New Haven, CT. On an autumn like summer day, Bridgeport Cricket Club (BCC) took on the Twenty/20 Champions West Haven Cricket Club (WHCC). The day started with plenty of anticipation from all around SCTCA and the fans of the respective clubs. BCC's amazing fans reached New Haven with the players in anticipation of a great, enthusiastic match. Much like BCC, the fans of WHCC were there to cheer on their side early on as well.
The festivities begin with members of the New Haven Park and Recreational Department giving speeches and congratulating the two sides. Mayor, John DeStefano, Jr. of New Haven cheered on the two clubs and did the honorary coin toss with WHCC captain Prasad calling heads - and heads it was.
WHCC elected to field first for the big occasion. As part of the festivities, Mayor DeStefano bowled the first ball of the match and we were underway on a glorious afternoon. The weather could not have been more perfect for a final of any kind, unless you're playing Ice Hockey.
BCC was without its star opener Jonathan Smith who was not available due to personal reasons. With the unavailability of Jonathan, BCC brought back Kenneth "Don" Pierre into the playing 11. Aside from this change, there was no other change in the squad from the semi-final.
KK and Don opened the innings for BCC who were making a comeback into the finals after a gap of two disappointing years. Right from the first ball BCC realized WHCC decision to field first on the big occasion. The field was setup with deep boundaries on a bouncy, tricky pitch. Survival was the key for the batsmen. With the score on 15, Don tried to loft a full pitch ball from Bhanu over extra cover, but he could not time the ball well and hit it high in the air towards extra cover where Achal took an excellent catch over his head. This catch sort of set the tone for how hungry WHCC were to beat BCC for the fourth time this year. With Don's loss Kewin was the next man to go in. Both Kewin and KK tried to control the innings to achieve a big total . The two played the ball in the gaps, with Kewin occasionally taking the aerial route to score runs. With the score on 43, Kewin found Achal who once again took the second catch of the innings to dismiss Kewin.
At 2/43, BCC's captain sent in Brian Murphy, who earlier in the season had scored 101* against WHCC in a Twenty/20 match. With the pitch playing all kinds of tricks, Murphy was hit on the pads couple of times with loud, thunderous appeals from WHCC but to no avail. However just a moments after he could not last after getting hit on the pads for the third time. Murphy tried to pull a short delivery which stayed low from Raj A and was given LBW for 4 and BCC 3/50. With Murphy’s dismissal WHCC players and the spectators were cheering as loud as they could. Things were slowly crumbling for BCC and in went Robin Lynch. He and KK played somewhat sensible and took what WHCC's bowlers and fielders gave them - singles into the gaps. After making his mark, Robin top edged a delivery from Madhu onto his face and had to come off the field. With Robin's injury, Raza was the next man to go in and bat with KK. However, with some clever bowling changes by WHCC captain, KK played a loose cut shot off the bowling of Jignesh into the hands of Gautam at point, BCC 4/79. With the team struggling captain Dilly went into to bat. He started off with a nice pull shot for two and looked to play a nice captain's knock. But on a pitch like New Haven's, he could not last as Jignesh’s bowl took a surprising bounce from a good length and found Dilly's foot in the air and was stumped for 12, BCC 5/102. With Dilly's departure, Lloyd Reid made his presence out in the middle with Raza. The two batsmen were cautious after losing five wickets with barely a 100 on the board and 20 overs to go. The WHCC spinning duo of Madhu and Jignesh bowled an excellent line and length to nag BCC batsmen and on a tricky wicket. As the pressure built, Raza just looked to play out the overs from Madhu and Jignesh, which would eventually back fire. On a tricky pitch and surprising turn, Raza was caught on the back foot for an easy LBW decision. With Raza's dismissal Robin returned to the crease and could not last much longer as he tried to loft Raj M over the top and was caught at long on. At 7/117 and soon after 8/125 after Adnan was stumped off the bowling of Madhu. With Reid still at the crease, BCC was bowled out for 130 in 34.2 overs.
WHCC bowling should get tremendous applause as they bowled extremely well to restrict the high-powered BCC batting attack. All of WHCC bowlers took at least one wicket, with the pick of the bowlers being Madhu and Jignesh, both with 2 wickets each.
With the batting behind them and 130 to defend, BCC players knew that their bowling and fielding had to be on top from the first ball. On a bouncy, tricky wicket they knew 130 could be a defending total.
WHCC begin their innings with captain Prasad and Phani opening. BCC started the bowling attack with Tony Brown and Murphy, hoping they would provide BCC with an early breakthrough. Tony started the spell a little erratic and Prasad took full advantage of that to start WHCC inning. With the score on 24 and going great guns, Murphy bowled a full toss to Prasad who could not take advantage of the loose delivery and hit it straight to square leg where Don took an excellent catch above his head (very similar to how Prasad was out in the Twenty/20 by the same fielder), WHCC 1/24 from a flying start. After Prasad's wicket, WHCC incoming batsman Faisal and Phani calmed the storm a little and looked to block Murphy and Tony. With those intentions by the batsmen, Dilly looked to his most experienced bowlers Lloyd Reid and Adnan Khaliq, the duo bowled amazing line and length with change of pace and swing. The batsmen were either swinging and missing or having balls go above the stumps. With the pressure mounting, Phani tried to drive Reid straight past him but the bowler showed amazing athleticism and scooped a catch off the ground while falling down. As they say catches wins match, this type of a catch wins matches and none could be bigger than a FINAL. With Phani's dismissal, Reid and Khaliq got back to working the batsmen with their swing bowling. With the score reaching 45, Reid bowled the ball of the day and uprooted Faisal's stumps with a beautiful ball pitching outside off and cutting back into the right-hander taking middle and off stumps out of the ground.
After the initial flow of runs by WHCC batsmen, BCC buckled down and did not give anything away. WHCC struggled to reach 50 after almost 20 overs being bowled. Both Reid and Khaliq were bowling excellent to restrict any loose deliveries and keeping WHCC batsmen on their toes. Khaliq was given a rest after bowling 5 overs and Murphy was brought back into the attack for some leg break this time. But he could not provide a breakthrough and WHCC batsmen would not give in. Captain Dilly joined Reid hoping to provide a breakthrough. In his first over he bowled a good length delivery that moved away off the deck to kiss the outer edge of Gautam's bat where Khaliq took one of his trademark catches at first slip. At 5/68, and the pressure on the batsmen from tight bowling by BCC. Raj M joined Achal out in the middle.
