Former champions Sri Lanka overcame initial hiccups to subdue an inexperienced yet spirited Namibia by seven wickets, beginning their quest to make the Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup in right earnest, here on Monday.
The Sri Lankan bowlers dominated the Namibian line-up to bundle them out for a paltry 96 after inviting them to bat and then overhauled the target with 6.3 overs to spare in a Group A match of the first round.
The Namibian team created a few ripples when they got rid of Pathum Nissanka (5), Kusal Perra (11) and explosive Dinesh Chandimal (5) inside Powerplay overs.
However, Avishka Fernando (30) and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (42) steered the 2014 champions through with their confident knocks. While Fernando relied more on placement and timing, Rajapaksa was all brawn, striking with great power as the duo put paid to any hopes the Namibians would have entertained after the early strikes.
Rajapaksa fittingly finished the match with a six off pacer Jan Frylinck as Sri Lanka joined Ireland on two points after the first day of matches in Group A.
Sri Lanka skipper Dasun Shanaka said they are focussed on winning all three games in the qualifiers to be prepared for the tournament proper in the best possible manner.
“Winning all three games will definitely put us in a good state of mind,” he said during the post-match presentation ceremony.
“We were planning quite a lot. We want to get through this qualifying stage. (Maheesh) Theekshana (3/25) has been outstanding. He has been training with Ajantha Mendis back home and has a lot more to offer in the future. Earlier, our fast bowlers had the pace but not the execution, but going forward you can see a lot of good things.”
Namibia skipper Gerhard Erasmus said they would take a few positives out of the match. “It’s a pinnacle for many of the players and for the organisation as well. We can inspire a lot of kids by playing at the world stage,” said Erasmus.
Brief scores:
Namibia 96 in 19.3 ovs (Maheesh Theekshana 3/25). Sri Lanka 100/3 in 13.3 ovs (Bhanuka Rajapaksa 42 n.o.). Sri Lanka won by 7 wkts.
