Mendis leads Sri Lanka to 7-wicket win over Bangladesh in 1st T20
Mendis followed his ODI century two days ago at the same venue with a 73 off 51 balls as Sri Lanka cruised to 159-3 with an over to spare for a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Advertisement
Former captain Dasun Shanaka made an impressive return to white-ball cricket after almost one year and limited Bangladesh to 154-5 after Sri Lanka skipper Charith Asalanka won the toss and elected to field.
Mendis and Pathum Nissanka (42) had all but sealed the chase inside the first five overs with their belligerent hitting as Sri Lanka sped to 78-1.
Nissanka smashed fast bowler Mohammad Saifuddin's first three deliveries for boundaries and Taskin Ahmed conceded 34 off his first two overs inside the powerplay, with Mendis smacking the pace bowler for three boundaries and three sixes.
Nissanka's entertaining 16-ball knock ended when he holed out to mid-on but not before hoisting spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz for two sixes.
Advertisement
Mendis eased to his 16th T20 half century off 31 balls and — although leg-spinner Rishad Hossain beat Kusal Perera with a googly in the 13th over and had the left-hander splice an easy catch to wicketkeeper Litton Das — Sri Lanka eased to victory.
Shamim Hossain timed his jump to perfection at short extra cover and plucked a brilliant left-handed catch to end Mendis' innings when Sri Lanka was only seven away from victory, after fast bowler Mohammad Saifuddin found the leading edge of the batter.
Earlier, opener Parvez Hossain Emon showed plenty of aggression in the powerplay with his breezy knock of 38 off 22 balls before Shanaka squeezed Bangladesh's middle-order with his slower balls.
Emon, who hit five fours and a six, couldn't clear Shanaka at long-on when he attempted a big hit against Nuwan Thushara as Bangladesh slid to 67-3.
Advertisement
Leg-spinner Jeffery Vandersay perfectly filled the void of injured Wanindu Hasaranga, who has been ruled out of the series with a hamstring injury. Vandersay had Das leg before wicket for just six as the batter misread the googly and went for a sweep.
Mohammad Naim made an unbeaten 32 off 29 balls, but Bangladesh's batters couldn't find acceleration even in the death overs with Shamim Hossain (14 not out) hitting two late sixes to breach the 150-run mark.
___
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Boston United 0-1 Halifax Town
National League Boston United 0 - 1 Halifax Town FT Josh Hmami's early goal was enough to clinch Halifax a 1-0 win at Boston and their first National League victory of the season. Halifax, who lost their opening two league games at Braintree and Wealdstone, swept into an eighth-minute lead when Hmami fired his first goal for the club after being picked out by David Kawa in the box. Lenell John-Lewis went close for Boston before the break when his shot was saved by Halifax goalkeeper Sam Johnson. Boston, who won their opening league match 3-2 at Aldershot on Saturday, threatened again early in the second period when John-Lewis was a fraction away from connecting with Alex Lankshear's cross. Report supplied by PA Media.
Forbes
2 hours ago
- Forbes
The Hundred Is Getting Big Cash, But The Cricket Feels Too Casual
The Hundred, English cricket's answer to the Indian Premier League, is in its fifth iteration. Having started amid much fanfare and considerable eye-rolling from purists, the tournament is about to enter a new phase of cash injection. The Hundred offers a cosy domestic dose of garish colors, potato crisp team sponsors and big shots. It still feels like cartoon cricket, with world-class superheroes mixing with local lads to play for a team that has no history. Millions of pounds of private investment is now on the table to make it a megabeast. Or at least a big kid brother of the IPL, valued at a cool $12 billion. On the eve of the 2025 The Hundred, the England and Wales Cricket Board admitted there was no evidence that the nascent competition had created a ripple effect for supporters to follow other formats of the game. Its mere presence has eliminated Test matches from the August calendar. The ECB carried out that crime of passion to take cricket to families and youngsters who speak a different social media language. The DJs and music aren't exactly Caribbean party stands, but it's all part of the carnival. 