With Reid's allotted eight over coming to an end (figures of 8-3-14-3), amazing figures from Mr. Reid, Dilly brought Khaliq back into the attack. The bowlers bowled their hearts out and put a lot of pressure on Achal and Raj M. After a struggle Achal could not sustain the pressure and tried to loft Khaliq over the top and was beautifully bowled for 13, WHCC 6/72. With Achal’s departure, in came Naveen with high hopes to stay out in the middle with Raj M and to bring it home for WHCC. The combination of Dilly and Khaliq kept beating the two batsmen. To release some of the pressure, Raj M aggressively charged against Dilly and scored 12 runs from the over. The duo of Raj M and Naveen put on very important 29 runs partnership before Raj M, trying to stay aggressive, was bowled by Brown. At 7/101 and needing 28 more runs to win, Madhu came to join Naveen and the two looked to take singles to get to 131. After another one over spell from Murphy, Raza was given the bowl and on the 3rd delivery of his over, Naveen edged a ball to Robin but the loud appeal was not upheld by umpire Bakshi and Naveen was given another chance. The question on everyone's mind was, would this decision cost BCC the 2007 Championship? After another 19 runs were added by Madhu and Naveen, Naveen was bowled by Brown on a ball that cutback from outside off and hit the stumps, WHCC 8/120.
Needing 11 runs to win off 24 balls, Madhu was joined by Jignesh with the pressure being felt all around the field. The horns, drums, whistles, bangs and cheers were as loud as they could be with the game coming to an amazing finish. BCC with their experience buckled down and WHCC with their inexperience let it brush off their shoulders. The intense moments were coming to an end with only 8 runs needed off 18 balls. Jignesh played the first ball off the bowling of Murphy for a single. Sensing the pressure on WHCC’s batsmen, Murphy brought in his fielders to tighten the gaps in the infield. On the second ball, Madhu played a ball straight into the hands of Kewin at short midoff who picked up the ball and threw a strike towards Robin who collected the throw and knocked off the bails. This was excellent piece of fielding from Kewin and Robin, WHCC 8/124 and needing 7 off 15 balls.
At this moment, New Haven had become what seemed like a loud street festival with music, amazing commentary from the pavilion, loud banging on the bleachers, louder horns, and louder drums being played around the field. The entire crowd was on their feet with loud cheers around the field, holding hands in anticipation of what is going to happen next. With the bright sun shinning in New Haven, Murphy ran in to bowl to Raj A the ball pitched on the off stump heading towards the stump, Raj A played and completely missed the ball, which was on its way to hit the off stump and the stumps were rattled. As soon as the ball hit the stumps, BCC players and spectators rushed the field and carried their hero's off the field and on to the Championship podium. In what is considered as one of the greatest moments ever in Connecticut Cricket History, BCC prevailed and their spectators rejoiced one of the greatest victory of Bridgeport Cricket Clubs long history which began way back in 1968.
This match will be remembered for years to come in Bridgeport cricket and all over Connecticut. Although BCC prevailed as the winner, our congratulations go out to WHCC and their fans for pushing BCC to the limit and providing, not only SCTCA, but also Connecticut with the greatest cricket final in its history.
BCC players, its members and their families would like to Thank the wonderful and amazing women and spectators for their amazing support they give all year long and push us to do our best on the field. This could not be done without all of you and this Championship is for all of YOU!!!!!!
Special Thanks to:
The commentator should be applauded for amazing work he did throughout the
match and kept everyone in the game - BCC.
the Czar, reporting from New Haven, CT.
On a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Bridgeport, CT. BCC took on the long time rivals the Norwalk Cricket Club (NCC). After losing the day before in the Twenty/20 final to West Haven, BCC was hungry to get back on track. BCC won the toss and without any hesitation elected bat to setup a huge total against a solid NCC team. The pitch at Newfield Park was dry and bouncy with assistance to both the bowlers and the batsmen who would try and settle in at the crease. The outfield was as racy as ever with anything passing the fielder going beyond the ropes. The slight breeze would help the swing bowlers with a lot of movement in the air and off the track. And the match began.
The inning started as expected with Jonathan and KK looking forward to a big partnership with couple of glorious drives to the boundary. However, it was not to last too long as KK played across the line to a outswinger from McHargh (Mackie) and was bowled for 5. Though he only scored 5, he was looking very comfortable against the NCC bowling attack and loss of concentration cost him the wicket. After KK's fall, in went the tall giant Brian Murphy to bat with Jonathan. The two started somewhat slow as NCC bowlers tied down the two batsmen with nagging length and varying deliveries. After settling in slowly, Murphy played a well timed straight drive back to the bowler (Simon) who showed his athleticism and reflexes as he fielded the ball with one hand and in one motion threw towards the stumps and ran out Murphy for 15. It was a great piece of all around cricket by Simon. With the score on 2/40, Kewin went in to bat with Jonathan and the two looked to up the tempo and play aggressive against NCC bowlers. With opening bowler Simon still bowling, Jonathan looked to go after his bowling and bottom edged a delivery to the wicketkeeper who took a good low catch to dismiss Jonathan. After Jonathan's fall, Dilly sent in the always reliable and the most experienced cricketer on BCC's team Lloyd Reid to steady the ship for BCC with Kewin, but he could not last long as he was judged LBW for a duck.
