The Dubai Giants continued their impressive form in the ongoing Legends Cricket Trophy (LCT), defeating Kandy Samp Army by 56 runs at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele.
On a fantastic Friday, the Punjab Royals thrashed the Colombo Lions by eight wickets in the first match.
Kandy Samp Army won the toss and invited the Dubai Giants to bat first. Despite losing opener Richard Levi for six runs, the Dubai Giants found support in Shaun Marsh, who led the batting attack by example.
The former Australian cricketer smashed the opposition bowling attack, hitting 53 off 27 balls, including 8 fours and two sixes, at a healthy strike rate of 196.33.
Saurabh Tiwary also expressed himself in the best possible way, scoring 47 off 20 deliveries.
The left-hander built his innings with 7 fours and two sixes, while captain Thisara Perera contributed a quickfire 28 off 11 balls, including 3 fours and two sixes.
In the end, Dubai Giants scored 190/7 in 90 balls, the highest total by a team in LCT 2024.
Kandy Samp Army’s bowlers were sloppy, failing to contain runs on match day. Tino Best dismissed three players for 40 runs, while Chris Mpofu took two wickets for 38 runs.
On the other end of the spectrum, Kandy Samp Army got off to a flying start in the game, with Kevin O’Brien and Aaron Finch adding a quickfire 67-run opening partnership before Finch was dismissed for 20.
Kevin O’Brien was the pick of the batters, scoring 52 off 24 balls, including two fours and six sixes.
Samp Army failed to recover from the main batter’s dismissal, losing wickets at regular intervals until they lost the game. The Dubai Giants won by 56 runs, and Kandy Samp Army finished with 134/8.
With this win, the Dubai Giants move to the top of the LCT 2024 points table with 8 points, giving them a lot of confidence heading into the final.
In the first match of the day, the Colombo Lions had another disastrous day at the office, remaining winless in the LCT 2024.
Despite having marquee players like Chris Gayle, Jesse Ryder, and Ross Taylor on their roster, they have lacked the tenacity to produce positive results in the competition thus far.
The Colombo Lions suffered their fourth consecutive defeat of the season, their most recent loss coming against the Punjab Royals.
Punjab Royals easily aced the run chase and won by 8 wickets to claim their third win of the season, placing them fourth on the table with six points and a Net Run Rate of -0.354.
Colombo Lions, on the other hand, finished dead last in the points table with a Net Run Rate of -2.679. Their chances of qualifying for the LCT 2024 final are all but gone. Batting first, the Colombo Lions scored 127/8 in 90 balls.
Ben Dunk, the Lions’ in-form batter, top-scored with 39 runs off 21 balls, including six fours and two sixes. With 30 off 21 (3 fours, 1 six), Robbie Frylinck provided valuable support down the order.
Javon Searles was Punjab Royals’ wrecker-in-chief, taking four wickets and conceding only 28 runs in 24 balls, while captain Tillakaratne Dilshan claimed two dismissals.
