Lasith Malinga who shined with the ball for the Mumbai Indians in their win last night (03) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), returned to Sri Lanka in the early hours of Thursday (04) before he went on to register a performance to remember in the SLC Super Provincial Tournament opener against Kandy in Pallekelle.
Chamika Karunaratne stars in Colombo’s opening win
Malinga recorded astonishing figures of 7/49 bowling his quota of 10 overs at a stretch, as he led his team Galle to a commanding 156 run victory over team Kandy.
Earlier in the day, Team Galle posted 255 all-out with Kusal Mendis and Sandun Weerakkody making half centuries.
Left-handers Minod Bhanuka and Milinda Siriwardana also chipped in with useful 30’s as Galle posted a competitive total on a tricky surface.
Quick bowler Kasun Rajitha bowled an impressive spell as he went on to capture 3/44, while leg spinner Jeffrey Vandersay also chipped in with three scalps.
Kandy’s run chase never got going as they were bowled out inside 19 overs for a paltry 99 runs, but skipper Dimuth Karunaratne fought a lone battle for team Kandy as he carried his bat through the innings to remain unbeaten on 35* runs.
Dushmantha Chameera also captured three wickets for Team Galle as their skipper Malinga went on to capture his career-best figures in List A cricket.
Photos: Kandy vs Galle | Super Provincial One Day 2019
Result
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandun Weerakkody | c Dimuth Karunaratne b Jeffrey Vandersay | 56 | 63 | 9 | 0 | 88.89 |
| Lahiru Thirimanne | c Nuwan Pradeep b Kasun Rajitha | 10 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 47.62 |
| Dhanajaya de silva | c Manoj Sarathchandra b Thisara Perera | 5 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 27.78 |
| Kusal Mendis | c Sadeera Samarawickrama b Jeffrey Vandersay | 65 | 87 | 3 | 1 | 74.71 |
| Milinda Siriwardana | c Priyamal Perera b Sachithra Senanayake | 32 | 31 | 1 | 2 | 103.23 |
| Minod Bhanuka | c Sadeera Samarawickrama b Jeffrey Vandersay | 39 | 43 | 2 | 1 | 90.70 |
| Wanindu Hasaranga | run out () | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Shammu Ashan | c Chathuranga de Sliva b Kasun Rajitha | 20 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 133.33 |
| Dhammika Prasad | run out () | 15 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 136.36 |
| Lasitha Malinga | b Kasun Rajitha | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 40.00 |
| Dushmantha Chameera | not out | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 66.67 |
| Extras | 6 (b 1 , lb 2 , nb 0, w 3, pen 0) |
| Total | 255/10 (50 Overs, RR: 5.1) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nuwan Pradeep | 8 | 1 | 34 | 0 | 4.25 | |
| Kasun Rajitha | 9 | 0 | 44 | 3 | 4.89 | |
| Thisara Perera | 7 | 0 | 37 | 1 | 5.29 | |
| Sachithra Senanayake | 10 | 0 | 36 | 1 | 3.60 | |
| Jeffrey Vandersay | 10 | 0 | 55 | 3 | 5.50 | |
| Chathuranga de Sliva | 6 | 0 | 46 | 0 | 7.67 | |
| Batsmen | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sadeera Samarawickrama | c Minod Bhanuka b Lasitha Malinga | 15 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 115.38 |
| Dimuth Karunaratne | not out | 35 | 48 | 3 | 0 | 72.92 |
| Pathum Nissanka | c Dhammika Prasad b Lasitha Malinga | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Priyamal Perera | c Minod Bhanuka b Lasitha Malinga | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Sachithra Senanayake | lbw b Lasitha Malinga | 6 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 85.71 |
| Manoj Sarathchandra | b Lasitha Malinga | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Thisara Perera | c Minod Bhanuka b Dushmantha Chameera | 12 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 109.09 |
| Chathuranga de Sliva | c Milinda Siriwardana b Dushmantha Chameera | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Jeffrey Vandersay | c Lahiru Thirimanne b Dushmantha Chameera | 19 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 118.75 |
| Kasun Rajitha | c Minod Bhanuka b Lasitha Malinga | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Nuwan Pradeep | b Lasitha Malinga | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | 7 (b 0 , lb 3 , nb 2, w 2, pen 0) |
| Total | 99/10 (18.5 Overs, RR: 5.26) |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lasitha Malinga | 9.5 | 0 | 49 | 7 | 5.16 | |
| Dushmantha Chameera | 5 | 0 | 27 | 3 | 5.40 | |
| Dhammika Prasad | 4 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 5.00 | |
 in the Indian Premier League(IPL), returned to Sri Lanka in the early hours of Thursday(04) before he went on to register a performance to remember in the SLC Super Provincial Tournament opener.){kind=link}