At 4/62, BCC looked a fizzled with four of its top batsmen back in the pavilion and NCC bowlers on top and being aggressive to destroy BCC, in walked Adnan with Kewin still at the crease. The two experienced batsmen played vital innings for BCC as both looked to stay at the crease and score runs without taking on too much aggression. Both Adnan and Kewin played sensibly for one's and two's and an occasional boundary off the loose ball. The pair put on a very crucial 90 run partnership for the 5th wicket and brought the score to a respectable total of 152 when Adnan feeling the pressure from the two NCC spinners Sri and Prasana tried to up the tempo a little and was stumped for 36, 5/152. As Adnan's wicket fell, Dilly sent in Raza to continue the aggressiveness and charge after the runs with Kewin at the crease who was ready to play for a big total. However, Kewin misjudged a sweep shot and was bowled behind the stumps by Sri and this pegged BCC back once again. After a 16 run partnership between Raza and Robin, Robin hoiked an easy catch to Ennis at short midoff and BCC stumbled to 7/169 with Raza still at the crease. Captain Dilly joined him and the two batsmen looked to put pressure on the NCC fielders as the NCC captain brought in the field to save the one's and two's, but the two batsmen counter-attacked and hit the loose balls beyond the fielders past the boundary rope. With Sri and Prasana bowling the two batsmen planned to go after Sri's bowling and took singles off Prasana who bowled beautiful while changing speed, length and width and troubling the batsmen throughout the day but was unlucky in the wickets department. With two overs left to bat, Raza tried to accumulate as many runs as possible but skied a loft to long off, off the bowling of Ennis where Sri took a well judged catch. Raza and Dilly put a very important quick 40 run partnership to bring BCC's total beyond the 200 mark that looked like a good defending total at Newfield Park. BCC finished the innings at 214/allout with two crucial partnerships, 90 runs between Kewin and Adnan and 40 towards the end of the innings between Raza and Dilly. BCC: Kewin 53, Jonathan and Adnan 36 each and Raza 34. NCC: Sri 4 wickets and McHargh 2 wickets.
With a 200 plus total to defend in a big semi-final match, BCC knew that it had to step up its game to another level if they wanted to play in the final. NCC opened their innings with Prasana and Keith. Prasana started with his usual fireworks, trying to hit the fast bowlers all around the field from the word go and as usual not providing much for NCC against BCC's bowling attack. It seems that BCC has his number since he's joined the SCTCA. He was beautifully caught at long off by Kewin who took low catch off the bowling of Jonathan. NCC 1/25 and in walked Sri to bat with Keith. With the score unchanged and Sri facing his first ball in a big match against BCC looked nervous and was beaten. On the second ball Brown had him plumb for a duck and the slow finger of the umpire went up in the air, 2/25. It was clever bowling from Brown who sensed the nervousness of the new batsmen and bowled stump to stump with good pace. With Sri's wicket falling and NCC at 2/25 and looking for a uphill climb towards 215, Trivedi joined Keith and BCC knew the running between the wicket of the two batsmen would be fragile and point was proven as Trivedi played a shot straight to backward point and took off for a non-existent run that cost well set batsman Keith his wicket. It was great fielding by Jonathan at backward point to get the runout. With Keith being sent back to the pavilion, Mackie came trying to rescue NCC. At this point, BCC sensed there would be another runout shortly but the two batsmen did not take any risky runs. However with the scoreboard moving only nine more runs, McHargh was beautifully bowled by Brown that rattled the off-stump and setback NCC once again, 4/57. Seeing his team lose control and any hopes of winning the semifinal, captain David Ennis came to the crease to save NCC but to no avail as he tried to cross bat the first ball from Brown and was plumb in front of middle and off. The slow finger went up again ever so slowly, 5/57. At this stage BCC could smell the spot in the final as their bowlers had stepped up their game for a big match and bowled with excellent line and length to peg NCC back and out of the playoffs.
With five more wickets left, Dilly brought in Adnan to clean up the rest and the move almost paid off as Trivedi was dropped at backward point by Jonathan, but a few overs later the batsman edged a delivery to Robin who took a regulatory catch behind the stumps. With Simon and the new incoming batsmen Henro, NCC just looked to play-out the innings but first ball confusion between the two would create a runout of Henro for a duck and NCC 7/87. Simon was joined by Boyke and 16 runs later, he was also runout to a amazing direct hit throw from Murphy and NCC was 8/103. On the brink of a victory, Murphy was brought into the attack for his leg break bowling and he got his victim Simon LBW and NCC was all but done at 9/124 and one run later Taiwo was caught in the deep by Carl off the bowling of Andre and BCC won rather convincingly by 89 runs. NCC: Simon 27 and Trevidi 26. BCC: Brown 3 wickets and smith, Khaliq, Murphy and Andre with 1 each.
The match didn't start off as planned for BCC but their poise and experience prevailed in a big semifinal match. BCC's batsmen showed their class when things tumbled and two crucial partnerships, one in middle of the inning between Kewin and Adnan and then later between Raza and Dilly, saw BCC with a good total to defend in a big playoff match. BCC's bowlers showed their experience as well with Brown leading the way with 3 very good wickets to set the tone and the rest of the bowlers chipping in and keeping the pressure on NCC throughout the day. It was a great overall performance after a shaky start by BCC.
Going into the final after a two year gap will be exciting for BCC's players
and its amazing fans. BCC will be going up against a team that has beaten them
all three times (regular season encounter and twice in the Twenty/20) this
year. BCC will be looking forward to take its revenge for the three losses. The
team will need to play well from the first ball and not ease off when they have
WHCC down. A bad habit BCC has is that they ease off in matches rather than go
for the kill and get the match done with. Batsmen will have to play crucial
innings and the bowlers will need to be supported by the fielder who need to
hold on to the catches in final.
Let's bring it home guys for the amazing fans of Bridgeport Cricket Club!!!!!
the Czar" reporting from Newfield Park.
After winning the wild card of the Twenty/20 tournament, BCC was paired against the winners of Group A Cavaliers Cricket Club (CCC). Stand-in captain Lloyd Reid who's fearless squad had been performing exceptionally well over the previous few weeks took his team into the Semi-Final of the Twenty/20 Championship. After losing the toss and being sent into field first, BCC opened the bowling with Adnan Khaliq and surprise Elroy Douglas (Please pray for his health). CCC started their innings very convincingly with Peter and Ralston scoring and keeping the scoreboard ticking. Adnan was not at his best today as he leaked runs throughout the spell, however from the other end, Elroy bowled the best he has since joining BCC. His swing and nagging length kept CCC openers at bay who could not decide whether to attack his bowling or play back. His short three over spell, before being taken off the field due to his health, was like a test match spell (3-0-8-1) in a Twenty/20 match.
