Not every day you will see a 15 year old youngster tormenting an opposition consisting of U 19 national players and this was the case today at Reid Avenue where debutant Thevindu Senarathna routed the visitors with his willow in a display of rapturing batsmanship. St. Sebastian’s seemed hapless in the face of the onslaught that yielded 94 runs in 83 deliveries.
St. Sebastian’s College entered this match with the honour of being the last team to defeat Royal at Reid Avenue 6 years ago and the more fancied team. Winning the toss, Mishane Silva invited the Royalists to bat first.
Openers Ronuka Jayawardane and Kaveen Wijeratne formed the base with a solid 62 run stand before Tharusha Fernando trapped Ronuka for 22. Kaveen went on to score 46 and after his departure, freshers Lakindu Nanayakkara and Kavindu Madarasinghe annexed 75 runs for the 3rd wicket. Lakindu was dismissed by Nimesh Bandara for 50 while Kavindu missed on his half ton few overs later when he was removed by U19 national cap Avishka Fernando.
A crippled middle order resulted in a sudden collapse and after being on 164/2 at one stage, Royal were bowled out for 227. Praveen Jayawickrama took 4 for 50 and Nimesh Bandara claimed 4 for 56.
The response by the visitors was rattled from the start as the Royalists carved early inroads, dismantling the Sebastian’s top order with pace. Nuwanidu Fernando was trapped by Himesh Ramanayake for 2 while skipper Helitha Withanage dismissed Malintha Peiris for a duck before forcing Damien de Burzer to accept the same outcome.
The visitors were in dire straits at 2/3 but Avishka Fernando stepped up, using his experience to patiently brace the innings but two more quick wickets left them reeling at 31/5. Resuming from their overnight score, Sebastian’s continued to grapple with mounting pressure. Gothama Ranasinghe removed Avishka for 25 but a 40 run cameo by Asher Warnakulasuriya gave them a glimmer of hope before a late defiance by Praveen Jayawickrama prevented a vital follow on. Praveen Jayawickrama (23*) and Tashik Perera (19) added 39 runs for the final wicket.
With a 75 run lead Royal commenced their second essay, but wickets at regular intervals impeded them on 92/6 when Helitha Withanage was joined by the 15 year old batting sensation Thevindu Senarathna to revive the home side. Larger than life, Thevindu began a ruthless batting display, defying the daunting situation. His willow showed no mercy as he ran riot against the strong bowling attack with ballistics of sheer power. Above all, maturity was evident when he played on the merit filtering the haywire deliveries which deserved severe punishment.
The youngster missed on a well-deserved century when Nuwanidu finally halted the blitzkrieg. His 94 came in 83 deliveries and the carnage saw 13 boundaries including 9 maximums. The captain himself played the second fiddle in a 147 run partnership. Royal eventually reached 264 before the end of play.
Chief Scores –
Royal College 1st innings – 227 all out (62.1 overs) (Lakindu Nanayakkara 50, Kavindu Madarasinghe 49, Kaveen Wijeratne 46; Praveen Jayawickrama 4 for 50, Nimesh Bandara 4 for 56)
St. Sebastian’s College 1st innings – 152 all out (48.3 overs) (Asher Warnakulasuriya 40, Avishka Fernando 25, Praveen Jayawickrama 23; Helitha Withanage 3 for 25, Gothama Ranasinghe 2 for 32, Himesh Ramanayake 2 for 38)
Royal College 2nd innings – 264 all out (71.5 overs) (Thevindu Senarathna 94, Helitha Withanage 61, Ronuka Jayawardane 33; Praveen Jayawickrama 3 for 80, Avishka Fernando 2 for 32, Nuwanidu Fernando2 for 43)
Result – Draw
