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'Babar ki team bahar ho gai' - Fans react as Galle Titans annihilate Colombo Strikers in final league match, knock them out of LPL 2023

Galle Titans defeated Colombo Strikers in their last league match to finish in the top two of the LPL 2023 points table.

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Daniel S
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Galle Titans vs Colombo Strikers

Galle Titans vs Colombo Strikers (Source: Twitter)

Galle Titans were in danger of being eliminated from the 2023 Lanka Premier League (LPL) before their last league match, while Colombo Strikers had a chance to qualify for the playoffs. However, an emphatic eight-wicket victory over Strikers on Tuesday, August 15, not only secured the Titans a playoff berth, but also finished in the top two, knocking the former out of the tournament.

Asked to bat first at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, the strikers could manage only 75 runs in a must-win game and the match was done and dusted then and there. On a spin-aiding surface, Tabraiz Shamsi and Seekkuge Prasanna combined for seven wickets to dismiss the opposition in 15.4 overs. Strikers lost their opener Pathum Nissanka cheaply in the second over, followed by his partner Babar Azam (6 off 12), as Lahiru Kumara claimed his second wicket of the night.

Lahiru Udara, Nipun Dhananjaya, Nuwanidu Fernando and Muhammad Nawaz managed to get double digits but failed to convert into a good score. While Shamsi, who registered figures of 4-0-20-4, destroyed their middle order, Prasanna cleaned up the tail end and finished with figures of 3-0-14-3.

Lasith Croospulle and Shakib Al Hasan score 56 runs for the third wicket 

Chasing a paltry total, Titans did not have a great start as Litton Das, who made his debut in the LPL, and Bhanuka Rajapaksa were dismissed early on without making an impact on the scoreboard. However, opening batter Lasith Croospulle and veteran all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan did not mess up things and chased down the target with 11.3 overs to spare. Croospulle scored 42 runs off 25 balls with four fours and three sixes while Shakib remained unbeaten on 17 runs off 15 balls with two boundaries.

A dominant win set the stage for Galle to take on Dambulla Aura in Qualifier 1 on Thursday, August 17. B-Love Kandy, who were earlier placed second, dropped to third place on the points table and will now face Jaffna Kings in the eliminator. Galle will be confident while heading into the business end of the league after hammering Strikers in the final group game.

Here's how fans reacted to Galle Titans' resounding win over Colombo Strikers: 

 

 

 

LPL Lanka Premier League 2023