2004 CYPRUS CRICKET LEAGUE
LEAGUE DECIDER ESBA v SRI LANKAN CC
On a day that fortunately saw a drop in temperatures after the heatwave of the preceding week, ESBA took on the Sri Lankan Cricket Club at Happy Valley, in what was to all effects the final of the Cyprus Cricket League.Both teams were unbeaten through the six games of the season, and although ESBA were without their prolific all rounder Steve Ballard, the game promised to be a keen competition between two evenly balanced sides.
ESBA batted first and opening pair Khan and captain Roger Thompson faced a truly daunting pace attack from Sri Lankan opening bowlers Shamira and Niroshan. The dual between Thompson and Niroshan took on the tension of a spaghetti western as each tried to outmanoevre the other. In the end it was Niroshan who won the dual, having Thompson caught off a flashing cut shot, but not before he had scored 25 runs.
Despite the accuracy and ferocity of the Sri Lankan attack, ESBAwere holding on to their wickets, although runs, in particular boundaries, were hard to come by. The batsmen needed to improvise to get the ball away, there were no free shots offered by the Sri Lankan bowling. After Tompson was out Khan batted on with intelligence and some skill, until he was given out caught behind on 18 off Shamira, with a decision that the batsman may feel was a little harsh. Beane came to the crease joined by ESBA's other dangerous allrounder Healey. Healey has been responsible for more than one ESBA victory with his hard hitting. ESBA's fortunes depended on him staying at the wicket.
At
half time the Sri Lankan CC were probably the happier of the two teams, but
ESBA's particular strength through the season had been in their ability to strangle
their opposition's batting with consistent and accurate medium pace bowlng.
However this did not seem to work so well against the Sri Lankan opening pair. The free hitter Askar supported by the solid Dhanuka started scoring from the off, laying in to ESBA's normally parsimonious opening bowling partnership. Thompson and Healey,
The game was quickly slipping away from ESBA, with the Sri Lankans bettering
their run rate by quite a good distance,without loosing wickets. Only with the
bowling change of Duke and Bean, both medium pace and, Duke in particular, unerringly
accurate, was Askar quietened for a while. When he did try to break out again
he lost his wicket to a Beane delivery for 40. Duke took Dhanuka's wicket, caught
by Jones for 29. But the breakthrough offered little comfort as it brought Dileepa
and Niroshan to the crease.
Dileepa has already shown his batting ability with a 63 and a 50 no in earlier games, and he soon justified his reputation. Without ever looking troubled, he managed to hit the ball with almighty power, peppering the boundary more or less at will.
After the game Chairman of the Cyprus Cricket Association, Steve Carr, offered the man of the match award to Dileepa.
The winners trophies to the captain of the Sri Lankan CC, Sampath, and to his team,
and runners up trophies to ESBA captain Roger Tompson and his team.
Match Stats. ESBA Batting. Khan 18, Thompson 25,Beane 9, Healy 43, Jones no 37, Bowen 0, Frangleton 1. Sri Lankan bowling. Shamira 1 for 24, Niroshan 1 for 23, Pradeep 0 for 22, Ognuka 0 for 32, Sampat 1 for 27, Askar 1 for 22, Nalak 2 for 6. Sri Lankan batting. Askar 40, Dhanuka 29, Dileepa 58 no, Niroshan 16 no. ESBA bowling Thompson 0 for 46, Healy 0 for 35, Beane 1 for 26, Duke 1 for 37, Usman 0 for 17.
Thanks to all the teams taking part in the competiton, to Natalex for providing the trophies and to Elias Beach for providing space at their country club to play cricket.
LEAGUE TABLE FINAL POSITIONS
Sri Lankan CC 23 points (from 27)
ESBA 19 points (from 27)
WSBA 14 points (from 27)
Fellows 13 points (from 27)
Intercollege 10 points (from 23)
Moufflons 10 points (from 23)
Himalayans 5 points (from 19)
Springbok 2 points (from 19)
LEAGUE TABLE
Sri Lankan CC 23 points (from 27)
ESBA 19 points (from 27)
WSBA 14 points (from 27)
Fellows 13 points (from 27)
Intercollege 10 points (from 23)
Moufflons 10 points (from 23)
Himalayans 5 points (from 19)
Springbok 2 points (from 19)
LAST WEEKEND'S GAMES
WSBA v Himalayans played at Happy Valley on July 11. WSBA 181 for 2 after 30 overs. Himalayans 137 all out after 27 overs. WSBA 4 points. Himalayans 1point.
WSBA FINISH ON A ROLL.
WSBA who have struck a rich veign of form in their last few games, beat the hapless Himalayans at Happy Valley on July 11. In the midst of the hottest days on record for some years both teams were brave or foolish to venture out into a high 30's temperature .WSBA batted first starting slowly with openers Duncan Ayre and John Craig on 25 after ten overs. After 20 overs the score had increased to 86, still with no wickets lost, but by now the heat was taking its toll on the batsmen. Duncan Ayre had to retire on 63, and John Craig followed two balls later bowled attempting a very tired drive on 41. WSBA's ace in the hole, John Mayhew, who never fails to hit quick runs, once again did not disappoint with 37 off 13 balls .WSBA completed their 30 overs with 181 runs scored, 95 noff the last ten overs.. Himalayans, already tired from fielding now had to better the highest score this season at Happy Valley. Captain Amit made fight of it with 56, but it was not enough. Himalayans were all out for 137 runs after 27 overs. WSBA's Robert Buckley recorded his best bowling figures of the season with 4 for 12.
PREVIOUS WEEKEND'S GAMES
ESBA v WSBA played at AyNic on July 4th. ESBA 179 for 4 after 30 overs. WSBA 162 for 9 after 30 overs. ESBA 3 points. WSBA 1 point
Sri Lankans v Himalayans played at Happy Valley on July 4th. Himalayans 121 all out after 29.5 overs. Sri Lankans 122 for 7 after 27 overs. SRi Lankans 4 points. Himalayans 1 point.
ESBA RUN CLOSE BY WSBA
In a thriller at AyNic, WSBA, who have hit a run of form late in the season, took ESBA to a close finish. Batting first ESBA posted 179 for 4 after 30 overs. After 23 overs ESBA had only 100 runs and looked like they would have to settle for a moderate score. But 79 in the last 7 overs took them to safety. Ballard was once again brutal, scoring 69, with 3 sixes off an unfortunate Cuthbert over. WSBA started brightly, 63 for I after 10 overs, 106 for 2 after 20. But 7 wickets lost in the last 10 stifled their attack. They finished 17 short on 169 for 9, but denying ESBA maximum points.
