathews, Colts’ last recognised batter struggled through 67 balls for 29 without hitting a single boundary. With his dismissal evaporated Colt’s chance of putting up a challenging score. They were eventually bowled out for a disappointing 143 with 11 overs of their quota remaining. Sudeera with 4/36 off 9 overs was the pick of the Police SC bowlers. Young right-arm medium-pacer Dhanuja Induwara chipped in with three wickets.

The second semi-final between CCC and Tamil Union will be played at the same venue under lights on Sunday. Police SC will meet the winners of this game in the final on 30 July.

Scores: Colts 143 (39) (Dinesh Chandimal 30, Dhananjaya Lakshan 33, Angelo Mathews 29, Charuka Pramod 2/13, Dilum Sudeera 4/36, Dhanuja Induwara 3/24)

Police SC 144-6 (35.5) (Vishad Randika 36, Ashen Bandara 55*, Dilshan Madushanka 2/41, Dunith Wellalage 2/22)

Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.