IML Final: Brian Lara and Sachin will face each other in the final, West Indies defeated Sri Lanka on the last ball
West Indies Masters registered a thrilling six-run win over Sri Lanka Masters thanks to Dinesh Ramdin’s half-century, Brian Lara’s stormy innings and Tino Best’s four wickets. With this win on the last ball of the last over, Brian Lara’s team will clash with Sachin Tendulkar-led India Masters in the title match.
Coming to bat first, West Indies Masters did not have a good start. In-form Dwayne Smith got out cheaply. William Perkins (24) and Lendl Simmons (17) handled the innings and faced the storm of the powerplay with a partnership of 43 runs. As soon as they seemed to recover, Sri Lanka Masters took two consecutive wickets. Due to this, the Caribbean team was seen struggling at 48/3.
Excellent form seen at the age of 55
From here, captain Lara took the responsibility. Even at the age of 55, his footwork remained agile as always and his strokes were as brilliant as they were in his time. As soon as he took the guard with his trademark flourish, stylish left-handed batsman Lara shared a crucial 60-run partnership with Chadwick Walton.
Dinesh Ramdin’s stormy half-century
Playing aggressively, Walton gave a tough fight to the Sri Lankan bowlers and scored 31 runs off 20 balls. At the same time, Brian Lara retired hurt after facing 33 balls and scoring 41 runs with the help of four fours and a six. On the other hand, wicketkeeper batsman Dinesh Ramdin batted brilliantly and attacked the opposition team and played a quick innings of 50 runs off 22 balls with the help of four fours and three towering sixes.
Win on the last ball
Chasing the West Indies’ target of 180 runs, Sri Lanka Masters lost wickets at regular intervals. Asela Gunaratne was the only batsman who played a brilliant innings of 66 runs off 42 balls with the help of seven fours and a six. Sri Lanka needed 15 runs to win in the last over. Gunaratne raised hopes by hitting a six on the first ball, but only two runs were scored on the last five balls and Gunaratne was out.
Brief Score: West Indies Masters 179/5 (Dinesh Ramdin 50 not out, Brian Lara 41, Chadwick Walton 31; Asela Gunaratne 1/14, Jeevan Mendis 1/26) beat Sri Lanka Masters 173/9 (Asela Gunaratne 66, Upul Tharanga 30; Tino Best 4/27, Dwayne Smith 2/37) by 6 runs.