Sunday 4th July 2004 v/s The ESBA, played at Ay Nik. This all military clash brougt together The ESBA team, undefeated in all 4 of their matches played against The WSBA, who had won their last 2 matches, so something had to give. The ESBA won the toss and decided to bat first. Army and ESBA skipper S/Sgt Roger Thompson and Sgt Vinny Vincent opened the innings for the ESBA. They took the score along to 15 before Vincent, after playing some rather unconventional shots at the wicket was given out, plumb LBW off the bowling of Cpl Buckley. This brought Combined Services man of the match v/s RAF Brampton and Wyton Cpl Shifty Healey to the wicket to partner Thompson. With the outfield playing very quickly, and only having to get any kind of bat on ball and it will race away they took the score along to 46 for 1 off the first 10 overs. The score was beginning to gather momentum as both Cpl George Strydom and Sgt Dave Place failed to remove the impressive pair. Although bowling quite tidily they couldn't make the breakthrough the WSBA needed. It called for drastic measures. Major Jon Craig, the WSBA's captain, decided to take a gamble and bring back the opening bowlers S/Sgt John Mayhew and Cpl Buckley. This gamble paid off in the 17th over as Thompson was caught by Corney mistiming a drive off the bowling of Buckley, taking the score along to 82 for 2. Healey followed soon afterwards, attempting to make some room for his shot being bowled by Place for 20 with the score on 88 for 3 off 20 overs at the second drinks break. J/T Steve Ballard and W Beane were now at the crease attempting to up the run rate. Beane was next out for 8 bowled by Sgt Ian Cuthbert with the score now on 110 for 4 off 22 overs. The key turning point in the match then followed as Ballard attempted to smash Strydom out of the ESBA but only succeeded in top edging the ball straight to Cuthbert at Mid wicket. With the ball seemingly dropping straight into his hands he inexplicably dropped it when Ballard was only on 20 at the time. Unfortunately Ballard then proceeded to show no respect to the bowling, in particular Cuthbert which was quite ironic as he blasted his way to 69 not out off only 37 balls, including some huge sixes. Their was one over infact where he managed to hit : 6,6,6,0,4 and 1 off the unfortunate Cuthbert. The other not out batsman was Cpl Baz Whitelam on 9, and after the 30 overs the ESBA's innings was brought to a close on 179 for 4. Wicket takers for the WSBA were : Buckley 6-0-19-2, Place 6-0-25-1 and Cuthbert 6-0-55-1. Knowing they needed to try and keep up with the 6 per over run rate the WSBA innings began with old faithful Craig and J/T Duncan Ayre opening the innings. With Ayre playing the aggressor and Craig the accompanier they took the score along comfortably to 44 before Ayre was caught by Robinson off the bowling of Thomson for 20. It was infact desperate luck for Ayre who had been hit in the previous over on the foot, causing him to hobble about and call for a runner. Cuthbert then joined Craig and at the first drinks break they had managed to take the score along to 63 for 1 off 10 overs. Cuthbert was definitely due some runs after some disastrous displays at the wicket for such a talented batsman and he duly obliged as both he and Craig stuck to the task and kept the runs ticking over nicely. The score reached 82 before Craig edged the ball behind straight into the safe hands of Vincent off the bowling of Ballard for a well constructed 30. Strydom joined Cuthbert at the wicket taking the score along to 103 for 2 off 20 overs, only 77 runs needed now, but off only 10 overs, ESBA were still favourites. Strydom was next to fall more or less straight after drinks for 15 bowled by Beane, 104 for 3. Big hitting Mayhew was promoted up the order to join Cuthbert to increase the run rate. They put on 30 for the next wicket before Cuthbert was run out for 26 attempting a third run and just failing to make his ground. Cpl Viv Richards fell cheaply for 0 clean bowled by Healey and the WSBA could now see the match slipping away, but they still had a chance, as long as Mayhew could remain at the wicket. J/T Adam Knight, suffering with flu joined Mayhew with overs running out and runs being more difficult to come by. The turning point in the WSBA innings then happened as Knight got hit on the arm, and with Mayhew racing to the striking end and totally out of his ground Knight was in no position to move anywhere, and standing his ground Mayhew was effectively run out for another good innings of 23, score now 144 for 6. Nick Corney followed next ball, attempting to smash Thompson's slower ball and only mistiming the shot to be caught by Frangleton for 0. Buckley joined Knight, but unfortunately for WSBA with Knight feeling ill, and being the only recognised batsman left in their ranks it was always going to be a tall order. Knight fell next caught by Pegler off the bowling of Beane for 5 and soon after Buckley was caught by Frangleton again, this time off the bowling of Beane for 12. Place and Alex Heath remained not out at the end of the innings both on 0, bringing the total to an end on 162 for 9 off 30 overs. Wicket takers for the ESBA were : Thompson 6-2-27-2, Healey 6-0-44-1, Ballard 6-0-20-1 and Beane 6-0-23-3. A fantastic match, played in the best spirit, which all augers well for this seasons Inter Services match, the RAF v/s the Army due to be played on Wedsneday 8th September 2004.
SRI LANKANS REMAIN FAVOURITES
SriLankans took a faltering step towards the championship when they beat Himalayans at Happy Valley. Batting first Himalayans battled to 121 all out after 29.1 overs. Sri Lankan reply faltered badly, loosing 5 wickets in the first six overs. Himalayan opening bowler Sunhil taking four of those wickets. But an eighth wicket partnership saw them safely home. SriLankans 122 for 7 after 27 overs.
WSBA v Cricket Fellows played at Happy Valley on June 27th. WSBA 139 for 7 after 30 overs. Fellows 110 all out after 27.5 WSBA 4 points. Fellows 0 points
Moufflons v ESBA played June 27th at AyNic. Moufflons 77 all out after 20 overs. ESBA 77 for 4 after 18 overs. Moufflons 0 points ESBA 4 points.(run rate above 4 an over)
ESBA GRIND OUT VICTORY
In a low scoring game, ESBA had to fight hard to reach the low total set by Mouflons. Batting first Moufflons were in the comfortable position of 55 after 8 overs with only one wicket lost but managed an impressive collapse, loosing the nine remaining wickets for only 22 runs, finishing 77 all out after 20 overs. ESBA ,who need points in their championship race with the SriLankan CC, found runs hard to find. Tight bowling by both Sumit and Fasi restricted the ESBA batsmen. After 18 overs they passed the Moufflons score to win the match, and with a run rate that guarenteed them the maximum points they need.
