Sri Lanka under 19s suffered their third straight loss in the ICC under 19 world cup 2014 when they were beaten by a spirited Afghanistan under 19s outfit in their 7th place play-off match played at Dubai Cricket Academy grounds.
Sri Lanka skipper Kusal Mendis elected to bat first after winning the toss. Sri Lanka lost their best batsman in the tournament Sadeera Samarawickrama for no score in the first over. Sri Lanka was reduced to 34 for 3 in 6.4 overs after Hashan Dumindu and Kusal Mendis failed to make an impression. Consistent Priyamal Perera and Hashen Ramanayake continued to steer the Sri Lankan innings putting on a challenging 36 runs for the 4th wicket. After the dismissal of Ramanayake, the Sri Lankans went spiraling down as their final 6 wickets were dismissed for only 44 runs. Priyamal Perera was the only batsman to put up a rearguard performance with a gritty 30 runs as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 114 runs in the 35th over. Usman Ghani and Sayed Shirzad took three wickets apiece for the young Afghans.
Chasing a modest target of 115 in 50 overs, Afghanistan did not let the Sri Lankan Bowlers take control of the match as they chased down the target aggressively. At one stage Afghanistan were 42/3 in only the 7th over with left arm speedster Anuk Fernando claiming three early wickets. Ihsansullah and Hashmatullah Shaidi steamed the run chase with patience as the 4th wicket pair guided the chase perfectly with a 71 run match winning partnership. Sri Lanka under 19s took two more wickets in the latter part of the Afghan innings but failed to defend a below par low score of 115. Afghanistan under 19s reached the target on the 22nd over registering their second surprise win for the tournament and winning the 7th place of the ICC under 19 world cup 2014. Sri Lanka under 19s finished as the 8th placed team after three consecutive losses against Pakistan, India and Afghanistan after a successful group stage where they won all their 3 games.
Scores in Brief :
Sri Lanka U19 – 114 all out in 34.3 overs : Priyamal Perera 30, Kusal Mendis 16, AK Tyron 15, Usman Ghani 3/21, Sayed Shirzad 3/33.
Afghanistan U19 – 118/5 in 21.2 overs : Usman Ghani 27, Ihsansullah 37*, Hashmatullah Shaidi 34, Anuk Fernando 4/50.
