By Faith Munezero
Game 1 – Lugogo Oval
KICC 168/6 in 20 overs (Suleiman Sharif 81 off 46, Wasim Butt 22 off 12; Cosmas Kyewuta 3/25 in 4 overs) beat Patidar Samaj 115/10 in 19.5 overs (Derrick Bakunzi 36 off 30, Ankit Patel 20 off 16; Deus Muhumuza 3/19 in 3.5 overs) by 53 runs.
Man Of The Match: Suleiman Sharif (81 off 46)
Game 2 – Lugogo Oval
Patidar Samaj CC 103/9 in 20 overs (Hiral Patel 37 off 30 balls; Hanumant Katkar 5/22 in 4 overs) lost to KICC 105/4 in 17.5 overs (Simon Sessazi 28 off 21; Hardik Patel 1/16 in 4 overs) by 6 wickets.
Man Of The Match: Hanumant Katkar (5/22 in 4 overs and 1 catch)
Game 1 – Entebbe Oval
Kutchi Tigers 99/9 in 20 overs (Jitendra Gorasiya 29 off 43; Steven Wabwose 4/19 in 4 overs) lost to Challengers CC 103/3 in 13.2 overs (Zephaniah Arinaitwe 50 off 35 balls, Shahzad Kamal 40* off 35 balls; Kanti Vekariya 1/15 in 2 overs) by 7 wickets.
Man Of The Match: Zephaniah Arinaitwe (50 off 35 balls, 1/19 in 4 overs and 1 catch)
Game 2 – Entebbe Oval
Kutchi Tigers CC 131/4 in 20 overs (Dhansuk Jesani 62* off 55, Nanji Pindoria 37 off 39; David Wabwire 1/18 in 4 overs) beat Challengers CC 64/10 in 13.5 overs (Shahzad Kamal 22 off 24; Kanti Vekariya 3/7 in 3 overs) by 67 runs.
Man Of The Match: Dhansuk Jesani (61 off 55 balls)
Game 1 – Kyambogo Oval
Tornado Bees 129/9 in 20 overs (Nicholas Kebba 39 off 37; Chetan Halai 2/23 in 4 overs, Dinesh Vekariya 2/23 in 4 overs) lost to SKLPS CC 130/6 in 19 overs (Mansukh Gorasiya 53 off 46, Yogesh Rabadiya 31 off 37; Emmanuel Ekuma 3/14 in 2 overs) by 4 wickets.
Man Of The Match: Mansukh Gorasiya (53 off 46 balls)
Game 2 – Kyambogo Oval
Tornado Bees CC 110/8 in 20 overs (Akbar Baig 19 off 25; Bavesh Gorasiya 2/14 in 3 overs) lost to SKLPS CC 111/7 in 18 overs (Mansukh Gorasiya 36 off 28 balls; Akbar Baig 5/9 in 4 overs) by 3 wickets.
Man Of The Match: Mansukh Gorasiya (36 off 28 balls)
The weekend had three topflight skirmishes on card with all of them hugely anticipated as the fight to seal coveted semifinal spots. The home of cricket in Uganda – Lugogo, the University Oval in Kyambogo and the lakeside oval in Entebbe were all buzzing with action as the star players exchanged pleasantries.
KICC too strong for Patidar
Kampala Institute of Cricket Clubs (KICC) are playing like godsends. They were once again in dominating mood at the weekend with big wins over the recently promoted Patidar Samaj side. The first fixture saw them post 168 runs for the loss of six wickets with free-hitting Suleiman Sharif contributing a whooping 81 runs off 46 balls.
Pinch hitter Wasim Butt added 22 of 12 balls despite Patidar Samaj’s Cosmas Kyewuta taking 3 for 25. Patidar didn’t go down without a fight; Derrick Bakunzi, Ankit Patel and Jignesh Parekh showed value for money as they managed double digits. But Deus Muhumuza had different ideas with figures of 3 for 19 to restrict Patidar to a fluctuating 115 runs all out with just one ball left in the match.
The afternoon game was no different, except that Patidar Samaj batted first this time round. Efforts by Hiral Patel and Ankit Patel helped them get to 103/9 but it was KICC captain Hanumant Katkar who notched the day’s honours with an incredible five-fer and a catch to take home a well-deserved Man of the Match award. KICC are in good form so far, leading the Division One table standings on 20 points after six outings with just one loss as the only blemish in their campaign thus far.
Honours even for Kutchi Tigers, Challengers
A match that showed the unpredictability of the T20 format, entertained and thrilled in equal measure. At the end of the day, both teams one win apiece with Kutchi winning the morning game whereas Challengers basked in glory during the afternoon.
Kutchi Tigers got off to a good start, setting 131/4 thanks to efforts from Nanji Pindoria (37 off 39 balls) and Dhansuk Jesani who finished not out with 62 off 55 balls. They continued the fervor in the next innings with aggressive bowling led by Kanti Vekariya with 3 for 7 in three overs to have the Challengers folding in dramatic fashion for 64 runs.
However, the afternoon game took on a whole new air with an energized Challengers side limiting the Tigers to 99/9 thanks to Steven Wabwose’s 4/19 in 4 overs as well as Gerald Mubiru’s 2/19. This made the chase easier for the batsmen with opener and Man of the Match Zephaniah Arinaitwe joining the half-ton rota with a scintillating 50 off 35 balls, who together with Shahzad Kamal (40 off 35 balls) patiently stabilized the innings to guide their side to victory.
SKLPS sting Tornado Bees
The recently promoted SKLPS side only made the Tornado Bees woes worse with wins in both the morning and afternoon games.
The Bees, who opted to bat first in both games, managed 110/8 with Akbar Baig posting the biggest score of 19 off 25 and David Musoke adding 16 off 21 balls in the morning as SKLPS’ Halai, Vekariya and Gorasiya picked two wickets each, making the chase a case of a walk in the park.
Man of the Match for both games, Mansukh Gorasiya, starred for the winners with the bat, making a half ton while at it and despite a great effort by the Tornado Bees who tried to defend 129 runs in the afternoon all the way to the 19th over in vain. The day belonged to SKLPS winning by four wickets to jump to joint third with Aziz Damani and Patidar Samaj on eight points.