WSBA CONTINUE THEIR RUN OF FORM
WSBA followed up their win against Springbok with a win against championship[ hopefuls Fellows. Bowling first Fellows made a impressive start with young Chris Markides taking two top WSBA wickets in two sucessive overs. But no 1 John Craig(29) and no 4 Duncan Ayre(20) rallied, aqnd conisistent scoring from all the WSBA middle order, Williams 19,Draycott 14 and a quickfire 27 from Mayhew, posted a useful total of 139 in the face of some good bowling and fielding from Fellows. Fellows batting was defeated by very consistent line and length from WSBA bowlers. Their top batsmen,Shezhad (27)and Aamir (12),who had rarely failed to reach 50 apeice before this game, frustrated by the low run rate, lost their wickets with extravagant shots. Only Haroun made a fist of it with a attacking 26, but once he was out Fellows saw the game and their championship hopes slide away, all out for 110.
Sunday 27th June 2004 v/s The Fellows, played at Happy Valley. WSBA won the toss and decided to bat first fielding a very strong team against a Larnaca based team who had won 4 of their previously played 5 matches. Major Jon Craig and J/T Adam Knight opened the innings for the WSBA, but Knight, making his Cypriot cricket league debut was out for only 5 caught behind off the bowling of Chris M with the score on only 8. Disaster soon followed as the WSBA then lost their second wicket for the same score, as Cpl George Strydom, also making his Cyprus cricket debut was out for 0, again caught behind off the bowling of Chris M. This then brought 2 old stalwarts together as J/T Duncan Ayre joined Craig at the crease. They began steadying the ship by taking the score along to 36 for 2 off 10 overs at the first drinks break. Only 13 more runs were added though when Ayre became the wicket keepers third catch of the day for 20 off the bowling of Chris V. Full UK RAF Cricketer SAC Richie Williams making his Cyprus league debut then stepped up to partner Craig and by now the recovery was starting to take shape as both Craig and Williams took the score along to 69 for 2 at the second drinks break. Now was the time to start cutting loose with only 10 over to go. Williams was next to fall for 19 caught off the bowling of Vishnu with the score on 86. 'Guest player' Mark Draycot was next in, but Craig fell soon after with the score on 87 for 5, as he too was caught off the bowling of Vishnu. The ever reliable S/Sgt John Mayhew joined Draycot at the crease as the run chase began gaining momentum. Mayhew bludgeoned 27 off only 8 balls including 2 sixes, and 2 fours before attempting one big hit too many being caught on the boundary off the bowling of Bazeegh. Nick Corney joined Draycott with only 2 overs left. Draycott was next out, clean bowled by Bazeegh for 14 with the score on 133 for 7 which brought Cpl Rob Haynes out to bat the final few balls and both he and Corney were undefeated at the end of the innings on 0 and 7 to take the final score along to 139 for 7 off 30 overs. Wicket takers for the Fellows were : Chris M 4-0-11-2, Bazeegh 6-1-15-1, Chris V 3-0-12-1 and Vishnu 4-0-32-2. The Fellows innings began in disastrous fashion as Quaseer was clean bowled by Mayhew for 0 with the score on only 5. Shahzaz and Aamir then took the score along steadily with the accurate WSBA bowling making runs difficult to come by. At the 7 over point the score was only 11 for 1, until Shahzaz then cut loose smashing 16 off Buckley's 4th over. An inspired bowling change by skipper Craig paid dividends. Taking off Mayhew and Buckley and bringing on Strydom and Williams proved to be a key point in the match, as Williams bowled the dangerous Shahzaz round his legs for 27 just before the first drinks break with the score on 36 for 2. Ali was then bowled by Strydom for 8 with the score on 49 for 3, and only 4 runs later Aamir was caught by a smart catch by Craig off the bowling of Williams for 12. The WSBA were starting to feel on top, only 53 on the board off 16 overs, top 4 batsmen down, and the run rate now at over 6 per over. At the second drinks break the score was on 63 for 4 off 20 overs, Still 77 runs required off only 10 overs. Chris V and Haroon started to show their intentions as they started to cut loose at some lacklustre WSBA bowling taking the score racing along to 99 off 24 overs, giving the Fellows team a fighting chance. Unfortunately for them Haroon's cavalier 26 came to an end being caught deep on the boundary to a superb running catch by Mayhew off the bowling of Corney. This was to be the Fellows last chance as wickets then fell rapidly at regular intervals as Chris V was out LBW to Mayhew then Barber, Vishnu and Bazeegh all became victims of Buckley, Vishnu in particular was caught out to an outstanding diving catch by Corney. Last wicket to fall was Chris M, again LBW to Mayhew. The innings ended on 110 all out. Wicket takers for the WSBA were : Mayhew 6-2-12-3, Buckley 6-2-26-3, Strydom 6-0-18-1, Williams 6-1-17-2 and Corney 2-0-16-1. Match result : WSBA won by 29 runs.
RESULTS OF FIRST ROUND
(max 3 points available for first round. no bowling points awarded)
WSBA V Sri Lankan CC played Sunday 18th April at Happy Valley- WSBA 134 for 9 after 30 overs Sri Lankan CC 135 for 5 after 27.1 overs. WSBA 1 point. Sri Lankan 3 points
ESBA v Sringbok played Sunday 25th April at AyNic- ESBA 117 all out, Springbok 42 all out. ESBA 2 points.Springbok 0 points.
Fellows v Himalayans played Sunday 25th April at Elias Beach -Himalayans 138 all out after 29.4 overs, Fellows 139 for 9 after 27 overs . Himalayan 1 point. Fellows 3 points
Moufflons v Intercollege played 25th April at Happy Valley -Moufflons 127 for 5 off 25 overs, Intercollege 48 all out off 14 overs. Moufflons 3 points. Intercollege 0 points.
RESULTS OF SECOND ROUND
Springbok V Sri Lankan played May 2 at Elias Beach-Springbok 34 all out after 17.1 overs, Sri Lankan 35 for 2 after 4.1 overs. Springbok 0 points. Sri Lankan 4 points.
