Twitter Reactions: Jaffna Stallions trump Galle Gladiators to emerge as champions of inaugural LPL

Not often in a league, one sees a titular clash between teams that finish third and fourth on the table. However, it was these two teams who fought out for glory in the final of the inaugural edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2020. And quite evidently, it was Jaffna Stallions, who were the superior side. Electing to bat first, they were provided a solid start by openers – Avishka Fernando (27 from 23) and their protagonist from the semifinal, Johnson Charles (26 from 15).

The only passage of play where the Galle Gladiators were able to make their presence felt was the middle-phase, where they got two quicks wickets – Charith Asalanka thick-edged one of Sandakan to Danushka Gunathilaka at backward point and Fernando skied a slog straight to Shehan Jayasuriya at deep midwicket off Sahan Arachchige.

Dhananjaya de Silva and Shoaib Malik, however, rebuilt the innings in some style as they counterattacked the opponents. While Malik slammed three boundaries and a six in his 35-ball 46, de Silva got a couple of fours and as many sixes during his cameo of 33.

A brutal, power-packed assault towards the end was the punch that the team required to take their total towards the correct mark, and skipper Thisara Perera’s 39 from 14, which included five boundaries and two sixes, did exactly that as Stallions set a 189 for Gladiators to win.

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Galle Gladiators’ horrific start

Chasing over nine an over in a tense clash was never an easy task, and the Gladiators further messed it up as they lost their top three batsmen within the first two overs. Hazratullah Zaizai (0 from 2) holed straight to Fernando off Dhananjaya de Silva as early as the third ball of his team’s response, whereas Gunathilaka – tournament’s most prolific run-scorer – was run out after a mid-pitch collision with Suranga Lakmal, when he was at 1.

Lakmal then struck to get rid of Azhar Ali, who was defeated by the extra bounce and edged one to the wicketkeeper, to leave his team 7 for 3. After a rather shambolic start, some knocks of substance came from skipper Bhanuka Rajapaksa (40 from just 17) and Azam Khan (36 from 17) as they played with intent, although their efforts alone could have never sufficed in a 189-run chase.

Once they were dismissed, the already dimmed hopes for the team died completely as the opponents went on to clinch the game by a massive margin of 53 runs.

Here’s how Twitter reacted: