Malik stars as Jaffna Stallions become LPL champions

HAMBANTOTA: Pakistan’s Shoaib Malik excelled with both bat and ball to help Jaffna Stallions become the first champions of Lanka Premier League (LPL) as they defeated Galle Gladiators by 53 runs in the final here on Wednesday.

Batting first, the Stallions posted 188-6, thanks to an even batting effort. Their top scorer was Pakistani veteran Malik, who scored 46 off 35 while batting at number four. The other major contributors were Thisara Perera (39 not out) and Dhananjaya de Silva (33).

Galle’s bowling unit, apart from Dhananjaya Lakshan who got 3-36, struggled to contain Stallions batters.

In reply, the Gladiators suffered a nightmarish start and were down 3-7 by the second over. Captain Bhanuka Rajapaksa (40) and Azam Khan (36) offered some resistance but the task proved too big for them.

Malik got 2-13 and countryman fast bowler Usman Shinwari 2-20. Malik was declared the player of the match.