Rathnayake, Shanaka, Mendis fire as Sri Lanka hammer Oman by 105 runs
Pallekele (Sri Lanka) (PTI): Blazing fifties by Pavan Rathnayake and skipper Dasun Shanaka along with Kusal Mendis' assured half-century helped Sri Lanka register a statement 105-run win over Oman in their T20 World Cup Group B clash, here on Thursday.
Rathnayake (60 from 28 balls) and skipper Dasun Shanaka (50; 20b) returned to form, while Kusal (61; 45b) anchored the innings with successive World Cup half-century as Sri Lanka piled up 225/5 -- their second highest in T20 World Cup and the highest score of this tournament so far -- after Oman opted to bowl.
Oman's chase never quite recovered from early setbacks as they wilted under scoreboard pressure to be restricted to 120/9.
Skipper Jatinder Singh was cleaned up by Dushmantha Chameera in the first over, and Aamir Kaleem and Hammad Mirza soon followed with single-digit scores as Oman slipped to 36/3 inside the power play.
Chameera (2/19) struck twice with the new ball, while spinner Maheesh Theekshana was tidy and incisive, returning figures of 2/11 from his full quota of four overs.
There was brief entertainment when Wasim Ali counter-attacked Dushan Hemantha, clubbing the leg-spinner for two sixes in a row -- one over deep midwicket and another forward square leg -- lifting Oman to 75/3 in 11 overs.
But the recovery was short-lived as they crashed to 91/6, losing three wickets in six balls.
Theekshana triggered the collapse by dismissing the fluent looking Wasim for 27 (20 balls; 3x6), caught by Kusal.
A direct hit from Kamil Mishara at deep point ran out Vinayak Shukla the very next ball, and Jiten Ramanandi was brilliantly stumped by Kusal for a golden duck.
Mohammad Nadeem, back after missing the opener, waged a lone battle with a valiant fifty, as the 43-year-old hit his third T20I fifty in 71 appearances.
The 2014 champions now have two wins from as many matches, topping Group B, ahead of Australia and Zimbabwe, who have one win each.
After a poor World Cup debut against Ireland where he fell for sloppy upper cut for 5, Rathnayake made amends in style smashing eight fours and one six en route to his maiden fifty that came off just 24 balls.
In the process he overtook his previous best of 40 at this venue earlier this month.
The 23-year-old charged pacer Ramanandi for the innings' first six in the 12th over and hammered Sufyan Mehmood for three successive fours to reach the milestone.
Rathnayake and the experienced Kusal added 94 runs off just 52 balls, maintaining a run-rate in excess of nine through the middle overs.
They rotated strike smartly as 40 of Sri Lanka's 96 runs at the halfway mark came in singles and twos.
Kusal, playing the senior partner's role to perfection, capitalised on width from the Oman spinners and struck seven fours in his 61 off 45 balls, his second successive fifty and 19th overall.
He was run out in the penultimate over.
Shanaka, who had endured a lean build-up to the tournament with scores of 1, 4 and 0, exploded at the death with a 19-ball fifty -- the fastest by a Sri Lankan in the T20 World Cup.
He took on Nadeem Khan with a boundary and back-to-back sixes, and then smashed Sufyan Mehmood for successive sixes to reach the landmark.
Shanaka and Mendis fell off consecutive deliveries in the 19th over, briefly slowing the charge.
But Kamindu Mendis (19 not out; 7 balls) ended with a flourish, hitting Shah Faisal for two sixes in a row as the co-hosts scored 65 runs in the last four overs to post the highest total of this edition so far.
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French President Macron concludes Mumbai visit
Mumbai (PTI): French President Emmanuel Macron, along with First Lady Brigitte Macron, left Mumbai for New Delhi on Wednesday after concluding his engagements here, including bilateral talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
They were seen off at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport by Maharashtra Governor Acharya Devvrat, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy CM Eknath Shinde.
On Tuesday, Macron held discussions with Modi as part of efforts to further strengthen India-France strategic ties.
During the Mumbai visit, the French president and his wife also met some of India's top filmmakers and actors, and had an animated exchange with them about cinema, culture and collaboration.
President Macron is on an official visit to India from February 17 to 19 at the invitation of PM Modi to participate in the AI Impact Summit hosted by India in the national capital Delhi, besides the bilateral summit in Mumbai.
PM Modi will inaugurate the summit on February 19. As many as 20 heads of states, including French President Macron, will be present at the inaugural session, Electronics and IT Secretary S Krishnan said.