After Elroy's departure, Raza was brought in to the attack and bowled an economical spell for a Twenty/20 match while being unlucky with couple of dropped catches. But the pick of the day and to most a surprise was the bowling of Leroy Forbes, who took an amazing hat-trick (bowled, caught-behind and bowled), CCC 5/50. This amazing turn of events shifted the game towards BCC and held off the onslaught of CCC's big hitters. Forbes' spell was one of the best seen in either the Twenty/20 or the regular 40 overs matches played in SCTCA this year. After the hat-trick, Norice and Ralston (still at the crease) saved the innings for CCC and brought the score a little more respectability at 6/99. After Ralston's wicket, Norice, Rowan and Robert chipped in to bring a reasonably good total for CCC of 7/134. Norice 37, Ralston 31 and Forbes/Murphy 3 wickets each.
BCC opened their innings with KK and Kewin. The two started off slow with Kewin feeling out of touch with the bat lately played a lot of balls without scoring. The slow start eventually caught up with the two openers, as KK was runout beautifully with a direct hit. After KK's departure, in went the giant Brian Murphy who exploded from the word go and scored 22 quick runs (3x4 and 1x6) before getting caught behind off the bowling of Genius, 2/58. With two wickets down, Raza went in to face the pressure of trying to win the semifinal of the Twenty/20. With Kewin still at the crease and feeling a little more comfortable, the two played aggressively to counter attack the CCC bowlers. However, the aggressiveness and the form cost BCC Kewin's wicket who continued with the aggression and lofted a easy catch off the bowling of Garret, BCC 3/71. With 63 runs still needed and seven wickets in hand, Adnan walked in to join Raza. The two Pakistani teammates buckled down and played shots allover the field trying to win the match for BCC. With CCC's tight bowling in a big match, the two kept rotating the strike and sweating out the runs to bring BCC closer to its target of 134. Sensing pressure, CCC captain made vital bowling change to bring in Evans and it paid dividends right away. After putting together a 44 runs partnership for the 4th wicket with Raza, Adnan mistimed a pull shot off the bowling of Evans and skied a catch to midwicket. Two balls later Raza edged a slash to third man where Rowan took a one handed catch over his head, BCC 5/115. With still another 19 runs needed to win, BCC's captain Reid and wicketkeeper Robin showed their immense experience and played sensibly and knocked off the remaining 19 runs with 1.2 overs left to bat and five wickets in hand. Reid finished with 11* and Robin at 5*. Raza 33, Lyle/Murphy 22 each and Evan 2 wickets and 1 each for Garret and Genius.
With this semifinal victory, BCC will be heading into the final to play against the only team that has beaten BCC all year, West Haven Cricket Club on Saturday September 8, 2007. On the following day Sunday September 9, 2007, BCC will be playing against Norwalk Cricket Club in the regular 40-over semi-final who sneaked by New Milford Cricket Club with a 1 wicket victory that came down to the last ball. This 40-over semi-final will be the rematch of BCC loss few years ago when NCC's batsmen accepted bad light to beat BCC. BCC will be looking forward to a winning weekend with a final and a semi-final on back-to back days. Good luck to BCC and let's bring everything home "Where Champions Live".
the Czar is Bridgeport Cricket Club editor/writer
What can be said about this clash of two of the toughest teams in SCTCA. New Haven Eagles (NHE) compromising of some of the most talented players in the Connecticut. Though their star allrounder Mehmood Sial was sidelined with a finger injury, NHE still had the services of Afzal, Shafi, Khalid and Co.
Captain Raja Ali won the toss and elected to field first on a breezy, overcast day in Bridgeport, CT. Initial thought, it seemed like a great decision by Raja as his strike bowlers can swing the ball in yards and it showed from the first ball of the match. Jonathan and KK opened the innings for BCC. After getting hit for a four over square leg from Jonathan, Jaffri took the off-stump and the bails off with a beauty of a delivery, BCC 1/6. As the wicket of Jonathan fell, in walked Kewin Lyle who had been in a slump over the last four/five matches with the bat. The two bowlers kept beating the edge and the stumps of Lyle and he looked very uncomfortable out there in the middle. After a shaky 34 run partnership, Lyle fell to beautiful outswinger from Khalid, taking the edge to the keeper who made no mistakes, BCC 2/40.
With Lyle wicket falling and his run of a slump continuing, in walked the giant Brian Murphy to the rescue, and rescue he did. Playing an amazing innings with KK who was quietly moving his personal score along with Murphy. The two played excellent innings and did all the ground work for BCC. They put together a great partnership of 103 runs when Murphy fell to a lofted shot from Afzal at 72 (9x4). His 72 was a treat to watch, he looked as if he was going to go well past the three figure mark. Brian once again showed why he is one of the best players in Connecticut, maybe even in USA. After Murphy's fall, BCC lost two more quick wickets, KK and Lynch were the outgoing batsmen, BCC5/168. In walked Raza to bat with Don. Raza opened his account with a glorious pull over midwicket for a Six. Don and Raza had a steady partnership of 31 runs when Don got out trying to get aggressive for 19, BCC 6/201. With the arrival of the always reliable Adnan Khaliq, both Raza and Adnan planned on scoring quickly to bring BCC to a bigger total in the last five overs. With Afzal bowling exceptionally well with his bouncy off-break, troubling the batsmen, NHE was leaking runs from the other end. Knowing they had few more wickets in hand and a handful of overs left to bat, Raza changed his game plan started to smash the ball over the field for glorious four's and smashing sixes. Raja brought back his strike bowlers to try and contain the onslaught, but to no avail. Raza and Adnan put on an amazing 60 run partnership in no time, hitting the bowlers all over the ground and out of the ground. Shot of the day or you may want to say the year without a doubt was a glorious six hit by Raza off the bowling of Khalid as he chipped down the track and lofted a humongous six over the tree at the visitors bench. It has to be one of the biggest sixes hit in Newfield Park history. Needing just two for his smashing fifty, Raza hit another six over long-on to bring his fifty in style and started to run towards the bench thinking the 40 overs were up when the umpire and Adnan called him back because there was still one ball left. I guess humor is part of cricket as well.
BCC played like giants in the pursuit of a big total against a well balanced batting lineup. The steady innings of KK, glorious innings of Brian and the smashing innings of Raza brought BCC to a big total of 6/261 in their 40 overs. Though the had piled on a big total, the match was only half way done. Murphy 72, Raza 56* (4x4 and 3x6), KK 44 and Afzal 2 wickets.
