Samaj defeat Kanbis to clinch NPCA Division III Title
Published on: September 08, 2024 12:58 (EAT)
Shree Cutchi Leva Patel Samaj Development opener Krushil Varsani has described his team as one of the most well-balanced sides on the Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) front following their 30-overs Division 3 League title victory at Jamhuri High School grounds.
Indefatigable Krushil led in-form Samaj Development to an emphatic 8-wicket victory over Kanbis Development during the action-packed Division 3 League final as “Nairobi West troops” celebrated title success.
Samaj had their campaign effectively sewn-up incidentally with their top order batsmen; with only two dismissals of Harshil Kerai (lbw) and Krushil who was caught out by Vinay Patel.
Krushil explained: “Personally on my part I must admit that I have executed it well because I scored runs in all the matches, so that was a plus to the team. Their (Kanbis) batting first was quite an advantage because our bowling is better than their batting, so we were comfortable with our bowling and piled immense pressure on them.”
Commenting on the final, Krushil said they had their plan work almost perfectly.
"The essence for us was to hit the balls up in the air and to make some good balls too. We didn’t want to take any risks in the final because the target was low, so we just needed to stay on. We are looking forward to some good cricket in the knockouts.
"We hope to remain in good form and execute it just the same way we did this season. I believe we have the most balanced team and the essence for us will be to stay on the crease more in our innings, I am chuffed for the win,” he noted.
Twenty-one-year-old Kanbis skipper Kaushal Mepani was left to rue their loss to Samaj team. Kaushal was hoping to spearhead his side to victory ostensibly to shore up a Kanbis clean-sweep.
Kanbis A and B teams are currently leading in Super and Division One Leagues respectively, but Samaj Development ended the intended hattrick for the Eastleigh side after the result.
“We are ashamed of that. We didn’t make our team proud. We will try our best again next season and make amends too,” Kaushal said as Kanbis’ intended hattrick came a cropper.
The Toss
Kanbis Development won the toss and elected to bat first and were bowled out for 119 in 23.0 Overs. Chasing the target Samaj Development were home and dry with 123 for 2 in 24.0 Overs.
Asked about their loss to Samaj, Kushal added: “It was a good idea to bat first, but our middle order batsmen and openers didn’t score enough runs. When Vinay Kerai’s catch was dropped, that’s when I believed the game was gone. We tried our best though but their top order stayed longer on the crease.”
Kanbis did not go home empty handed though as Kaushal became the Division’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) with a score of 54.736 ahead of Vinay Kerai who managed 54.692 while Krushal came third with a score of 54.666.
Highest Run Scorer
Samaj’s Krushal was nevertheless Division 3’s highest run scorer of with a cumulative total of 432 from 8 innings at an average of 86.40.
Kanbis’ Kaushal came second in the runs’ leaderboard with 382 accrued from 8 innings. Kanbis’ Vinay Kerai collected the highest number of wickets (15) ahead of Samaj’s Khush Kerai with 15.
On fielding, Krushil was again the leader with a total of 9 dismissals to his name, ahead of namesake and teammate Jayant Varsani with 8 whilst Kaushil came third with 7.
Samaj Development qualified for the semis after they topped the 8-team round robin segment of the competition.
Kanbis Development, on the other hand, beat the Ruaraka Development by 5 wickets at Sikh Union Club grounds last weekend to prevail to the final.
Samaj Development, on their part, defeated Sikh Union Development team by 6wickets to rack up their deserved place in the final and most importantly the coveted title.
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