Moufflon v Fellows played May 9 at Elias Beach-Moufflons 83 all out after 23.2 overs, Fellows 87 for 2 after 16.3 overs. Moufflons 0 points. Fellows 4 points.
WSBA v. Intercollege played May 16 at Happy Valley - Intercollege 143 for 6 after 25 overs. WSBA 100 all out. WSBA 0 points. Intercollege 4 points
ESBA v Himalayan played May 23 at AyNic. ESBA 180 all out after 25 overs. Himalayan 159 for 8 after 25. ESBA 3 points. Himalayan 2 points.
RESULTS OF THIRD ROUND
Intercollege v Springbok played May 23 at Elias Beach. Intercollege 220 for 9 after 30 overs. Springbok 160 all out. Intercollege 4 points, Springbok 1 point.
WSBA v Cricket Fellows played at Happy Valley on June 27th. WSBA 139 for 7 after 30 overs. Fellows 110 all out after 27.5 WSBA 4 points. Fellows 0 points
Moufflons v ESBA played June 27th at AyNic. Moufflons 77 all out after 20 overs. ESBA 77 for 4 after 18 overs. Moufflons 0 points ESBA 4 points.(run rate above 4 an over)
Sri Lankans v Himalayans played at Happy Valley on July 4th. Himalayans 121 all out after 29.5 overs. Sri Lankans 122 for 7 after 27 overs. SRi Lankans 4 points. Himalayans 1 point.
RESULTS OF FOURTH ROUND
Springbok v Fellows played at Elias Beach May 30. Springbok 131 for 8 after 30. Fellows 132 for 4 after 20. Fellows 3 points. Springbok 1 point.
Sri Lankan v Moufflons played at Happy Valley on May 30. Moufflons 132 for 7 off 30. Sri Lankan 133 for 3 off 15. Sri Lankan 3 points. Moufflons1 point.
ESBA v WSBA played at AyNic on July 4th. ESBA 179 for 4 after 30 overs. WSBA 162 for 9 after 30 overs. ESBA 3 points. WSBA 1 point
Fourth round not played- Himalayan v Intercollege,
RESULTS OF 5TH ROUND
Fellows v Intercollege at AyNic. Fellows 206 for 3 after 30 overs. Intercollege 184 for 9 after 30 overs. Fellows 3 points. Intercollege 1 point.
Himalayans v Moufflons at Elias. Moufflons 86 for 5 after 27 overs. Himalayans 70 all out. Moufflons 3 points. Himalayans 0 points.
WSBA v Springbok at Happy Valley. WSBA 146 for 8 after 30 overs. Springbok 79 all out. WSBA 4 points. Springbok 0 points.
Sri Lanka v ESBA played at Happy Valley on July 18. ESBA 147 for 6 after 30 overs. Sri Lanka CC 152 for 2 after 23.3 overs. Sri Lanka cc 3 points. ESBA 1 point
RESULTS OF 6TH ROUND
Fellows v ESBA played at AyNic May 16. Fellows 118 all out after 29.2 overs. ESBA 120 for 9 after 29.1 overs .Fellows 0 points. ESBA 4 points.
Intercollege v Sri Lankans. Intercollege 120 all out after 27.1 overs. SriLankans 124 for 6 after 21 overs. Intercollege 1 batting point. SriLankans 4 points.
WSBA v Himalayans played at Happy Valley on July 11. WSBA 181 for 2 after 30 overs. Himalayans 137 all out after 27 overs. WSBA 4 points. Himalayans 1point.
Sixth round not played Moufflons v Sprinbok.
RESULTS OF 7TH ROUND
Mouflons v WSBA at Happy Valley. WSBA 85 all out. Moufflons 86 for 7 after 25 overs. WSBA 0 points. Moufflons 3 points( I bowling and 2 points for a win)
ESBA v Intercollege. Match conceded to ESBA. ESBA 2 points. Intercollege 0 points
Sri Lankan v Fellows. Match conceded to Sri Lankan. Sri Lankan 2 points. Fellows 0 points.
Seventh round not played Springbok v Himalayan.
ROUND 1
SRI LANKANS LOOKING GOOD
On Sunday 18th April the 8 team all island Cyprus cricket league started with the WSBA taking on the Sri Lankan cricket club from Nicosia. With the Sri Lankans winning the toss and electing to field the WSBA went out to bat first. Openers Major Jon Craig and J/T Duncan Ayre batted confidently and put on another 50 plus partnership for the first wicket following on from the previous weeks 71 they put on v/s Sussex clubs over 50's. They reached 64 before Ayre was bowled by Samapath for a well constructed 38. Sgt Ian Cuthbert followed Ayre back one ball later being bowled by Sampath for 0 by a ball that seemed to stay very low, nonetheless that is now 2 consecutive 0's to Cuthbert this season so far. WO2 John Mayhew came in at 4 having to face the hat-trick ball, he dealt with it well and made 12 before being caught in the deep, going for another big hit off the bowling of Naleen bringing the score along to 97 for 3. There then followed a collapse of epic proportions as the middle and tail just seem to give up their wickets at the drop of a hat! Flt Lt Tony Degg, Cpl Rob Haynes, Cpl Darren Robinson, Lt Col Andy King and Cpl Paul Richardson all made single figure scores taking the total along to 120 for 8. The WSBA did rally somewhat with Cpl Rob Buckley scoring 10 Not out and eventually Craig being run out for a spirited 39 when attempting a 2nd run and struggling with a hamstring pull at the same time. Special mention also to Mr Ian Scattergood who stepped in at the last minute to bat at 11 when one of the WSBA team was called back into work, and did superbly well to stay at the crease and not give up his wicket for the 6 balls he had t o face. The WSBA's final total ended on 134 for 9 off 30 overs. Best bowling for the Sri Lankans came from the impressive Samapath with 5 for 27, with other wickets being shared around between Niroshon 1 for 18, Asker 1 for 26 and Naleen 1 for 16. The Sri Lankan innnings began in disastrous fashion as Mayhew bowled Nanara for 0 off the 2nd ball of the innings. Niroshon and Dillip then steadied the ship taking the score along to 41 before Niroshon was trapped LBW to Degg for 15. Dillip was then caught out at Deep Square for 31, attempting one big hit to cow corner too many, by a brilliant running catch by Mayhew off the bowling of Cuthbert, taking the score along to 49 for 3 off 12 overs. The game was now in the balance. At the wicket now stood Naleen and Askar who put on 46 for the 4th wicket to eventually turn the game in favour of the Sri Lankans before Askar was bowled for 23 by Degg. Samapath was given out LBW for 3 trapped by Mayhew taking the score along to 115 for 5 off 23 overs, leaving 20 to win off 7 overs with 5 wickets in hand. Lakmal joined Naleen at the crease who eventually took the Sri Lankan team home to their victory target. Naleen batted exceptional well to top score in the match with 43 not out ably assisted by Lakmal who made 14 not out taking the innings to 135 for 5 off 27.1 overs. Best bowling for the WSBA came from Mayhew with 2 for 16, Degg with 2 for 39 and Cuthbert with 1 for 35. Unfortunately it just wasn't to be as time and again shots were played in the air but not going to fielders and even when they did go to hand, particularly one gilt edged chance to a Sri Lankan guest fielder the chance was put down. Thanks to Mr Ron Cox and Mr Barry Allison for umpiring and also to Mrs Joan Fundell for scoring both teams innings.
