De Mazenod going great guns, Hirun cracks second century for Joes  

By Reemus Fernando   

De Mazenod registered their fifth victory of the Under 19 Division I Tier ‘A’ limited overs tournament as they beat St. Thomas’ Matara by five wickets on Thursday in what turned out to be their sixth league match played at Kandana  They suffered a solitary defeat at the hands of defending champions Trinity but victories in the other matches have powered the team from Kandana to a strong position in group ‘X’ of the Tier A tournament.

The team captained by Uvindu Perera had victories against St. Benedict’s, Maris Stella, D.S. Senanayake and St. Joseph’s before coming to yesterday’s match. The victory against St. Thomas’ will help De Mazenod overtake Royal and secure the second position in the points table.

Dominant performances of left-arm spinner Kavindu Kaushalya, Savinu Chanthula, Dinidu Sashmitha and Neshan Dias, who also took a hat-trick, were crucial for De Mazenod’s victories in this tournament. Kaushalya is their leading bowler. He has taken 14 wickets. His best performance, a six wicket haul came in the match against St. Benedict’s.

Janith Karindra is their most consistent batsman having contributed in every match. His best knock of 84 runs proved crucial in their victory against St. Joseph’s. Neshan Dias too has contributed with vital knocks while skipper Perera’s unbeaten 74 runs sealed them a comfortable win against Maris Stella.

With three matches remaining in their schedule, De Mazenod will be looking forward to consolidate the runners up position in the ten-team group behind Trinity. They will be meeting Prince of Wales, Royal and Maliyadeva next.

In the other matches played yesterday, Sri Lanka Under 19 discard Hirun Kapurubandara cracked his second century of the tournament for St. Joseph’s to record eight wickets victory over Royal College. Royal were unbeaten until yesterday. Hirun smashed eight sixes and five fours in his 95-ball 104 runs. While Prince of Wales beat Maliyadeva by three wickets, Gurukuma shocked Richmond with eight wicket victory.