Sri Lanka T20 League, 2022

Qualifier 2: KF vs CS

Preview

The Falcons will clash with Stars in Qualifier 2 of the ongoing Sri Lanka T20 League. The match will be a decider for the other finalist who will cross swords with the Kings in the Final encounter. R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo will host the decisive game to unleash the opponent of the Jaffna franchise who has made it to their third consecutive final in the tournament. They are currently chasing a hat trick of the League titles being the winner of the last two. 

The Falcons lost just 1 match during the group stage encounter and qualified for the playoffs stage after finishing at the top of the league table. Nevertheless, they were defeated by the defending champions Jaffna in Qualifier 1 in a rain-affected match. In that match, Kandy while batting first drafted a total of 143 runs with opener Pathum Nissanka scoring the most 35 runs off 31 balls. Viyaskanth picked 3 wickets and kept the rope tight, as he has done in the whole tournament. Maheesh Theekshana struck twice in this first half. The second half of the match was affected by heavy downpours and 98 runs were to be chased in 11 overs as per the DLS method. During the chase, Avishka Fernando smashed 21 off just 11 balls to power the innings and snatched the victory by 24 runs in just 11 overs. 

On the other side, their opponents the Colombo franchise finished third in the points table and made their way to the knockout stages. The Elimination game was also affected by the rain to some extent. Galle side while batting first was rattled by the opponent bowlers. They posted just 108 runs in 18 overs. Sahan Arachchige smashed 53 runs off just 31 balls to somehow take their team to a decent total. The whole team in total scored just 55 runs from the other end. The Stars led by Angelo Mathews finished the game at the end of the 16th over. Ravi Bopara was unbeaten at the score of 43 runs off 28 balls. 

Match Details

Match: KF vs CS, Qualifier-2, Sri Lanka T20 League 2022

Date: Thursday, December 22, 2022

Time: 07:30 PM

Venue: R.Premadasa Stadium, Colombo

Pitch and Weather Report

The pitch on the R.Premadasa Stadium in Colombo is expected to aid both batters and spinners as witnessed in the previous matches played on this ground. Fans could take this as a high-scoring clash. The surface is sluggish and low in bounce with the pitch being flat. Dew will play a vital role for the team chasing the target on this ground.

As the stadium is away from the sea, the dew is an important factor as the ball gets tough to hold resulting in match-winning run chases in the white-ball format of the game.

The weather is expected to be cloudy on Thursday with a 13% chance of precipitation. The maximum and minimum temperatures will be 31 and 23 degrees celsius with a 72% humidity rate.

Squads

KF: Pathum Nissanka, Andre Fletcher(w), Kamindu Mendis, Ashen Bandara, Najibullah Zadran, Wanindu Hasaranga(c), Fabian Allen, Carlos Brathwaite, Chamika Karunaratne, Isuru Udana, Chamindu Wijesinghe, Ashian Daniel, Matheesha Pathirana, Ahmed Daniyal, Avishka Perera, Janith Liyanage, Zahoor Khan, Oshane Thomas, Kavin Bandara, Minod Bhanuka, Malinda Pushpakumara, Lasith Abeyratne, Ashan Priyanjan

CS: Nishan Madushka(w), Dinesh Chandimal, Charith Asalanka, Ravi Bopara, Angelo Mathews(c), Benny Howell, Mohammad Nabi, Dominic Drakes, Kasun Rajitha, Jeffrey Vandersay, Suranga Lakmal, Chathuranga Kumara, Niroshan Dickwella, Seekkuge Prasanna, Karim Janat, Keemo Paul, Naveen-ul-Haq, Dhananjaya Lakshan, Kevin Koththigoda, Romario Shepherd, Navod Paranavithana, Lakshitha Manasinghe, Muditha Lakshan, Chamod Battage

Probable Playing XIs

KF: Pathum Nissanka, Andre Fletcher (wk), Kamindu Mendis, Ashen Bandara, Najibullah Zadran, Wanindu Hasaranga (c), Carlos Brathwaite, Fabian Allen, Chamika Karunaratne, Chamindu Wijesinghe, Isuru Udana

CS: Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews (c), Charith Asalanka, Ravi Bopara, Nishan Madushka (wk), Benny Howell, Mohammad Nabi, Dominic Drakes, Kasun Rajitha, Jeffrey Vandersay, Suranga Lakmal

Match Prediction

KF has been in flamboyant form in the group stage but lost to the defending champions JK in the qualifier stage. CS on the other side won the elimination stage against GG and will be flying high on confidence in this match. KF being consistent in the whole tournament makes them the favourite to win this match.

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