NAILBITING FINISH AS FELLOWS SQEEZE HOME
Under a cool breeze blowing in from the sea, Fellows took on Himalayans at the delightful setting at Elias Beach country club. Fellows won the toss and put Himalayans in to bat, reckoning that their inexperience on the flick pitch would cost the Himalayans early wickets. In fact early wickets did fall but they were the result of bad communication rather than the pitch as Mukesh and Amit, two valuable batsmen in the Himalayan top order, managed to be run out with the score still under 20 runs. The flick pitch is hard going, the bounce is usually true but much of the pace is taken off the ball, and this can deceive batsmen. Kamesh (20) and no 4 bat Anil (21) adapted well taking the score on steadily. Anil was just starting to find the boundary when he was caught off Shaby. and Fellows could afford a sigh of relief as Himalayans most dangerous batsman was back in the pavilion. Unfortunately they had not reckoned with Rohit, who came in no 7 and against expectations hit a ferocious 51to put Himalayans in a competitive position after 30 overs with 138 all out. Fellows started badly with Richard out second ball, followed quickly by Vishnu, Qaseer and Amer all four batsmen totalling 4 runs. Fortunately for Fellows no 2 bat Shawab(50) was scoring steadily, and when joined by no.7 Haroun(32) built a steady partnership that brought Fellows score to within reach of the Himalayans¹. When Shawab was finally caught just after reaching his half century, captain Bazeeq took the score along with Haroun. By the time Haroun was caught the result looked assured for Fellows, but two quick wickets put everything back into play. In the end Fellows scraped home thanks to very mature innings from Bazeeq. Fellows 139 for 9.
Himalayan batting Mukesh 1, Kamesh 20,Amit 10,Anil 21,Ravi 5,Deepack 9, Rohit 51, Manish 1, Shardu 0, Suri 1, Sunil 1, extras 17. total 138 Fellows bowling Bazeegh 2 for 14, Chris 1 for 44, Naveen 3 for 29, Bali 1 for 9, Shvab 2 for
Fellows batting Richard 0, Shvab 51,Vishnu 4, Qaseer 0, Amer 0, Fasi 7, Haroun 32, Bazeq 10, Bali 4, Chris 0, Naven 0, extras 21. total139 Himalayan bowling Sunil 1 for 23, Surey 2 for 13, Anil 2 for 38, Manesh 4 for 25, Rohit 0 for 4, Amit 0 for 11, Saranghi 0 for 14.
MOUFFLONS ROUT INTERCOLLEGE IN SEASON OPENER
The Moufflons Cricket Club of Limassol began the season in strong style with an easy victory against last season¹s competition winners, Intercollege of Larnaca. Played at Happy Valley on a clear and warm day, the match was reduced to 25 overs each following the late arrival of the Intercollege team bus carrying the players. Moufflons won the toss and elected to bat first. Following some quick early runs from Deepak, Intercollege took the first wicket when Sridar was out for 1 when the score was 16. Two more wickets soon followed including Deepak (15) and the Moufflons were in some trouble at 3 for 28. However, a very good partnership of 79 between Steve Michaelides and Darren Stubing restored the Moufflon innings to a competitive position. Michaelides was out for a solid 28. Stubing top scored and remained not out 39 after the allotted 25 overs. Ralph Shirley scored a quick-fire 12 not out and helped ensure the extra batting point. This left the Moufflons at 4 for 127. Sohail took 3 wickets for Intercollege. Some excellent opening bowling by Vinay and Deepak saw Intercollege under immediate pressure. Wickets began to tumble. Deepak¹s fast bowling was rewarded with 2 wickets with Vinay¹s swingers capturing 1 wicket. Naidu came on to capture 4 wickets with his medium pacers and was the leading wicket taker. The bowling was backed up by some great all round fielding and catching (Stubing 4 slip catches, Colin Relton 2 catches) by the Moufflons. Fergus Klein took 1 wicket. Khalid came on towards the end and picked up 2 wickets, which saw Intercollege all out for 48 and an easy victory for the Moufflons
ESBA OFF TO A GOOD START
ESBA batted first 117 all out (40 extras) Runs Stats for ESBA S. Ballard 31 Z. Mohammed 16. Bowlers stats for Springbok A. Themistocleous 4-17 M. Kyriacou 2-18 Springbok innings 42 all out. Runs Stats for Springbok N. Grispos 12. Bowling Stats for ESBA B. Wiseman 4-11 R.Thompson 3-2 Highlights: Springbok won the toss and elected to field first. There were three opportunities for hat-tricks, two for ESBA & 1 for Springbok.
ROUND 2
SRI LANKANS LOOK UNBEATABLE
The Sri Lankan side embarassed the Sprinbok with an easy victory at Elias Beach. Springbok all out after only 17 overs with only 34 runs to their name. Sri Lankan bowlers Pradep (4 for 7) and Sampath (3 for2) did most of the damage. Sri Lankan reached the Springbok total after only 4 overs loosing two wickets, Bellepa scoring 20 not out. The only consolation for the Springbok was M.Kyriacou bowling figures, 2 for 7. The Sri Lankans were well ahead of the run rate (4 runs an over) needed for a batting point, and so have 4 from 4 points.
