By Srian Obeyesekere
Dambulla, skippered by Sri Lanka test captain Dhananjaya de Silva, enjoyed a box seat leverage needing four more wickets to defeat Galle who were badly placed on 159 for 6 wickets and facing a 74 run first innings deficit in the face of their opponents mammoth 488 at stumps built around opener Lasith Croospulle’s brilliant 133 yesterday at the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium.
Dhananjaya 62 off 91 was among several others who swelled their total with Anjala Bandara 69 off 102 with 6 boundaries, Kavindu Pathiratne 56, Vishad Randika 55, Lahiru Samarakoon 51 and Kavin Bandara 44 taking the Galle attack to the cleaners.
Galle’s one atonement was skipper Sadeera Samarawickrama’s first innings century and 58 in the second innings, but with him gone Galle looking a goner.
Chief scores:
Galle 255 (Sadeera Samarawickrama 113)
& 159/6 (46 overs)
(Sadeera Samarawickrama 58, Niroshan Dickwella 34, Keshara Nuwantha n.o. 22, Nipun Dhananjaya 21, Vishwa Fernando 2/29,
Shakthi Udara 2/40, Akila Dananjaya 2/57)
Dambulla 488
(Lasith Croospulle 133)
(Courtesy Sri Lanka Cricket)