The echoes of a golden period got here alive below the floodlights of the DY Patil Stadium as Hashim Amla’s swish half-century was overshadowed by a few audacious fifties from Asela Gunaratne and Chinthaka Jayasinghe that helped Sri Lanka Masters register a seven-wicket victory in opposition to South Africa Masters in an electrifying league encounter of the inaugural Worldwide Masters League 2025, right here on Wednesday.
Chasing a difficult 181, skipper Kumar Sangakkara and Upul Tharanga set the tone for Sri Lanka Masters with a brisk 50-run begin earlier than offspinner Thandi Tshabalala pulled South Africa again by dismissing each in a span of 12 deliveries. The run-out of Lahiru Thirimanne additional jolted the Sri Lankans.
Decreased to 69/3, the Sri Lanka Masters desperately wanted some solidity, which was offered by the pair of Gunaratne (59 not out) and Jayasinghe (51 not out) with an undefeated 114-run stand that put the Islanders on the right track of a victory. The duo took full benefit of the dew with each batters exploding after seeing by the preliminary part, even because the bowlers discovered it difficult to manage the circulate of runs. Because of this, Gunaratne raced to a 30-ball fifty whereas Jayasinghe motored together with a 23-ball half century to propel the facet over the road in mere 17.2 overs.
Earlier, Amla rolled again the years with a chic half-century, his elegant strokes portray an image of these glory days, as he got here up with the right mixture of aggression and charm to notch up a 53-ball 76 to put the inspiration after Sri Lanka Masters skipper Kumar Sangakkara received the toss and opted to area.
Opening alongside Morne van Wyk, Amla set the tone with a gradual 41-run stand, earlier than becoming a member of forces with the long-lasting Jacques Kallis to mount additional distress on the Sri Lankan bowlers. Collectively, they rekindled reminiscences of their prime, stroking the ball with easy magnificence and within the course of pushing South Africa previous the three-figure mark with a 65-run stand for the third wicket.
Left-arm spinner Chaturanga de Silva introduced an finish to the flourishing partnership with the wicket of the South Africa Masters captain Kallis, who scored a 20-ball 24, earlier than Isuru Udana ended Amla’s resistance after the right-hander struck six boundaries and 4 large sixes.
The short dismissals of Kallis and Amla left South Africa Masters in a spot of hassle, with the scoreboard studying 138/4 by the seventeenth over, however a quick-fire 13-ball 28, laced with three boundaries and a six from Dane Vilas, and his 30-run partnership with Jacques Rudolph (9) helped them regain the momentum.
Transient Scores: South Africa Masters 180/6 (Hashim Amla 76, Dane Vilas 28 not out, Jacques Kallis 24; Chaturanga de Silva 2/28, Isuru Udana 2/44) misplaced to Sri Lanka Masters 183/3 (Asela Gunaratne 59 not out, Chinthaka Jayasinghe 51 not out, Upul Tharanga 29; Thandi Tshabalala 2/32) by 7 wickets.
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