A mighty big yawn at lacklustre Battle of the Blues draw
A half-century in the first innings followed by a fine century in the second by S. Thomas’ College opener Jaden Amaraweera was the lone bright spark in an otherwise lacklustre and drawn 147th Battle of the Blues encounter against Royal College at the SSC ground yesterday.
The right-hander, who made a composed 52 in the first innings, went on to strike an unbeaten 100 off 162 balls with nine boundaries and three sixes in the second innings as the match drifted to a predictable draw.
The fate of the game was virtually sealed on the opening day itself when S. Thomas’ showed little urgency with the bat, managing only 203-4 at the end of the first day’s play. Continuing in the same vein on day two, the Thomians batted a further 34.1 overs to add 99 more runs before being bowled out for 302.
Several batsmen made useful contributions for S. Thomas’. Reshon Soloman top-scored with 66 while Amaraweera (52) and Avinash Fernando (50) struck half centuries. Methuka Gunaratne added 44 as the Thomians built a respectable total facing 124.1 overs. Royal’s bowlers were led by Gagan Gamage, who claimed 4 for 49, while Sehandu Sooriyaarachchi captured 3 for 64 and Himaru de Silva picked up 2 for 44.
Royal skipper Rehan Peiris and his Thomian counterpart Avinash Fernando acceptingthe D.S. Senanayake Memorial Shield from Supun Weerasinghe of Dialog Axiata
Royal, replying to the Thomian total, finished the second day on 175 for 4 and eventually declared their first innings at 261 for 9 in 86 overs, conceding a first-innings lead of 41 runs.
The final day’s play was largely of academic interest, with Royal resuming from their overnight score of 175-4, needing a further 127 runs to overhaul the Thomian total. However, Royal’s progress slowed as wickets fell at regular intervals. Perera, who had resumed on 70, added just 12 more runs before becoming the sixth wicket to fall with the score on 199.
Thomian skipper Avinash Fernando receives the Dialog Trophy from Supun Weerasinghe of Dialog Axiata
Jaden Amaraweera created a stage to shine with an unbeaten hundred in S. Thomas' second innings - Pix by Eshan Fernando
Perera played the standout innings for Royal with a fighting 82, anchoring the innings after the early setbacks. Rehan Peiris contributed a valuable 63 while Duhen Uduwela chipped in with 33 lower down the order before Royal eventually declared at 261-9. For S. Thomas’, off-spinner Gimhan Mendis was the most successful bowler, claiming 4 for 60. Abishek Paranavidana provided solid support with 2 for 59.
With just over two sessions remaining in the match, S. Thomas’ began their second innings, which soon became Amaraweera’s stage. The opener stood firm at one end while wickets fell around him. Avinash Fernando was dismissed for eight while Methuka Gunaratne contributed 21. Aaron Kodituwakku (2), Reshon Soloman (8), Ludeesha Matarage (17) and Srevon Peiris (8) all failed to convert their starts.
Amaraweera, however, remained resolute, displaying excellent temperament and stroke play as he compiled an unbeaten century that held the Thomian innings together. At the close, S. Thomas’ were 176-6 in 55.4 overs with Amaraweera unbeaten on 100, bringing the curtain down on yet another tame draw in the long-standing Royal–Thomian rivalry.
Thomian Jaden Amaraweera was named the man-of-the-match as well as the best batsman, while Royal’s Gagan Gamage was awarded the best bowler, and his team mate Udantha Gangewatte as the best fielder.
| Scoreboard | |
| S. Thomas 1st innings 302 all out (124.1) (Reshon Soloman 66, Jaden Amaraweera 52, Avinash Fernando 50, Methuka Gunaratne 44, Ludeesha Matarage 23; Gagan Gamage 4/49, Sehandu Sooriyaarachchi 3/64, Himara de Silva 2/44) Royal 1st innings (175-4 overnight) Hirun Liyanaarachchi c Kodituwakku b Mendis 00 Rehan Peiris c Ometh b Matarage 63 Udantha Ganewatte st Peiris b Paranavidana 18 Vomath Dinsara lbw b Mendis 11 Ramiru Perera c Peiris b Mendis 82 Yesindu Dissanayake c Peiris b Mendis 06 Duhen Uduwela c Perera b Soloman 33 Himaru de Silva c Mataharage b Paranvidana 07 Sehandu Sooriyaarchchi run out 13 Mahiru Kodituwakku not out 08 Extras (b5, lb3, nb5, w6) 19 Total (9 wickets declared; 86 overs) 261 Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-41, 3-75, 4-153, 5-183, 6-199, 70216, 8-248, 9-261 Bowling: Gimhan Mendis 20-5-60-4, Abishek Paranavidana 26-5-59-2, Methuka Gunaratne 2-0-11-0, L. Matarage 8-0-20-1, Rafael Hettige 7-1-37-0, Shanil Perera 12-0-44-0, Reshon Soloman 11-2-22-1 S. Thomas’ 2nd innings Jaden Amaraweera not out 100 Avinash Fernando c Dinsara b de Silva 08 Methuka Gunaratne c Ganewatte b Kodituwakku 21 Aaron Kodituwakku lbw b Kodituwakku 02 Reshon Soloman lbw b Gamage 08 Ludeesha Matarage c Ganewatte b Perera 17 Srevon Peiris b Gamage 08 Raphael Hettige not out 01 Extras (lb1, nb1, w8) 10 Total (6 wickets; 55.4 overs) 176 Fall of wickets: 1-27, 2-63, 3-75, 4-89, 5-123, 6-167 Bowling: Senadu Sooriyaarachchi 3-1-8-0, Gagan Gamage 9-1-37-2, Duhen Uduwela 4-0-18-0, Himaru de Silva 16-4-42-1, Ramiru Perera 17.4-3-65-1, Mahiru Kodituwakku 6-3-5-2 |