Ruaraka skipper Nitish Hirani has described teammate Gautam Waghela’s crease antics as “extraordinary”.
Sublime Waghela smacked a scintillating 110-ball “double century” as outgoing champions Ruaraka beat Nairobi Gymkhana by 85 runs at Peponi School on penultimate weekend of Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) 50-Overs Super League.
Nitish also underscored the fact that his “Thika Road troops” have rediscovered their knack for scoring.
In a high-scoring thriller, Ruaraka A Team won the toss and elected to bat first setting a decent target of 418 for 6 in 50.0. In reply, Nairobi Gymkhana A hit 333 for 9 in 50.0.
Nitish was all smiles: “We got to the score of 400+ courtesy of Gautam (203 off 110 balls) and Viraj Deepak Jadhav (62 off 51 balls) who gave a good account of themselves. Gautam’s double century was definitely out of this world, which goes to show that we will still be competitive as a unit.”
With an apparently insatiable appetite for success, Gautam is now back on the runs-score summit with 727 acquired from 10 innings. He has dislodged Sir Ali’s pro Onkar Jhadav who now trails him by 130 runs.
Meanwhile, the last three teams Shree Cutchi Leva Patel Samaj (SCLPS YL A), Kenya Kongonis A and Stray Lions A closed the penultimate weekend tied on 14points.
The three are now separated on Net Run Rate (NRR) with the Lions back as tail-end-Charlie and Kongonis in second last position.
But Kongonis have a match in hand and will wrap up their campaign against Sir Ali A next weekend. Stray Lions and seventh placed Samaj A have completed their matches though.
Should Kongonis lose to Sir Ali, then the points tally for the last three will remain 14. And should Kongonis beat Sir Ali A, both teams will be level on 18 points, meaning position number 5 on the log will be decided on NRR.
At Nairobi Club, hosts Kenya Kongonis Cricket Club A beat Sikh Union by 2 runs. Sikh Union A Team won the toss and opted to field first, losing their third straight match in the competition.
Kongonis were bowled out for 133 in 40.0 Overs. Chasing the target, Sikh Union A were also bowled out for 131 in 30.4 Overs; as Kenya Kongonis A gained advantage. At SCLPS Ground, Stray Lions A suffered a humiliating 8-wicket loss to hosts Samaj A.
NPCA SUPER DIVISION 50 OVERS LEAGUE: 22-SEP-2024
SUPER LEAGUE
PEPONI SCHOOL: Ruaraka A Team 418/6(50.0) -Nairobi Gymkhana A 333/9 (50.0); Ruaraka A Team won by 85 runs
NAIROBI CLUB: Toss: Sikh Union A Team opt to field
Kenya Kongonis Cricket Club A 133/10(40.0 Ov)- Sikh Union A 131/10 (30.4 Ov); Kenya Kongonis A won by 2 runs
SCLPS GROUND: Stray Lions A 71/10 (22.1) -SCLPS YL A 77/2 (12.4); SCLPS YL A won by 8 wickets
POINTS TABLE
1. Kanbis A Team (NRR 2.315) 40 POINTS; LAST 5: W-W-W-W-W
2. Swamibapa A Team (NRR 1.913) 36 POINTS ; LAST 5: W-W-L-W-W
3. Ruaraka A Team (NRR 1.525) 32 POINTS LAST 5: LAST 5: W-W-W-L-W
4. Sikh Union A (NRR 0.048) 24 POINTS; LAST 5: W-W-L-L-L
5 Sir Ali Muslim Club A (NRR -0.257) 18 POINTS; LAST 5: W-L-L-W-W
6. Nairobi Gymkhana A (NRR -1.455) 16 POINTS; LAST 5: W-L-W-L-L
7. SCLPS YL A (NRR -0.872) 14 POINTS LAST 5: L-L-L-L-W
8. Kenya Kongonis A (NRR -1.325) 14 POINTS; LAST 5: L-L-L-L-W
9. Stray Lions A (NRR -1.787) 14 POINTS; LAST 5: L-L-W-W-L