Knowing they had piled on a huge total of 261, BCC knew the game was only half over. As a surprise, BCC opened the bowling with Jonathan Smith and the reliable Adnan. NHE opened the innings with Khalid and Haroon, both of whom started with a vengeance. Khalid and Haroon smashed boundaries with ease, Khalid pulling and hooking and cutting Jonathan all over while Haroon lofting and cutting for boundaries. Initially Smith with vicious pace was not accurate. NHE raced past 30 in no time and it looked as though this match would come down to the wire until Adnan with his change of pace bowling got Haroon to go for a drive and popping a catch to Don. This was experienced bowling from Adnan and why he is so good with the ball. Soon after Khalid fell, edging a delivery from Jonathan to the keep. After these two wickets, Jonathan and Adnan buckled down and bowled with pace from one end and experience from the other. The two bowlers had NHE batsmen jumping, swinging and rubbing their body with balls being missed and hitting them on their body. With all the pressure upon them, NHE crumbled and lost three more quick wickets, as Jonathan bowled NHE's star batsmen Afzal and the century maker Shafi with vicious pace. From 0/36 to 5/58 shows the heart of Jonathan and Adnan and how they came back with their one-two punch bowling and brought the match into BCC's favor. After the initial five wickets, NHE's lower middle order partnership of Singh and Thekenmar showed some respectability and brought NHE well past 100, before Thekenmar fell at NHE 121. After this wicket, it was a smooth ride home for BCC who crushed NHE by 109 runs. All the credit should go to Jonathan and Adnan for bowling exceptionally well. Although Jonathan gave up runs in the first few overs, Adnan’s accurate bowling kept NHE at bay and didn’t let NHE get away in the beginning. NHE finished 152 allout. Singh 46, Thekenmar 28, Khalid 26 and Jonathan 3 wickets, Adnan and Wilson 2 each.
With the way BCC approached their batting, it showed that this team has come a long way from the first match of the season when they lost to West Haven. Their players have gelled well and have showed maturity over the last few weeks as a team. The batting has clicked with Jonathan, Kewin, Brian and without these three carried by Raza, Adnan, Robin, Reidy and others in the middle order. The team will be heading into the playoffs as the #1 seed with everyone targeting them, BCC will have to continue with this kind of performance in the playoffs and bring the Championship back home. BCC finishes the season at 10-1 and the winner of the regular season and the #1 seed in the playoffs.
Czar is Bridgeport Cricket Club editor/writer
This was a match with much anticipation by both teams. BCC a three time Champion (winning the first three) in the short history of SCTCA and New Milford Cricket Club (NMCC) a two time champion (winning the last two, though one under the name of Danbury Cricket Club), basically the only teams to have won championships in the SCTCA history. Both teams were without some of their star players. For BCC, their captain Trevor "Dilly" Smith, Jonathan Smith and Kewin Lyle were not available due to other League commitment and Tony Brown was not available due to sudden death of his father back in Jamaica. For NMCC, they were without their captain, Jay Singh, star allrounders Imran Masood (overseas) and Mudassar Waqar (other league commitment). It was down to all the role players to play their role and take their respective side home.
On a gorgeous day at Newfield Park, Carl Thomas won the toss and elected to bat first. Knowing he was without his main openers, attack bowler and the captain, it looked like a good choice on a good hard wicket of BCC. KK and Murphy opened the innings for BCC and were off to a good start with Murphy going for his shots from the word go. Though he edged the first ball of the innings between the wicketkeeper and the first slip, he still stay focused and played every ball that came his way with ease. After hitting 4 glorious fours, he top edged a delivery from Rana and was out for 20, BCC 1/36. Without the main openers and losing Murphy early was a big blow to BCC. Don went in to bat with KK, but KK could not last much longer and was given LBW for 13, BCC 2/47. At this point, BCC brought Khaliq back to upper middle order to attack the NMCC bowling with Don, the two had a small partnership of 34 runs before Khaliq tried to loft a full pitch ball over midon and was bowled for 19. He was playing exceptionally well, hitting three 4's in a row and playing with such an ease. After Khaliq's departure, Lynch went to bat with Don, but unfortunately Don could not last much longer and was bowled by Rana to a beautiful swinging ball taking the middle and off stump out, 4/85. At this point NMCC could smell a collapse from BCC and in walked Raza with steady knocks the previous couple of weeks. Raza and Lynch restored the innings slowly and brought the score to 110 when Lynch mistimed a shot and scooped a catch to midon for 10, BCC 5/110. Once again it up to Raza and Reid to bring BCC back and put up a fighting total, knowing that NMCC will be coming with full force in their reply. With the score reading 5/110, Raza and Reid dug down and played sensibly towards achieving a good total. The duo played in the gaps without taking much of a risk and built a steady partnership of 63 runs and brought BCC’s score to 173 when Raza trying to loft a leg break from Naveed top edged it to short cover. After Raza’s departure, BCC lost four wickets for 27 runs and ended at 199 in 40 overs. Raza 36, Reid 33, Murphy 20 and Khaliq 19, Naveed, Rana and Jamil 2 wickets each.
With 199 on the board, BCC knew it had a good chance of defending the total. Butt and Mukul opened the innings for NMCC against Murphy and Khaliq. Butt playing overly-unnecessarily aggressive hit two fours off Murphy while Khaliq at the other end had both the openers tied down. Sensing the aggressiveness, Carl took off Murphy and brought in the experienced Reid into the attack that paid dividends right away as Reid got the wicket of Butt who kept the aggression on. In walked Saad who was greeted with an unplayable yorker and was bowled for a duck. Mukul and Rahman tried to salvage the innings but Mukul taking the Butt approach started to play aggressive which to experienced bowlers such as BCC’s is not a good idea. He was teased with exceptional bowling from Khaliq who kept beating Mukul and finally getting frustrated, he lofted a catch to Reid at midon and soon after that Baravkar was caught for a duck off the bowling of Khaliq, NMCC 4/55. At this time, BCC was ready to go for the kill but Naveed and Rahman's steady innings played extremely slow to save the wickets. Their partnership of 51 runs took a big chunk of overs out of their innings. As the pressure built, the NMCC batsmen started playing aggressive shots and finally Naveed edged a delivery from Raza to gully, NMCC 5/106. After both Khaliq and Raza finished their allotted 8 overs each, Murphy was brought back into the attack and this move paid off right away as Murphy got the wickets Rana (5), Jamil (0), Viral (5) and Shaiwal (0). With the game almost out of reach, Rahman played aggressively and brought his total to 72 as well as the NMCC’s to 149, showing some respectability. BCC’s bowlers bowled extremely well and the match was won in the middle overs when NMCC could not build up the run rate and eventually costing them the match. NMCC 149 36.3 overs. Rahman 72, Mukul 27, Murphy 5 wickets, Khaliq and Reid 2 each. BCC 9-1.
