The Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Major League Tier A and B Tournaments came to an end last week with Chilaw Marians CC and Negombo CC winning the two tournaments respectively.
Negombo Cricket Club lifts the Tier ‘B’ Title
Former Maris Stella Captain Prasansana Jayamanna slams..
Chilaw Marians took on probably their toughest opponent this season, SSC, in the final match of the Super 8s, but hardly had any trouble as they demolished the star studded SSC unit by 264 runs to secure the Major League Tier A title after a record breaking season.
Their skipper and Sri Lanka Test player Malinda Pushpakumara headed the bowling charts in the tournament with 70 scalps and led his team quite brilliantly during his first stint as a captain in domestic cricket. It was a record breaking season for the boys from Chilaw as they clinched 9 outright wins in 10 matches with their only scare coming in the group stage game against BRC before they managed to secure a dramatic tie on the final day.
Their batting was dominated by Sachithra Serasinghe who hit 901 runs; not forgetting his 35 wickets with his right arm off spin. Another all-rounder that impressed for the Marians was the explosive left hander Shehan Jayasuriya who hit over 700 runs while also picking up 32 wickets with his off-spin.
Read: Charith Jayampathi sparks Ports Authority’s astonishing comeback
Former Sebastianite Oshada Fernando was in the form of his life for Chilaw after making the switch from SSC, as he hit over 800 runs inclusive of three centuries.
The tier B segment was probably the most open tournaments that has been played in the recent past with no team really dominating the season before Negombo emerged champions. It was a remarkable story for the boys from Negombo after they played their first season in tier B cricket after promotion from the lower division and will now feature in the tier A segment come next season.
The star for them too was their skipper and left orthodox bowler Umega Chathuranga who captured over 50 wickets during the season while Prasanna Jayamanne’s final week double century against Kurunegala SC made sure Negombo had no hiccups as they secured the tier B title.
The Major League T20 Tournament is set to begin on the 24th of February and it will be one of the tournaments to watch out for with almost all national players featuring in the first three rounds of matches in the tournament.
Read More: Major League shorter formats set to commence on 24th February
Angelo Mathews and Kusal Janith Perera who will be returning from injury are set to turn up for Colts Cricket Club who are strong contenders for the title along with Akila Dananjaya and Sadeera Samarawickrama in their lineup.
It is hard to predict a favorite with a lot of teams boasting strong squads with plenty of experience but CCC, SSC and Chilaw Marians are among the favorites to win this tournament while the dark horses of this tournament could be Lankan CC and Army SC.
Selected matches are set to be shown on ThePapare.com, MyTV and Dialog TV. The list of matches are mentioned below.
24th February – Ragama CC v BRC – 9.45am at Colts Grounds
24th February – SSC vs Moors – 1.45pm at Colts Grounds25th February – Bloomfield C & AC vs CCC – 9.45am at Colts Grounds
25th February – Army SC vs Panadura SC – 1.45pm at Colts Grounds27th February – Colts CC vs SL Ports Authority CC – 9.45am at BRC Grounds
27th February – Air Force SC vs Lankan CC – 1.45pm at BRC Grounds1st March – Chilaw Marians vs Kalutara TC – 9.45am at Bloomfield Grounds
1st March – NCC vs Ragama CC – 1.45pm at Bloomfield Grounds2nd March – Moors SC vs Badureliya CC – 9.45am at Bloomfield Grounds
2nd March – Navy SC vs Kurunegala Youth CC – 1.45pm at Bloomfield Grounds
 Major League Tier A and B Tournaments came to an end last week with Chilaw Marians CC and Negombo CC winning the two tournaments respectively. ){kind=link}