Stray Lions C are back on the summit of Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) Division Two League following a 6-wickets advantage over Kenya Kongonis B at Nairobi Club.
Stray Lions C dislodged Ngara B from the log’s top spot, thanks to Peter Kituku’s scintillating 92 off 122 balls.
Ngara B didn’t have a match this weekend but Stray Lions skipper Subin Abraham sounded quite febrile of his team’s chances going forward.
Subin: “We won the match again and now top the table. We won the toss and elected to bowl first looking into the ground conditions and restricted Kongonis to 166 runs making them all out. On chasing after losing Andrew Mboya on first over, the 100-run partnership with Peter Kituku and John Kaguti made all the difference.”
On Ngara B, Team Manager Harsh Patel on his part said: “I do believe that it’s better to focus on the controllables rather than focusing on other teams, we can only control ourselves with bat, ball and fielding efforts. We will focus on our games and come out with positive endings, win or lose, we keep learning and improving our cricket skills. We are coming to a close of the season, every point and every team can’t be taken lightly, we have to come together and bring home the wins.”
–Kanbis maintain Div. 1 unbeaten run–
In Division One, Kanbis stretched their unbeaten run to 10 matches, serving up great moments ahead for the Eastleigh giants in the competition.
Kanbis defeated Wolves Cricket Club A team by 7 wickets to stretch their points tally to a flawless score of 40. Kanbis B are now 6 points clear of Obuya Academy A who also emerged victorious at the weekend.
Obuya A defeated Ruaraka B by 6 wickets at their Leanna home-turf to surge on in the second-tier competition. Meanwhile, Kanbis Development and Shree Cutchi Leva Patel Samaj (SCLPS YL C) will meet in the NPCA Division 2 final slated for Saturday September 7.
Kanbis Development beat the Ruaraka Development team by 5 wickets at Sikh Union Club grounds to achieve the feat. Samaj Development, on the other hand, defeated Sikh Union Development team by 6 wickets to rack up a place in the final that will determine the season’s 30-Overs Champion.
Captain and opener Kaushal Mepani was the toast of the well-oiled Kanbis Development team after he smacked 50 off 64 balls with teammate Harshil Rabadia making a contribution of 32 off 31 deliveries.
Vinay also came through for Kanbis Development after he picked 4 wickets to his credit. In the other semifinal, the Samaj duo of Krushil Varsania (66 off 81) and Harshil Kerai (41 off 44) were the leading run scorers. Kush Kerai was also outstanding after he took four wickets for Samaj.
Following the semis, Samaj’s Krushil stretched his cumulative run advantage to 432 in 8 innings at an average of 86.4 ahead of Kanbis’ Kaushal Mepani who has 382 to his name.
Semi Final Results were as follows: –
1. Ruaraka Development 122/10 (25.4 Ov)-Kanbis Development 125/5 (20.4 Ov)-Kanbis won by 5 wickets
2. Sikh Union Development 142/9 (30.0 Ov)-Samaj Development 143/4 (26.5 Ov)-
Samaj won by 6 wickets
NPCA Division One Results:-
1. Eastleigh Ground: Wolves A 171/10 (37.1Ov)- Kanbis B 173/3 (21.4Ov)-Kanbis B won 7 wickets.
2. Nairobi Gymkhana: Nairobi Gymkhana B 133/10 (35.1 Ov)-Sikh Union B 134/6 (36.1 Ov)-Sikh Union B won by 5 wickets
3. Lenana School: Ruaraka B 187/10 (39.5 Ov)-Obuya A 192/3 (26.3 Ov)-Obuya won by 6 wickets
4. Goan Institute: GI A 72/10 (24.5Ov)-Swamibapa B 74/3 (10.3 Ov)-Swamibapa B won by 7 wickets