Ronaldo is Bridgeport Cricket Club editor/writer
What can be said of this game. The two Bridgeport teams who share the same field on Newfield Avenue went in for a clash of the titans. Cavaliers Cricket Club (CCC) riding high on well balanced batting attack won the toss and elected to bat on a beautiful, warm afternoon in Bridgeport, CT. CCC openers started the innings with a 4, and it seemed like BCC was in for a long day ahead. However, after hitting a four through point and covers, O. Wilson played another cut shot but this time he top edged to third man where Forbes took one of the best catches of the year. After the fall of O. Wilson, in came the elder Wilson, R. Wilson with a game plan and the young S. Smith at the crease with him. The two batsmen played beautifully and scored at will. Smith and Wilson put together a 93 run partnership when Smith fell trying to play aggressively against leg break bowling of Murphy. After Smith fell, in walked Peter Haywood and BCC knew they had to contain the two batsmen. After adding just one run, Wilson was well caught by the keeper Lynch trying to sweep Murphy and playing it off his gloves, 2/102. Matthew joined Haywood and two played like they were on a mission and wanted to put up a huge total before Haywood trying to hit Murphy over midwicket lofted a catch to short midwicket where he was dropped. Trying to steal the 2nd run Haywood ended up on the same end as Matthew and was runout by his own bad judgment. After Haywood's wicket, BCC got the wickets of Evans and Matthew shortly after that and CCC were 6/155. Knowing they had pinned CCC down, BCC backed off their pressure and bowled poorly and let CCC get back into the game. The partnership of Lennox and Norice took the bowling apart scoring very aggressively and bringing the total to 212 when Lennox was given LBW off Dilly’s bowling. Soon after that, Norice scored couple of boundaries and CCC ended their innings at 9/236. Smith 43, Lennox 39, Norice 38, R. Wilson 36, Murphy 3 wickets and 2 each for Khaliq and Reid.
With a huge total to chase, BCC planned that it would need the top order to come through once again as it had been all season long. In walked Jonathan Smith and Lyle to bring it home for BCC, but unfortunately it wasn't Lyle day as he edged one to the keeper and BCC was 1/2. After Lyle's wicket, Murphy batted with Smith who was on his game, pulling, driving, hooking and slashing balls to all over the ground. Murphy fell for 8 and soon after Don fell cheaply for 2. With their back on the wall, BCC were 3/64 and in walked Raza Khan. With still another 172 runs needed, Smith and Raza played sensibly and kept scoring the runs. The two looked in top form, beating the bad balls out of the ground and taking singles of the good one's. The two batting together were a treat to watch. With Smith on his very best, Raza played second lead to him, playing the balls in the gaps and letting Smith take care of the rest. Smith's innings were one of the best of the year in SCTCA. Although he was bowled for 77, he deserved a 100 for his effort and stroke playing. With the score at 4/141 after Smith's fall, in walked the always reliable Robin Lynch and produced a 46 run partnership with Raza who was still going great guns with the bat, pulling and driving CCC's bowlers. Lynch fell for 21 trying to slash one past the covers fielder. At 5/187 and Raza still at the crease in walked Khaliq. The duo played their shots and kept scoring at will and moving the scoreboard along towards 237. On 222 and needing another 17 runs to win, a bad mix-up between Khaliq and Raza cost BCC the wicket of Khaliq who was runout for a well played 22 and bringing BCC closer to the goal of reaching 237. With Khaliq's wicket falling, in walked Reid who brought the match home for BCC along with Raza. It was a huge win for BCC as it showed that it can chase any total, without majority of its top order getting into double digits. Smith 77, Raza 65*, Khaliq 22, Lynch 21, Miller 2 wickets and Ford, Evans and Smith 1 wicket each. BCC 8-1.
This was a huge win for BCC. The knocks from Smith and Raza showed that there isn't much of a weakness in the batting lineup as BCC has top order batsmen who bat at number 7 or 8 sometimes. Along with Smith and Raza, the supporting cast of Lynch and Khaliq played a big role in the this exciting chase. If not for their abilities, BCC might have collapsed and lost by a huge margin but the two played their roles very well and won one of the most exciting matches in BCC history. It reminded some of us the chase of 1997 against West Indian Social Club (of CCL league), who at the time had the best batting lineup and the by far the best bowling attack in Connecticut. BCC successfully had chased a total of 230, and needing 80 plus runs in the last ten overs. Raza and Amar Naqvi along with Lloyd Reid won what was unbelievable win for BCC at the time and bringing the team together to its amazing Championship season.
Ronaldo is Bridgeport Cricket Club editor/writer
Well this game was between an older, more experienced club, BCC, and younger and up can coming side of Danbury Cricket Club (DCC). DCC with a few young players who will be a part of cricket in Northeast for year to come. DCC won the toss and without hesitation elected to bat first. With rain in the forecast, it seem like a good choice to bat first and pile on runs. Adil and Taseen opened the innings for DCC, Adil the U-19 star. DCC started with a flier of innings with the first wicket going well past 50 in no time. Adil playing beautiful pull shots and Taseen giving him company and staying at the crease with him. Once again Khaliq was on point with his swinging line and length bowling causing trouble from one end. Adil with his overly aggressive mood and Khaliq's experience, it was a test for both to see who wins this battle. Khaliq kept teasing Adil with varied line and length and eventually shattering Adil's stumps to a bowl pitching outside off and uprooting the middle stump. Khaliq continued the pressure with getting the wicket of Surya to a unnecessary shot, trying to loft over midoff. Throughout the DCC innings, Taseen stayed calm and kept his wicket intact and guiding others with him. Unfortunately, aside from the captain Atif "BOOM BOOM" Zafar who was the only one who lasted for a little while with Taseen. Zafar got bowled to a googly by Murphy and the floodgates opened up. At 128/4 and Taseen reaching his fifty, DCC could've looked to have gotten another 40-50 runs on the board, but the spinning combination of Murphy and Wilson rocked through DCC's middle and lower order and caused a collapse of 128/4 to 153 all out. Taseen 54, Adil 32 and Zafar 19, Wilson 4 wickets, Murphy and Khaliq 2 wickets each.