'We know the interest is there, we just need to get people to come more often for all formats, rather than just that 'I've been to the Test once a year' type of thing,' said ECB Chief Executive Richard Gould. Official figures for last season showed a decrease in ticket sales from the 2023 Hundred edition, falling from 580,000 to 540,000. The game changer could be coming in 2026. Six of the current eight teams in the Hundred have sold stakes to private investors, including four owners of IPL franchises. Overall, the total valuation of eight teams is about £975 million ($.1.3 billion). Trent Rockets are in the final stages of a deal with Ares and Cain Investment, the latter run by Chelsea FC co-owners Todd Boehly and Jonathan Goldstein. Oval Invincibles, the holders, agreed in principle to a £60 million ($81 billion) offer by Reliance Industries, headed by Mukesh Ambani. The Ambanis are India's richest family and owners of the Mumbai Indians. There are some issues preventing completion. There is talk of synchronizing the format from the current one hundred deliveries with the more universal T20, as well as rebranding team names, which is said to be holding up the Invincibles sale. For instance, Manchester Originals will become Manchester Super Giants, according to Sanjiv Goenka, owner of Lucknow Super Giants. The creation of a Champions League format is on the agenda, and a switch to auctions from the current draft format is also likely to be discussed. As for the cricket, the product had the misfortune to follow the epic Lord Mayor's Show that was the England and India Test series. In the very first game, London Spirit, whose Silicon Valley-led minority shareholder is Tech Titans, fell in a heap against the Invincibles. A lot of games haven't been close thrillers. Sam Billings' team appear to be one of the few sides in the competition that has a consistent and clinical approach to winning. They have dominated the last two editions. 'It's very easy to look at the guys who grab the headlines, but collectively as a group, every single man in that squad has put something towards this, even if they haven't played, they've given so much to the group,' said Billings after his team beat the Southern Braves in last year's final. Gould mentioned the importance of fandom built around a team, and at the moment, the cricket feels like a good bit of professional fun between friends rather than a true trophy. It's only the Oval franchise that looks and acts the part. The BBC and Sky Sports have entered into the spirit of the Shiny Happy People kind of vibe. Mic'd up players like David Warner and Steve Smith leads to some forced banter with the commentary team. The one edgy clash on the pitch was the sledging that Birmingham Phoenix batter Liam Livingstone copped from his England teammate Sam Curran. One of the true beneficiaries of The Hundred has been the women's game. The double-header, different gender matches create some momentum for a home atmosphere and that has converted into record-breaking crowds of up to 15,000. Thirty-one per cent of ticket sales in 2024 were from females. The gender pay gap has widened to £135,000 between the men and the women, although the ECB has argued that is down to the commercial realities of promoting the elite men's bracket in a competitive global market. The new investment and big owner cojones will surely ensure that the staging is better and that the product is slicker. It's just hard to recreate a scenario that actually feels as important as an IPL match. That feeling of jeopardy rather than The Hundred jocularity is the essence of competitive sport.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Rehan Ahmed impresses as Trent Rockets dominate Manchester Originals
Rehan Ahmed impressed with ball and bat to fire Trent Rockets to a one-sided seven-wicket victory over Manchester Originals. The home side dominated from the outset at Trent Bridge with captain David Willey taking three for 11 – including the wickets of Jos Buttler and Rachin Ravindra – inside the first 30 balls. Ahmed then removed Phil Salt and Heinrich Klaasen as the Originals staggered to 51 for six – the lowest score by a team after 60 balls in this season's Hundred – before they finished on 98 for eight. Joe Root (four) and Tom Banton (11) fell to Sonny Baker and Ravindra in the space of four balls to leave the Rockets on 21 for two and provide some hope for the visitors. However, Ahmed fired 45 runs off 35 deliveries, while Tom Moores also chipped in with an unbeaten 22 as the Rockets cruised to their target with 26 balls remaining. The Rockets are second in the table, level on points with Southern Brave, albeit behind on net runs, while the Originals' seventh defeat in eight away from Old Trafford sees them drop to sixth. Earlier, Beth Mooney and Kathryn Bryce steered the Originals to an emphatic 10-wicket victory against the Rockets. England duo Sophie Ecclestone (two for 12) and Lauren Filer (three for 23) sent the visitors on their way as the Rockets – with Nat Sciver-Brunt (34) the only home batter to make it out of the teens – were restricted to 111 for seven. In response, captain Mooney (47 from 37 balls) landed four boundaries and one six, while Bryce (61 from 45 deliveries), who also took two wickets with the ball, struck eight fours. Their record opening partnership paved the way for the Originals to complete just the third 10-wicket win in history of The Hundred women's competition with 18 balls spare. The Originals have now recorded four wins from their six games taking them into the play-off positions in third, and boosting their hopes of progressing out of the group phase. However, the Rockets stay in sixth having amassed four losses from their five fixtures.
