Lanka Premier League 2021: Match 8 - Dambulla Giants vs Galle Gladiators: Preview

Dambulla Giants will lock horns with Galle Gladiators in match 8 of the Lanka Premier League. The Giants have played three matches and have won two and lost one. Meanwhile, the Gladiators too have two wins and a loss in their three games. Both teams are coming off from victories and are in good form and rhythm.

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Giants beat Colombo Stars in a high-scoring thriller by 18 runs in their last game. Philip Salt yet again played a vital knock and was the catalyst of the thrilling victory. He scored 62 runs off 34 balls and gave the Giants a rousing start. 

Najibullah Zadran later lent finishing touches to the innings by scoring 54. The duo’s efforts took the team to 195. Later, Nuwan Pradeep took three wickets and restricted Stars to just 177.

On the other hand, Gladiators' bowlers were instrumental in setting up the team’s four-wicket over Kandy Warriors. Spinners have been key to Gladiators' two wins so far in LPL, with Samit Patel and Dhananjaya Lakshan not giving anything away. With the bat, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Sanushka Gunathilaka have batted well. However, the team will need runs from Kusal Mendis, Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Dunk.

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Pitch Report

The pitch at R Premadasa in Colombo is a good wicket to bat. It gets slower as the game progresses. Anything over 160-170 will be hard to chase.

Avg score: 146 (4 matches in T20Is at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo)

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Record of chasing teams: Won – 2, Lost – 2, N/R – 0

Probable Playing XIs

Dambulla Giants

Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Philip Salt, Lahiru Udara, Dasun Shanaka (c), Najibullah Zadran, Nuwanidu Fernando, Chamika Karunaratne, Ramesh Mendis, Nuwan Pradeep, Marchant de Lange, Imran Tahir

Galle Gladiators

Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Dunk (wk), Bhanuka Rajapaksa (c), Samit Patel, Lahiru Madushanka, Isuru Udana, Pulina Tharanga, Noor Ahmad, Nuwan Thushara

Match Details

Match – Dambulla Giants vs Galle Gladiators – Match 8

Venue – R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo

Time – 03:00 PM IST, 09:30 AM GMT

Where to watch live – Sony Sports Network, Sony Liv