Needing 154 to win and rain in the forecast, BCC opened the innings with Lyle and Murphy in absence of Smith. What a great move it turned out to be. Murphy zoomed to an amazing 50 with the help of 10 fours and shortly after that being given LBW on 51. At this point BCC was 76/1, in came Reid to bat with Lyle who could not last much longer and was bowled for 20, BCC 86/2. Thomas being promoted up in the order was to get the quick runs due to rain coming down, but could not last long. After a couple of rain delays and small little hiccup, BCC went out to bat in the dark, rainy Danbury Cricket Ground. With just 40 odd runs needed to win, Raza went to bat with Khaliq and the two looked liked they would bring it home for BCC but Khaliq was caught beautifully at point by Taseen off a well timed slash shot. After losing another wicket, BCC reached their goal of 154/6. Murphy 51, Lyle 20, Khaliq 19 and Raza 15*, Syed 3 wickets and Zafar 2 wickets. BCC 7-1.
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This matchup goes back to the days of when both teams were part of the Connecticut Cricket League (CCL) where they had always played some of the best matches of the years. United Cricket Club (UCC) won the toss and, as expected, elected to bat first. It seemed like the right choice when their openers started the innings with calm. With the opening bowlers not able to provide with a breakthrough, the captain, Dilly, turned to Khaliq and Forbes. Khaliq with his amazing on point and lovely swing bowling got the breakthrough that BCC was looking for. Once again, Khaliq proving why he is regarded as one of the best bowlers in Connecticut, always economical and pinpoint accuracy with the line and length frustrating the best batsmen in cricket. With this breakthrough, Khaliq once again proved why Dilly made the right decision and threw the him the ball. Khaliq once again proved why his captain's decision was teh rigth one as he got the wicket of Keen who had earlier in the season scored a 159* and looking dangerous. Khaliq looked beyond what Keen had done earlier and bowled him with an amazing ball that broke all the furniture behind Keen (7). In walked the always dangerous Virapan who has scored the most runs in SCTCA this year and riding on three centuries behind him this year. But khaliq was not going to let anything stop him from his goal today. He was on a mission and it was not completed yet. Khaliq removed Virapan cheaply (1) with beautiful bowling. He once again proved why he is such a big part of BCC and their hopes of winning the championship once again this year. After Virapan's wickets, Sumair and Ramwana had a solid partnership of 41 runs and brought UCC total to a little more respectable 98/4. After the fall of their 4th wicket, UCC did not look comfortable with the spin bowling of Andre Wilson who captured 4 more wickets to his name. UCC ended at 115 in 35 overs. Sumair 34, Punter and Ramwana 23 each, Khaliq 3 wickets and Wilson 4 wickets.
With another small total to chase, but this time a better and more experienced bowling attack than the previous weeks. BCC's innings got off to a bad start as Don was caught for 1, BCC 1/2. Murphy once again walked in after the fall of an early wicket. With Murphy and Lyle at the crease, they kept the scoreboard ticking with aggressive batting from Murphy before Lyle fell for 8 and Murphy after a well made 38. With a small hiccup in the middle, BCC were 4/77 with Khaliq and Lynch at the crease. The two of them played sensible cricket and brought BCC home without losing another wicket. 116 was successfully chased in 25 overs and 6 wickets in hand. Murphy 38, Khaliq 22* and Lynch 21*, Cecil 2 wickets and one each for Punter and Virapan. BCC 6-1
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Going into this game, BCC did not know what kind of team they would be playing against. But when the game started, it was a weak New Haven (NHCC) team, with only 10 players on the side and a few non regular playing members. NH won the toss and elected to bat first with a hope to pile a decent total. NH opened their innings very promising with Nicholas and Huggins playing smartly before losing their first wicket for 36. However, after the initial wicket, NH kept losing their wicket almost every 10-15 runs were added to the board. All together it was a weak effort from a weak NH team. NH ended their inning at 106 in 31.1 overs. Andre Wilson 3 wickets, Murphy 2 wickets and the rest chipped in with 1 each. Amar Naqvi with three brilliant catches. Nicholas 32 and Williams 25.
Needing to reach a small total, BCC opened the innings with Smith and Lyle. Both openers went after the bowling from the word go. Lyle given LBW for 33, BCC 61/1 and Don went in to bat with the inform Smith. Both of them brought BCC home without losing another wicket. The match was brought home by a massive six off the bat of Smith who ended on 61* (4x4 and 1x6) and Don on 12*. BCC won once again by 9 wickets in 15.4 overs. BCC 5-1
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This was a highly anticipated matchup of the three time champion BCC and an up and coming young UBS team that had surprisingly made it to the SCTCA finals in 2006. Both teams were ready for this match, knowing that their players would have to dig down deep and pull this one out. UBS won the toss and elected to bat, hoping to put a big total on the board against BCC. UBS inning started off well, though their openers just ridded the ship during the initial overs from Tony Brown and Brian Murphy, neither could get a breakthrough. It seemed like UBS had a plan to get Brown and Murphy's overs done without losing wickets and they succeeded. Captain Trevor "Dilly" Smith made a bowling change and boy did it pay off, Khaliq and Douglas replaced Brown and Murphy. Khaliq and Douglas destroyed the UBS Batsmen with clever swing bowling. The UBS plan of getting rid of Brown and Murphy and going after the second and third change bowlers (it should be mentioned BCC's 2nd and 3rd change bowlers can be the main bowlers on many teams around Northeast) did not work. Khaliq and Douglas kept getting wickets consistently and putting a lot of pressure on the UBS batsmen. The only innings of any mention is the 28 scored by their bowler Nikhil Thaper that included 3x4. Aside from this, UBS batsmen kept tumbling to the pressure of playing a strong, experienced team. UBS reached a total of 111 allout in 33 overs. Thaper 28, Subbaro 20, Douglas 4 wickets and Khaliq 3 Wickets.
