Avishka blitzes Jaffna for eight-wicket Dambulla win

An excellent team effort with the ball and a stunning half-century from their ace batsman Avishka Fernando, gave the Dambulla Aura a comprehensive eight-wicket win over the Jaffna Kings in the Lanka Premier League on Tuesday. 

It was Dambulla’s first win of the season, having lost to the Galle Titans in a Super Over on Monday, and remarkably the first-ever victory over the three-time defending champion Kings in the now four-year history of the LPL.  

It only took three changes in ownership, a switch of captains and a complete overhaul of its playing squad for the Dambulla franchise to finally beat the league’s historically best team, and it was a player poached from their opponents that proved one of their key match winners on Tuesday. 

Avishka, a big part of Jaffna’s three-peat, which has put him at the top of the all-time leading run scorers in the history of the tournament, made the batters in his former team, who struggled to come to terms with the slow nature of the wicket, look amateurish, hammering 52 off just 32 balls. 

He took two boundaries in the first over of the chase bowled by left-arm fast bowler Dilshan Madushanka, adding a four and a six when the Kings’ turned to the spin of Dunith Wellalage, coming on to bowl the third over. 

Hardus Viljeon was hammered for 20 runs in a loosely-bowled over, with Avishka smacking two sixes and two boundaries and racing to 42 off 20, bringing up Dambulla’s 50 runs in just five overs.

Even the usually frugal Maheesh Theekshana was not immune to the steady leaking of runs, although it was Dambulla captain Kusal Mendis who carted the mystery spinner for a six, taking Aura to 62 for no loss at the end of the Powerplay. 

Avishka hit two more boundaries before Jaffna were able to dismiss him, leg spinner Viyaskanth Vijayakanth breaching his defence to end his blitz and break a 76-run opening wicket partnership. 

Jaffna captain Thisara Perera completed a well-judged catch at the start of the next over, the 10th, as Mendis was out for 29, but even with those quick wickets, there was not much hope for the Kings of reeling this match back in. 

Sadeera Samarawickrama and Kusal Janith Perera remained unbeaten to take Dambulla comfortable over the line with an unbroken 47-run partnership – Perera the aggressor in that stand, with 34 off 22 balls – and 22 balls to spare.  

The fact that Dambulla’s batters didn’t need to break a sweat was thanks to the good work of their bowlers, who were particularly effective in the final five overs of the Jaffna innings, conceding just 26 runs and taking four wickets to restrict the Kings to 129 for 7 in 20 overs. 

Binura Fernando had the most success, taking 2 for 27 in his four overs, including a maiden to open the innings, although Dhananjaya de Silva was the most economical with all but one of Dambulla’s bowlers picking up a wicket. 

Having delivered his first over maiden to Jaffna’s opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Fernando was hit for three consecutive boundaries by the Afghan batsman in his next over, but had his revenge when Gurbaz attempted to work the ball down the leg side, instead faintly edging through to the keeper. 

He gave up just five runs in his third over, the 10th of the innings, before delivering a one-run 19th over with the wicket of Viljeon as a reward for his well-executed changes of pace. 

De Silva and Noor Ahmad meanwhile, were miserly through the middle overs, each picking up a wicket and going for 44 runs in their combined eight overs. 

Charith Asalanka, promoted to open the batting after Nishan Madushka was dropped for the introduction of David Miller, anchored the Kings’ innings, grafting together 56 off 52 balls, but was far from fluid, batting out 20 dot balls.  

It was a struggle that ran right through the Kings’ batting line up, with Towhid Hridoy’s 24 the next best contribution, having put together the team’s best partnership of 55 with Asalanka. 

Chief scores: 
Jaffna Kings 129/7 in 20 overs (Charith Asalanka 56, Binura Fernando 2/27, Hayden Kerr 1/16, Dhananjaya de Silva 1/17)
Dambulla Aura 132/2 in 20 overs (Avishka Fernando 52, Kusal Perera 34*, Viyaskanth Vijayakanth 1/24, Dunith Wellalage 1/27)