FELLOWS DRIVE ON
On Sunday May 9th Fellows met Moufflons at Elias Beach. Moufflons could afford to be confident after their convincing win over Intercollege, and sporting an new player, Richard Cox of the English county club Warwickshire. Moufflons elected to bat, but unfamilar with the flixz pitch, lost two wickets without scoring to opening bowlers Bazeegh and Chris. This bought Richard Cox and Deepak to the crease, and very soon it became clear that this was going to be a difficult partnership to break. They batted with skill and power, putting over fifty runs on the board before first Richard (19) was caught off an uncharacteristically mistimed shot and Deepak(36) was bowled by a very good fast offspinner from Jocky. With these two out resistance faltered as the remaining 7 batsmen managed to score only another 15 runs to see their side all out for 83 off 23 overs. The Fellows batting suffered an immediate setback with last weeks half centurion Shabi caught first ball, playing a loose shot to Deepak¹s bowling. Bazeegh was joined by Haroun and together they steadily accumulated runs so that by the time Haroun(30) was caught off Richard Cox the game was all but over. Quaseer (8 no) and Bazegh (32 no) finished off the Fellows innings, 87 for 3 off 16 overs. Fellows collect 4 points, 2 for a win, 1 for bowling Moufflons out, 1 for keeping above the 4 an over run rate needed to secure 120 runs after 30 overs. Moufflons receive no points.
Moufflon batting Sridhar 0, Ralph 0, Richard 19, Deepak 36, Steve 5, Colin 4, Naidu 2, Khalid 0, Gary 0, Peter 0, Vinai 4no. Fellows bowling Bazeegh 3 for 13, Chris 1 for 24, Barber 2 for 17, Shabi 0 for 17, Jocky 4 for 7.
Fellows batting Bazeegh 32no,Shabi 0,Haroun 30,Qaseer 8no. Moufflon bowling Deepak 1 for 27,Vindy 0 for 16, Richard 1 for 20, Naidu 0 for 18.
INTERCOLLEGE BOUNCE BACK
After a very untypical performance against Moufflons, Intercollege were back on form with a convincing win over WSBA, playing at Happy Valley on May 9th. But the result could have been different if WSBA had capitalised on their strong opening batting partnership. Intercollege scored 143 for 7 off 25, in an over reduced match . Intercollege captain Aqueel led the way with 43 runs with partner Taha making 47. In reply WSBA got off to a cracking start and looked sure of victory when with 70 runs on the board they had still not lost a wicket. But it was not to be. They imploded, loosing all their wickets for only another 34 runs. All out for 104. Some good bowling from Aqueel, 4 wickets, and a strong fielding revival from Intercollege contributed.
ESBA¹S GOOD FORM CONTINUES
ESBA met last year¹s losing finalists Himalayan CC at AyNc on Sunday May 23rd. In a 25 over match the ESBA batsmen reached an impressive total of 182 although at the cost of all their wickets. Once again Healey( 41) looked impressive, this time estrablishing a partnershiop, with Thompson (31). Once again loosing their top order to run outs, Himalayans reached 149 for 8 after their 25 overs, Rajoram making an impressive half century.
ESBA batting. Khan LBW Rohit 17, Thompson LBW Manish 31, Healey RUN OUT 41, Bowen Bowled Rohan 16, Camm Bowled Kulter 19, Zierab LBW Kulter 0, Duke RUN OUT 1, Pegler Bowled Rohit 2, Stabler NOT OUT 4, Goldsworthy Bowled Govind 2, Compton Bowled Govind 1, Extras 47. Himalayan bowling Rajoram 0-28 Amit 0-20 Manish 1-37 Rohit 2-23 Rohan 1-19 Kultar 2-30 Govind 2-17
Himalayan batting Kamesh RUN OUT 5, Manish RUN OUT 1, Rohan caught Stabler Bowled Camm 20, Amit LBW Duke 13, Ravi Caught Healey Bowled Camm 2, Rohit LBW Duke 1, Abhishek RUN OUT 3, Rajoram NOT OUT 52, Rohan caught Duke Bowled Healey 3, Kultar NOT OUT 6, Govind Did Not Bat Extras 38. ESBA bowling Thompson 0-24 Khan 0-33 Camm 2-24 Duke 2-20 Healey 1-12 Bowen 0-20 Pegler 0-16
ROUND 3
INTERCOLLEGE TOO STRONG FOR SPRINGBOK
In a strongly contested game at Elias Beach played on May23rd, Intercollege made a match winning 220 for 9 batting first. Intercollege captain Aqueel continued his batting form from last week¹s match making 66. Springbok¹s bowler Amer bowled well taking 4 wickets. Springbok started off well, with their in form batsman making 70 runs before their first wicket fell, Mike making a half century. Some very fierce medium pace bowling from Intercollege¹s Vicky and Sohail led to more quick wickets and although. Springbok fought on, they could not match the Intercollege run rate, all out for 160.
ROUND 4
SRI LANKANS CRUISE TO VICTORY
On a warm and humid day at Happy Valley, the Sri Lankan Cricket Club cruised to a very comfortable win against the Limassol-based Moufflons Cricket Club. The Moufflons won the toss and elected to bat first. A steady start saw the opening partnership reach 20 after 8 overs before Sridhar was bowled for 9. Fazi and Ali then took the score along quickly to 67 after 17 overs before Ali was run out for 19. Soon after, Fazi was also run out for 27. Khalid made 14 before being stumped. Ralph Shirley was bowled for a duck and Peter Bond was bowled for 3 and the Moufflons had collapsed to 95 for 6 after 24 overs. Solid batting from Darren Stubing 18 not out, Naidu 9, and Gary Butcher 10 not out helped the Moufflons gain some ground, taking the score to a respectable 131 and thus ensure the extra batting point. To protect the 131 score against the fast-scoring Sri Lankan batting side, the Moufflons bowling attack would have to be tight right from the start. However, this did not occur and some wayward bowling allowed the Sri Lankans to get a quick and easy start. In fact after the first 6 overs, the Moufflons opening bowling partnership of Vinay and Ali had already bowled 15 wides and the score was 42. The first Sri Lankan wicket fell at 60 when Dhanuka was caught of the bowling of Nadu for 12. The second wicket also fell at 60 when Roshan was out for a quick-fire 30. Dileba scored very quickly right from the start, hitting a number of boundaries. He gave two chances but both catches were spilled by the Moufflons. He went on to make 50 not out and the Sri Lankans raced to 132 after just 15 and a half overs.
