Ventnor beat Basingstoke & North Hants by 9 wickets at Steephill to stay top of Southern Premier Division 1 on Saturday (28th May).
Batting first, Basingstoke & North Hants collapsed from 51-1 to being skittled out for 65 runs in the 23rd over.
Rob Snell removed the 1st Basingstoke wicket, trapping Deadman lbw. The next wicket to be removed was that of top scorer Ashley Neal who fell lbw to Charlie Calloway for 29.
After this it was the Will Mew show. First, the 16-year-old seamer had Oates caught by Ben Woodhouse in the 15th over. Then, Mew clean bowled Bradley Neale for a duck.
Charlie Calloway chipped in, trapping Richard Vinn lbw for 12 runs. Ryde School student Will Mew then had Dean Nurse and Richard Shelar caught in quick succession.
In the 22nd over, Sri Lankan professional Dineth Thimodya turned on the style, dismissing Donaldson and Finken in his single, maiden over, to finish with figures of 2-0.
Man-of-the-match Mew wrapped up the Basingstoke innings in the 23rd over, having Rakith Perera caught by Thimodya and finishing the game with the impressive figures of 5-7.
In reply, Ventnor took just 9 overs to surpass Basingstoke’s modest innings. Opener Rob Snell was dismissed cheaply for 4 runs before Dineth Thimodya and Sam Mills put on a winning partnership of 61. Dineth took just 26 balls to reach his total of 40 not out. His knock included 5 4s and 3 6s.
Ventnor 69-1 Basingstoke & North Hants 65 all out Ventnor won by 9 wickets
Victory leaves Ventnor top of Southern Premier Division 1 with 73 points from 3 games, 2 points ahead of 2nd-placed Portsmouth.
After the game, Island Echo spoke with Ventnor’s 25-year-old overseas star, Sri Lankan Dineth Thimodya.
Dineth’s stint in Ventnor is his 4th in the United Kingdom, having previously played for Colwyn Bay (2018), Barrow-in-Furness (2019), and Barby (Rugby) (2021). Dineth plays 1st class cricket in Sri Lanka for Ragama. He has appeared for the Sri Lanka U-19s side, and his ambition is to play for the full Sri Lankan side.
Dineth is a left-arm batsman and right-arm off spinner, His favourite cricketer is Sri Lankan opening batsman and left arm spinner Sanath Jayasuriya.
Dineth was fortunate enough to get married 5 months ago. His wife, Sandali Hewanayake, is on her 1st visit to England. She is very happy here although she finds the weather unsurprisingly cold compared with Sri Lanka.
Sandali said:
“Coming to the Isle of Wight is like a honeymoon. I love the view and living near the sea. It’s a very beautiful country, and if I get the chance, I shall stay forever.”
