LPL 2024: Jaffna Kings win fourth title

Jaffna Kings clinched their fourth Lanka Premier League title with a dominant nine-wicket victory over the Galle Marvels on Sunday at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

They made light work of the 185-run target, thanks to explosive innings from Kusal Mendis and Rilee Rossouw.

Despite Pathum Nissanka being dismissed on the very first ball of their innings, Mendis and Rossouw led the chase with style.

Mendis, who had scored a century in the Qualifier 2 against the Kandy Falcons, contributed an unbeaten 72 off 40 balls. Rossouw, from South Africa, played a spectacular knock, finishing with an unbeaten 106 from just 53 balls, including nine fours and seven sixes.

Galle Marvels captain Niroshan Dickwella tried six different bowlers, but only Dwaine Pretorius managed to claim a wicket. The star spinner Maheesh Theekshana went wicketless, conceding 34 runs in his four overs.

Earlier, the Jaffna Kings chose to bowl first and their decision proved fruitful as they had Galle reeling at 24/3 in 6.5 overs.

Bhanuka Rajapaksa then played a pivotal role, scoring 82 runs from 34 balls. His innings included eight fours and six sixes, and he formed two crucial partnerships: a 62-run stand with Tim Seifert for the fourth wicket and a 72-run partnership with Sahan Arachchige for the fifth wicket. These partnerships helped Galle Marvels recover to 184/6 in their 20 overs.

Jaffna Kings’ pace duo, Asitha Fernando and Jason Behrendorff, also shone, with Fernando taking three wickets and Behrendorff conceding only 18 runs while claiming two wickets.