Batting Moufflons: Sridhar 9, Fazi 27, Ali 19, Khalid 14, Darren Stubing 18 not out, Ralph Shirley 0, Peter Bond 3, Naidu 9, Gary Butcher 10 not out. Bowling Sri Lanka: Roshan 1 for 15 off 6 overs, Pradep 0 for 13 off 5 overs, Charmaka 1 for 24 off 6 overs, Ashoka 0 for 21 off 3 overs, Sampath 0 for 20 off 5 overs, Danuka 2 for 24 off 4 overs, Nalin 1 for 5 off 2 overs.
Sri Lanka Batting: Roshan 30, Dhanuka 12, Dileba 50 not out, Nalin 5, Sampath 5 not out. Bowling Moufflons: 0 for 23 off 3 overs, Ali 0 for 21 off 3 overs, Naidu 1 for 38 off 4 overs, Fazi 0 for 15 off 1 over, Steve Carr 1 for 15 off 1 over.
FELLOWS SCRAP IT OUT
In a scrappy game distinguished only by a very aggressive and accurate opening spell of bowling from Fellow's captain Bazeegh, and a fine 54 from Fellow's Amer, the game will be remembered for the 48 wides given away by Fellows, made only slightly more palatable for the 31 wides given away by Springbok. On an Elias pitch, far more lively now that grass has begun to grow through the plastic, Springbok's naturally attacking top order found Bazeegh and Christos M more than a handful. Last week's half centurion, Mike M fell to a cleverly contrived Bazeegh attack, a series of viciously rising legside bouncers followed by a straight yorker that skittled his stumps. Irean (24) and Navim ( 23) helped by some very wayward bowling brought the Springbok total up top 131 for 8 after 30 overs. Fellows started badly loosing two top order wickets, but opening batsman Amer steadily accumulated runs without ever looking threatened. His 54 was the difference between the teams. Fellows 132 for 4 after 20 overs.
Springbok batting Irean 24, Mike M 7, Andrea K 0, Mike K 11, Chris S 8, Navim 23, Alex 0, Gary 1 no, Charles 0, Pani 1 no. extras 55, Fellows bowling Bazeegh 23 for 2. Christos M 31 for 1, Christos V 20 for 1, Amer 21 for 1, Schabi 16 for 0, Vishnu 1 for 0.
Fellows batting Haroun 7, Amer 54, Schabi 7, Bazeegh 8, Quaseer 5, Chris V 6 no Springbok bowling Navim 24 for 1, Irean 17 for 0, Mike K 27 for 1, Mike M 10 for 0, Andrea 23 for 1, Chris 32 for 1, Gary 12 for 0.
ROUND 5
FELLOWS KEEP CHAMPIONSHIP HOPES ALIVE
On a outfield still sodden from an overnight watering at AyNic, Intercollege chose to put Fellows into bat. Despite an early breakthrough, Intercollege's fierce opening bowling partnership of Aziz and Vicky could not dismiss Fellows' no 2 and 3 batsmen Aamir and Shahzad, who quickly at first and then more deliberately, built up a formidable run total. It was only after 20 overs that the partnership was broken when Shahzad was caught off Aqueel for 46. But then Shawab joined Amer and the run accumulation continued until Aamir finally fell to Aziz for 82. Shawab(28) and Kashif(11) kept the run rate going leaving Fellows in the strong position of 206 for 3 after 30 overs. Intercollege were forced to attack from the start, and inevitably lost early wickets to Bazeegh and the very fast Kashif. When Aqueel, Intercollege's most consistent scorer was out to a swirling high catch taken by Christos M on the fine leg boundary, Intercollege's cause seemed lost. But no 3 bat Shahid was still at the crease, and soon showed what a dertermined batsman he is. He consistently found the boundary without taking risks and supported first by Farook(17) and then by Taha (23) there was a time when he looked like taking the game away from Fellows. But the return of the opening bowlers, suported by Shazad's tight off spin at the other end. finally kept the game under control. Intercollege 184 for 9 after 30 overs.
Fellows batting. Richard 0, Amer 82, Shayzad 46, Shawab 28 no, Kashif 11no. Intercollege bowling Aziz 2 for 49, Vicky 0 for 37, Aqueel 1 for 37, Taha 0 for 22, Farook 0 for 28, Shahid 0 for 22.
Intercollege batting Saeed 8, Vicky 11, Shahid 72 no, Furqan 0, Aqueel 0, Farook 17, Taha 23, Aziz 11, Kamran 0, Yasis 1 no. Fellows bowling Bazeegh 2 for 19, Kashif 3 for 19, Christos M 0 for 11, Babar 2 for 27, Aamir 0 for 20, Shazad 2 for 33, Shawab 0 for 24.
WSBA FIND THEIR WAY BACK
After a disappointing start by their standards WSBA put in a good performance against Sprinbok at Happy Valley. Batting first they reached a total of 146 for 8 after 30 overs, runs distributed amouing the batsman with Ryan Castro top scoring with 27.Springbok bowling lived up to its now notorious reputation of leaking extras giving 54 extra runs to WSBA. In reply Springbok could only muster 79 runs, with Chris contributing half their score.
Best of WSBA batting Castro 27, Springbok bowling Kyriacou 2 for 7.Chris 3 for 18.Springbok batting Chris 35 no WSBA bowling Ayre 3 for 5, Castro 3 for 13.
HIMALAYANS LOOSING STREAK CONTINUES
Himalayans played against a resurgent Moufflon team at Elias beach on a very hot day. Hardly a blade of green grass on the Elias surface prompted the Himalayans to request a slightly reduced over match and the two teams agreed on 27 overs. The Moufflons batted first and immediately the Flix pitch started giving irregular bounces - either rising very sharply off a good length or going through ankle height. The Moufflons were soon in trouble with Fazi bowled for 1 and Dias caught for 1. Sridar and Darren Stubing came together and took the score along nicely before Sridar was bowled for 14. Steve Michaelides was out for 2 to an excellent catch on the boundary. Darren Stubing top scored and remained unbeaten on 38 after the 27 overs. Colin Relton was 8 not out. The score was 4 for 86, relatively low but with runs on the board on a difficult pitch. The Himalayans innings started badly due to the fast bowling of opener Sumit who soon had Kamesh bowled for a duck and Rohar caught for 7. Vinay chipped in to bowl Ajay for 1. Some resistance followed from Amit and Manish but they were out to Khalid for 14 and 10 respectively. Rohan soon followed them back to the pavillion, caught behind off the bowling of Stubing. Stubing then bowled Sunibabu for a duck and the Himalayans were in deep trouble. Kultar pushed the score along for the Himalayans scoring a couple of fours, taking the sides score into the 70's. However, Khalid bowled Vinay for O and Sumit came back on to finish the innings, bowling Sumil for 1 and Gouind for a duck. Kultar was 17 not out. The Himalayans were all out for 72.
