The 89th Battle of the Saints encounter between St. Joseph’s College and St. Peter’s College ended in a tame draw yesterday (29) as rain interrupted both days at the SSC Ground. 

The Josephian skipper won the toss and elected to field first. The Peterites started badly and lost two wickets in the first over bowled by Gagan Chamod. The right-arm seamer was able to take another wicket in the 5th over, removing Vishen Halambage for just 18 runs. This put St. Peter’s in a difficult position, with a score of 29/3.

However, Rusanda Gamage and Chamindu Perera were able to rescue the team by putting on a 77-run partnership for the 4th wicket. Both Gamage and Perera went on to score important half-centuries, but St. Peter’s were still restricted to a total of 214 runs in their first innings. Chamod was the standout bowler for St. Joseph, taking 5 wickets for 69 runs, while Vice-Captain Lahiru Amarasekara gave him good support by taking 3 crucial wickets for 36 runs.

When St. Joseph’s had their turn to bat, they were only able to play for 6.2 overs before rain suspended play. It was unfortunate for both teams, but it gave St. Peter’s some time to recover and plan their strategy for the next innings. 

On day 2, Josephians resumed play under perfect batting conditions. Skipper Sadeesh Jayawardena and Naren Muralitharan walked out with intent. Unfortunately, Muralitharan was dismissed early. In came Shevon Daniel who joined with his skipper and started to accumulate runs. 

Daniel had a life when Sanshay Gunathilaka dropped a sitter but he failed to pounce on it as he too perished thanks to a stunning catch by Shennon Rodrigo. 

Hiran Jayasundara walked in to join his skipper and U19 national teammate. The pair looked flawless as they kept on accumulating runs at a brisk pace. 

Skipper Jayawardena brought up his century in the Big Match. It was a knock of pure class as he dominated the Peterite bowling attack. At the other end, Jayasundara was manoeuvring the ball into vacant spaces. 

After the lunch break, the clouds started to gather and it finally started pouring down when Jayasundara was stranded on 92. 

The rain continued and finally the officials called off the game, which meant the Peterites retained the Maurice J. Le Goc Trophy for another year.

Brief scores 

St. Peter’s College, Colombo 214 (57.3) 

Chamindu Perera 66, Rusanda Gamage 55, Gagan Chamod 5/69, Lahiru Amarasekara 3/36 

St. Joseph’s College, Colombo 240/2 (54.5) 

Sadeesh Jayawardena 110*, Hiran Jayasundara 91*, Naren Muralitharan 20