Impressive Obuya Academy on a roll as Ruaraka maintains pace
Obuya Academy and Ruaraka Sports Club continued with a solid run in the ongoing Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA)-Super Division with convincing victories in the on going Championship Sunday.
League leaders Obuya Academy once again produced another great display which saw the team beat favorites Swamibapa Sports Club by a meager two runs to continue with their good run. The tight win just showed how close the duel was contested with hosts Obuya Academy who batted first in the opening innings setting a 134 run score on the board for the loss of 10 wickets in their allotted overs.
The home team’s top scorer was Abishek Sharma (63 runs off 50 balls) with his contribution including six boundaries and a hat trick of sixes/.Swami attackers were also relentless on the crease and nicely restricted their opponents with Dedan Stephen (4 wickets for 22 runs) leading the onslaught against the opposing batsmen.
In the second innings,Swamibapa’s Maurice Ouma (43 runs off 41 balls) was top scorer for the team with a personal contribution including seven boundaries before being trapped leg before wicket in the 14th over. However Swami could only get to a score of 132 after Obuya Academy deployed a similar style of eliminating batsmen with Saavir Karania (3 wickets for 16 runs) being the key damage man in the process with the ball delivery. Obuya Academy currently top the standings with 28 points with six wins off eight matches played.
Meanwhile,second placed Ruaraka won their fourth consecutive match in the League following a comprehensive 60 runs victory against Shree Cutchi Leva. Ruaraka, who batted first in the match,posted a total of 203 runs for the loss of 10 wickets. Anish Chaudhery (67 runs off 56 balls) was top-scorer for the side with his contribution including six boundaries and a hat trick of sixes.SCLPS had four players on double wickets as they attempted to slow down the charge of the opponents.
On resumption after the break,SCLPS could only manage 143 runs on the board in their attempted failed chase. Niraj Patel (42 runs off 40 balls) was their top-scorer with a personal contribution including five boundaries. Patel was ejected from the pitch in the 29th over after being bowled out by Yogesh Sawant. Ruaraka’s pair of Yagnick Pindoriya and Vishil Patel had three wickets haul apiece in the match but ultimately their input was not as reliable as required.
In another exciting duel,Sir Ali Muslim Club beat cross town neighbors Sikh Union by 28 runs with the Park Road based team setting a score of 253 on the board. Joseph Owino had an impressive century with a personal score of 106 runs off 126 balls including a staggering nine boundaries as part of his output. Ahmad Hassan (49 runs off 62 balls) was second run-getter in the innings for his side with Sikh Union’s (3 wickets for 38 runs) was the biggest weapon on the crease for his side.
After the break,Sikh Union made a good chase only falling short towards the end as they posted a total of 225 runs in their allotted overs. Ali Butt (92 runs off 97 balls) missed the century mark by a whisker in a grand display with the bat including 11 boundaries. Second top scorer for Sikh side was Muhammad Kalyan (51 runs off 68 balls) who also contributed four boundaries in his score. However, Tarandeep Singh of Sir Ali was the biggest destroyer from the crease with a three wicket haul.