Batting Moufflons: Fazi 1, Dias 0, Sridar 14, Darren Stubing 38 not out, Steve Michaelides 2, Colin Relton 8 not out. Bowling Himalayans: Sunil 1 for 13 off five overs, Suri 1 for 14 off six overs, Manish 2 for 17 off five overs, Gupta 0 for 14 off six overs, Amit 0 for 4 off three overs, Vinay 0 for 5 off two overs. Batting Himalayans:Kamesh 0, Rohar 7, Ajay 1, Amit 14, Manish 10, Rohan 3, Kultar 17 not out, Sunibabu 0, Vinay 0, Sumil 1, Gouind 0. Bowling Moufflons: Vinay 1 for 8 off three overs, Sumit 4 for 24 off six overs, Khalid 3 for 17 off six overs, Darren Stubing 2 for 14 off five overs.
ROUND 6
SRI LANKANS PROVE THEIR QUALITY
The SriLankan CC met Intercollege at Ay Nic in what was the defining game of the summer so far. The SriLankans are undefeated but have not had to compete with a team as strong as Intercollege, last seasons champions. Intercollege,after their unexpected defeat against Moufflons on the first game of the season, had to defeat the SriLankans to keep their hopes in the championship alive. The SriLankans choose to field first, and it soon became apparent why, as their spirited opening attack cut into Intercollege's talented top order. The batsmen choose to attack Tamara and Roshan, SriLankans opening bowling and this proved their downfall. Only Vicky made runs(23) and it was not until captain Aqueel and vice captain Saheed were at the crease that some order was restored. For Intercollege it was too late as they had lost 5 wickets for less than 70 runs. When Aqueel was caught their cause was all but lost. Saheed went on to make 22 but the Intercollege total of 120 allout was going to be very difficult to defend. The Sri Lankans had still to face the very fast Intercollege bowling attack of Aziz and Vicky, and it is to Intercollege's credit that it took the loss of 6 wickets before The Sri Lankans reached the total. Dillip with 63 runs made sure of the Sri Lankan victory. Intercollege 120 a.o after 27.1 overs. SriLankans 124 for 6 after 21 overs.
Best of Intercollege batting. Vicky 23. Saheed 22. Sri Lankan bowling. Danuka 4 for 10.Tamara 3 for 19. Best of SriLankan batting. Dillip 63. Intercollege bowling Aziz 3 for 26.
ESBA KEEP SIGHTS ON CHAMPIONSHIP
With a track record of close finishes Fellows travelled to AyNic to play ESBA on Sunday 16th May. Both teams are unbeaten in the league and this promised to be a tough contest. Fellows chose to bat, their opening pair defending well against a very accurate medium pace attack from ESBA¹s Thompson and Healey when Haroun (20) was bowled by Healey, soon followed by Bazeeq (7) lbw to Roger Thompson. Shwabi, Fellows most prolific batsmen, was left to struggle on alone as Roger Thompson and now Steve Ballard removed Fellow¹s middle order. A steadying partnership between Richard and Shawbi, took Fellows on to 100. After Richard(14) and Schwabi (38) were both caught of Vincent, the bottom order fell to more of Vincent¹s deceptive slow to medium "hit me" balls, without adding many more runs. Fellows were all out for 118 off 29.2 overs. With the boundary seeming a very long way away for the batsmen, the ball loosing pace over a difficult outfield, Fellows hoped that this would be a competitive score. That hope was cruelly dashed, when, after losing their openers cheaply, ESBA¹a no 3 bat Steve Ballard and No. 4 Healey dismantled the Fellows bowling attack. Efforts to mix up the bowling made no difference and by the time Ballard was out for a brutal half century, Esba were 94 for 3 after just 18 overs and on their way to an easy victory. But after Healey (20) was caught Fellows regrouped and, with some very sharp fielding forcing 3 run outs, had ESBA struggling. They had lost 5 wickets for 20 runs and now with one wicket remaining still needed 5 runs. Duke, who seemed immune to the rising panic felt by everyone else on the field, stroked the winning runs, even having the presence of mind to run an extra for the bonus batting point. ESBA 120 for 9 off 29.1 overs.
Fellows batting Bazeeq 7,Haroun 20, Jocky 1, Shwabi 38,Vishnu 3, Quaseer 0, Richard 14, Fazi 3,Christos 2, Barbar 4, Chris 0 no ESBA bowling Thompson 22 for 2, Healey 17 for 1, Ballard 19 for 2, Duke 20 for 0, Robinson 25 for 0, Vincent 12 for 4.
ESBA batting Thompson 2, Hood 0, Ballard 50, Healey 25, Vincent 5, Camm 0, Robbo 7, Goldsworthy 3, Duke 6 no, Hatson 0, Compton 3 no . Fellows bowling Bazeeg 14 for 1, Chris 13 for 1, Christo 21 for 0, Jocky 21 for 1, Schwabi 20 for 2.
ROUND 7
MOUFFLONS REDISCOVER THEIR WINNING WAYS
In a low scoring but exciting game at Happy Valley Moufflons beat WSBA. Moufflons 86 runs for 7 wickets after 25 overs beat WSBA Military 85 runs all out by one run. (Moufflons extra bowling point) ESBA could only field 9 players but Moufflons sportingly lent them 2 fielders namely Khalid & Marios who did there best to stop their team mates scoring runs. Moufflons batted first with opening bat Fazi once again top scoring with 21 runs. Pete Bond 16, Steve Michaelides 15, and Fergus 11 were the other leading scorers. Buckley took 2 wickets for 12, Degg 18 for 2 in their 5 overs. With John Mills taking 2 wickets for 7 runs in his 2 overs. The nine men from WSBA struggled after losing early wickets cheaply, but WSBA opening bowler Rob Buckley almost snatched victory for his team by scoring 21 runs not out but ran out of batsmen in the 24th over when Richardson was run out. Best bowlers for Moufflons : Fazi 3 for 13, Steve Michaelides 3 for 17 in their 5 overs.