Ruaraka 'A' face Kanbis 'A' in NPCA Twenty20 opener

SCLPS A player Niraj Patel in action. [Courtesy]

The long wait is over and it's all systems go as Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) Twenty20 season gets underway at various venues in the city on Sunday.

The T20 season will feature three categories of competition; namely Super Division, Division One and Division Two. The elite Super Division has 10 teams split into two groups; A and B.

Group A has NPCA League Champions Kanbis A, Ruaraka A, SirAli A, Shree Cutchi Leva Patel Samaj YL A and defending T20 champions Stray Lions A.

In Group B are 2023 T20 champions Swamibapa 'A', Sikh Union A, Nairobi Gymkhana A, Nairobi Club's Kongonis A and the newly promoted Ngara Sports Club A.

NPCA Hon. Secretary Narendra Patel aka "NK" believes the opening weekend match-ups will not only replicate good-humored rivalry among teams "but also treat fans to some exhilarating displays of cricket artistry, by and large."

Eastleigh Derby

Group A clash between hosts Kanbis A and Ruaraka A (at 14:00hours) will feature a highly anticipated star-studded match-up in which individual growth and evolving skills of some players could significantly influence not just this game, but their teams' entire seasons.

Eastleigh troops are unlikely to affect major changes to their league- winning outfit apart from Emmanuel Bundi who has moved to Stray Lions but will try to make all the local knowledge count at their backyard; where they have remained almost impregnable time and time again.

Skipper Dhiren Gondaria and Rakep Patel are the usual suspects in the Kanbis line-up among other experienced players.

The last time the two giants clashed was in September 2024 when Kanbis A beat Ruaraka by a massive 256-runs margin to recapture NPCA 50 Overs Super League Title with zest and vigor.

The Division One matchup pitting hosts Kanbis B against Ruaraka B at Eastleigh will curtain- raise their Super Division A teams' duel.

Swamibapa Golden Jubilee

As the 2024 T20 season tips off, lots of eyes will also be on the big guns of NPCA's shorter version of competition.

Tournament favorites Swamis (who beat Sikh Union A to the coveted Swamibapa Golden Jubilee T10 tournament title on New Year eve at Jamhuri), will be up against Ngara Sports Club A in another highly-anticipated Super Division season opener.

During the end of year T10 competition at Jamhuri, H.D.H Acharya Swamiji Maharaj inaugurated the new practice pitch after which followed the toss at the main pitch for the finals between Swamibapa and the Sikhs.

Swamibapa beat the Sikhs by 9-wickets in the final to lay their hands on the coveted trophy presented by Acharya Swamiji Maharaj and Sant Mandal to mark the conclusion of an eventful 5 days of H.H. Shree Swamibapa Sports Club Golden Jubilee Celebrations.

And having failed to capture the NPCA 50-Overs League title last year, the run-and-wicket hungry Swamis will definitely aim to start the season on a high. They'll definitely vent their spleen on Ngara who are no pushovers though.

Stray Lions 'A' didn't impress in the 50-Overs League but being the T20 defending champions, a lot is also expected from them. Stray Lions has beefed up their squad by signing Irfan Karim and Emmauel Bundi after losing promising youngster Francis Mutua to SCLPS team.

Stray Lions 'A' beat 2023 champions Swamibapa 'A' by 5-wickets following a dramatic last ball finish to a pulsating T20 final in March last year at Sikh Union grounds.

Sir Ali 'A' will begin their campaign against Kongonis 'A' at Sir Ali ground. Sir Ali 'A' had a disappointing season and will be looking for a better performance from their players as they push for the coveted Super Division T20 title. The team will be boosted by the arrival of three overseas players to support captain Gurdeep Singh.

Nairobi Gymkhana 'A' and SCLPS YL 'A' will square it off at Nairobi Gymkhana grounds for the opener for the T20 league. Both had a disappointing season and will be hoping for a better performance in the league. SCLPS has been boosted by the arrival of Narendra Kalyan from Kanbis and Francis Mutua from Stray Lions.

In other Division One matchups, Swamibapa 'B' will play Ngara B at Jamhuri whilst Sikh Union 'B' hosts Stray Lions 'B' at Sikh Union grounds. Sir Ali Muslim Club 'B' will host Goan Institute A at Sir Ali.

Div2 Action Galore

Division Two has 10 teams pooled in Group A and 9 in group B.

Each team in respective groups will play in a round robin after which the top four in both groups will proceed to the Quarter Finals.

The full weekend fixtures (Sun/19/01/25) are as follows: -

DIVISION TWO

09:30: Stray Lions C vs An-nadil Jamaly A (Peponi School)

09:30: Goan Institute B vs Legends CC A (GI)

09:30: Nairobi Gymkhana B vs Sikh Union Development (Nbi Gymkhana)

14:00: Swamibapa Development vs Wolves Cricket Club B (Jamhuri)

09:30: Nairobi Royals vs Stray Lions D (Nbi Jaffrey's)

09:30: Kongonis B vs Medics CC (Nairobi Club)

14:00: Legends CC B vs SCLPS YL Development (Peponi School) Ruaraka Development (BYE)

DIVISION ONE

09:30: Kanbis B vs Ruaraka B (Eastleigh)

09:30: Swamibapa B vs Ngara Sports Club B (Jamhuri)

09:30: Sikh Union B vs Stray Lions B (Sikh Union)

09:30: Sir Ali Muslim Club B vs Goan Institute A (Sir Ali)

SUPER DIVISION

14:00: Kanbis A vs Ruaraka A (Eastleigh)

14:00: Swamibapa A vs Ngara Sports Club A (Nbi Jaffrey's)

14:00: Sikh Union A vs Stray Lions A (Sikh Union)

14:00: Sir Ali Muslim club A vs Kongonis A (Sir Ali)

14:00: Nairobi Gymkhana A vs SCLPS YL A (Nbi Gymkhana)