HARLEQUINS Cricket Club had a full round of fixtures at the weekend.
Crusaders U13 officially scratched their match against Quins U13, which allowed Quins to have a successful trials match for the looming T10 competition.
Quins’ first team took on Crimson in a 50-over-a-side promotion league match at Harlequins’ main oval on Sunday, 16 February. Quins won the coin toss and elected to bat first on a yielding pitch, a surface on which was difficult to execute any drive strokes along the ground, forward of the stumps.
Jeran Pillay continued with his fine form but was adjudged to be out leg before wicket in the 22nd over for 33 runs. Brandon de Mellion batted responsibly on the difficult surface scoring 30 runs. Capitulation of the middle order with three consecutive ducks left Quins on 76 runs for 5 wickets in the 24th over, however, an enterprising revitalisation by the lower middle order and tail-end batsmen raised Quins’ end tally to a defendable total of 172 runs, being dismissed in the 41st over.
Momedtalha Motalha scored 17 runs, Kevin Kettle struck 23 runs, Mohamed Patel got 13 runs, but the most enterprising innings by some margin was that of Sylvester Sauli who bashed three sixes over the periphery at long-off and long on and executed an exquisite off drive along the surface to the boundary, being undefeated on 30 runs at termination of the Quins innings.
None of the home teams strike bowlers had any success during Quins’ batting endeavour due to the nature of the slow wicket surface.
However, the decision to utilise what was up until recently perceived to be merely a part-time right-arm orthodox slow bowler against the northerly wind in the opening berth was well vindicated when Momedtalha Motalha, captured a total of 5 wickets in his 5th, 8th and 10th overs, returning figures of 32 runs in 10 overs for his team.
Right-arm medium-paced off-cut bowler, Mohamed Patel, got two wickets for 18 runs in 37 deliveries. Left-arm orthodox slow bowler Rahul Bahoti captured a solitary wicket for 8 runs in a dozen deliveries.
A strong throw from the long-on boundary by Kevin Kettle to the far end stumps was superbly taken by wicketkeeper Pallai, who removed the bails from the stumps to dismiss a Crimson opening batsman who was unable to complete a second run, in the 10th over.
Crimson were all out for 116 runs, 46 runs shy of their target. Quins will be allocated four log points for the victory and a bonus point for doing so before the 40th over.
Fixtures for the next round of matches for the first and second teams have not been released, however, the first team will have a crucial 50-over match and the second team will play their first group T20 match of the current season.
The 3rd and 4th teams have byes. The fifths will play Phoenix 7 at Harlequins and the sixth team will play Chatsworth United 4 at Lt. King Park in Fynnland.
The club’s annual awards event and sixers extravaganza will be held during the first weekend in April. Contact 073-795-0363 for further club information.
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