Lasith Crosspulle and Kamindu Mendis slammed centuries for Colombo Cricket Club to propel them to a massive total of 369 runs against Tamil Union in the Major Clubs Limited Over tournament clash.
Mendis and Croospulle stitch record opening stand of 268 runs
Both Mendisand Crosspulle opened the innings for their side to stitch together 268 runs, the second-highest opening partnership in List A cricket in Sri Lanka and the highest in a non-international game in the country. While Mendis scored 139 off 129 deliveries, his partner smashed 148 off just 125 balls to set a perfect platform for the batters to come.
Mendis is a regular in the Sri Lanka team across formats, having played 18 Tests, 29 ODIs and 46 T20Is so far. He has been in good form in domestic cricket recently and also scored 71 off 43 balls in a Major Clubs T20 tournament clash a couple of days ago against Police Sports Club.
As for Crosspulle, he returned to Sri Lanka’s T20I team in June, three years after making his debut in 2023. Overall, he has played only two T20Is so far and mustered 16 runs. His century is a much-needed return to form for the 27-year-old, who had not reached double digits in his last three List A matches.
Coming back to the match, Pavan Rathnayake, another Sri Lankan international, came out to bat after the opening stand was broken and smashed his way to an unbeaten 62 at a strike rate of 221.42 with four fours and as many sixes. His blitzkrieg helped Colombo CC post 369 on the board despite losing a few wickets cheaply in the death overs.
Rathnayake has played six ODIs and 15 T20Is for Sri Lanka and has been in sensational form in the ongoing 50-over tournament. He scored his fourth consecutive fifty this season and hasn’t been dismissed in the last three matches either. His last four scores for Colombo Cricket Club read 62* (off 28 balls), 61* (off 59 balls), 50* (off 47 balls) and 69 (off 63 balls).
Meanwhile, after posting 369 runs batting first, Colombo CC skittled Tamil Union for just 297 runs in the 45th over, winning by 72 runs.
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