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The Nairobian

Sir Ali, Ruaraka, Sikh Union win big as Swamibapa 'A' decimate Kongonis

Cricket

By Washington Onyango | Jul 01, 2024

**Stray Lions player Gerald Mwendwa in a past action.** [Courtesy]

Sir Ali Muslim Club A made a stunning comeback to top flight action as Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) Super Division 50-Overs League entered its second week.

In what turned out to be a high-scoring thriller, hosts Sir Ali A cruised to a scintillating 233-run win over Shree Cutchi Leva Patel Samaj (SCLPS YL A). Samaj won the toss and elected to field first setting the platform for Sir Ali’s indefatigable batters.

From the onset, Sir Ali delivered a blistering approach to their innings which ended up with 320 for 9 in 50.0 Overs.

Krishna Babu’s 100-ball century alongside Gurdeep “Sunny” Singh’s 70 off 67 balls and Onkar Haresh Jadhav’s 55 off 60 balls culminated into a combined score of 226. The trio were incidentally the match’s leading scorers serving up great moments ahead for fans in the longer version of the game which started last weekend.

In reply, Samaj batters were bowled out for a paltry 87 in just 17.2 overs.

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Rahul Harish (29 off 37balls) and Ravi Rabadia (20 off 16 balls) were the highest scorers of Samaj side which kickstarted its 50-Overs campaign on a losing note.

Sikh Union A and Ruaraka A also delivered high-scoring wins in a pulsating second weekend of the competition which will run for the next four months.

Champions Ruaraka A maintained their dogged campaign in defense of the coveted title as they registered their second win of the season.

Ruaraka thrashed Stray Lions by 247 runs at Nairobi Jaffery’s whilst Swamibapa A defeated newly promoted Kenya Kongonis by 4 wickets at Nairobi Club. Hosts Sikh Union made local knowledge count as they defeated Nairobi Gymkhana by 133 runs.

The Ruaraka A-Stray Lions A encounter treated spectators to some exhilarating displays of cricket artistry.

Pushkar Sharma was the toast of the champions, scoring a 93-ball 135 as his teammates Gautam Waghela and Nitish Hirani managed 76 and 64 respectively.

After week 2, champions Ruaraka still lead the points table with 8 points made up of a Net Run rate of 3.850.

Sir Ali A, Sikh Union A and Swamibapa A all collected four points following their wins this weekend. But Sir Ali’s superior Run Rate 4.660 places them in second spot behind champions Ruaraka who have played two matches.

Division One

The Division One League also produced fireworks in week 2 fixtures at various venue. Kanbis B defeated Obuya Academy Cricket Club A by 28 runs at Eastleigh High School.

Stray Lions B made up for the loss of their A side by handing a 23-run blow at Ruaraka Sports Club. Ngara Sports Club A dismissed hosts Samaj B by 2 wickets in another pulsating encounter.

At Jamhuri grounds, Swamibapa B defeated Wolves Cricket Club A by 58 runs.

Division Two

Wolves Cricket Club B also made up for the loss of their A team when the beat Swamibapa Development by 1 wicket at Viraj International Academy Nairobi.

Kenya Kongonis B defeated hosts Obuya Academy B by 21 runs at Lenana School.

NPCA Assistant Secretary in charge of public relations sung the praises for the batsmen for a high-scoring weekend.

“The impact of professionals and the urge to attack has injected the much-needed traction to the league’s first proper weekend. it’s a good start, as normally, scores are low during the early stages of the league due to stale wickets and in some cases, wet outfields due to recent heavy rains, but this is turning out to be a blistering start,” said Achie.