Knowing that they had succeeded in the bowling department, it was time for the batting department to carry on from where they had been leaving it off the previous weeks. The inning did not start as planned, as KK was runout for 3 and it looked as though BCC was playing tight and not loose. In walked the star allrounder Brian Murphy to bat with Jonathan Smith. The two put a display of amazing strokeplay and beautiful shots all over the ground. Murphy with his trademark shots over extra cover were a treat to watch and Smith at the other end just going with the flow and scoring run for run with Murphy. In the end, BCC reached their target of 111 in only 13.2 overs and the loss of KK, destroying the UBS bowling attack that is known for its swing bowling and economical spinning bowling. Murphy ended 54* with 9x4 and 1x6 and Smith 43* 1x4 and 3x6. BCC won by 9 wickets. BCC 4-1
Czar is Bridgeport Cricket Club editor/writer
After a off week, BCC got ready to play Saint Johns Cricket Club of Stamford. Going into this game, BCC's thinking was to win the toss and let their batsmen pile up a big total, which they did. BCC won the toss and elected to bat first. In went the inform opening duo of Lyle and Smith, however, this time Lyle could not last for long and was bowled by SJCC young fast bowler Tamar Bundy. Usually losing an early wicket like this would cause a mini top order collapse, but this time in walked Murphy. With Smith and Murphy's lefty/righty combination, bolwers kept having to change their line and length along with fielders moving around the field and adjusting. The duo put on a solid partnership of 56 runs before McKnight bowled Smith for 25. Don walked in but could not move the score much and was caught for 2. Reidy, the most senior member of the BCC team walked in with Murphy who at this point had been drilling boundaries all over the ground. Reidy played a solid knock of 36 before being caught, adding 77 runs with Murphy, BCC 159/4. After the fall of Reidy, Murphy took over majority of the strike and proved that it was the right move. With everyone around him chipping in with small totals, he guided BCC to a total of 235 in 40 overs. His innings were of class above all in SCTCA, scoring 91(9x4 and 2x6) and missing out on his well deserved century. Murphy 91, Reidy 36, Smith25, Rama 3 wickets, McKnight and Francis 2 wickets.
With a big total of 235 to chase and against the bowling attack of BCC, SJCC could not sustain BCC's bowling. After his 91, Murphy opened the bowling and had figures of 7.2-2-15-2, causing a lot of problems with his fast bowling. To support him, other bowlers bowled just as well and restricted SJCC to 95/allout in 31.2 overs. Goodridge and Kumar 15 each, McKnight 14, Murphy, Brown Pierre, "Don" and Forbes 2 wickets each. BCC 3-1.
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Third game of the season was against Cheshire Cricket Club to whom BCC had the most disappointing loss of 2006. Cheshire won the toss and elected to bat first, opening the innings were their captain P. Patel who had a solid and steady knock of 65 and N. Patel. With exceptionally fast bowling from Murphy, Cheshire batsmen cold not be at ease while swinging and missing many of Murphy's deliveries. Murphy got the wicket of N. Patel for 5, CHCC 22/1 and in walked A. Parikh (15, bowled by Khaliq) who had a solid partnership with P. Patel of 53 runs. With Parikh loss, CHCC lost two more quick wickets and were 80/4 with Khaliq taking another wicket and Raza taking one. With the score on 112, Raza struck another wicket of Rahman who made a quick 25. Only other noteworthy score was from Hussein who made 13, CHCC finished there innings at 157/allout in 38 overs. P. Patel 65, Rahman 25, Murphy 3 wickets, Raza, Brown and Khaliq 2 each.
157 to chase against a team which BCC could not chase a score of 130+ in 2006. In walked Lyle and Smith and what a display of shots allover the field in Bridgeport, CT. Lyle and Smith showed why they are regarded as one of the best opening pairs in Connecticut. Lyle continuing from where he left of the previous week (60 against Norwalk), played amazing strokes of top class to score 83 (7x4 and 3x6), and Smith on the other hand went along for the ride with Lyle and scoring 53* (5x4 and 1x6). These two when on their best can go through any attack in SCTCA. Easy victory for BCC, winning by 9 wickets chasing 158/1 in 24 overs. Lyle 83 and Smith 53*, F Zahid with 1 wicket. BCC 2-1
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Norwalk won the toss and elected to bat on a nice sunny afternoon. Norwalk started their innings off well, both Keith Lawrence and Trividi kept the scoreboard ticking. But due to a misjudgment, their opener Lawrence was runout to a very good fielding and direct hit by Murphy-24/1. After this runout, NCC had a mini collapse and were at one stage 55/5 while losing their highly regarded allrounder Prasana Ramaswami to a beautifully disguised slower yorker that Prasana played allover and got bowled. This was the prize wicket BCC had been looking for. At 55/5, in came E. "Mackie" McHargh and had a solid partnership with Trividi and brought the score to 99, when Raza Khan got the wicket of Mackie, caught behind, with the first ball of his spell. 99/6 and then 100/7 in the following over when NCC's captain was runout, Trividi played a little more aggressive until he was caught and bowled by Raza and the remaining two NCC batsmen chipped in with a few runs and brought the score to 143 allout in 28.3 overs. Trividi 66, McHargh 29, Raza 3 wickets, Forbes and Murphy 2 each.
With the 143 target in mind, BCC sent Smith and Lyle to open. Both the openers started the innings with stellar strokes until Smith was given LBW for 23, BCC 32/1. In walked Murphy with Lyle already in full flow. The two batsmen played amazing strokes to all over the field and brought the score to 124 when Murphy was caught by Prasana for 44, BCC 124/2. With additional 15 runs on the board, Lyle was given LBW to Prasana's bowling for 60 (5x4 and 4x6). BCC at 139/3 and on the brinks of the victory, closed out their innings at 147/3 in 27.5 overs. First victory of the season for the somewhat new BCC team. Lyle 60, Murphy 44, Smith 23, Prasana 2 wickets and Ennis 1. BCC 1-1
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The 2007 season did not start as predicted with a highly disappointing loss to West Haven Cricket Club (WHCC). The middle order collapse and the less than stellar effort in the fielding department cost BCC the opening match of 2007. BCC started off well with K. Kumar and Don opening the innings. The two were going along well until KK was runout for 3, BCC 27/1, in walked Murphy and high hopes. He could not deliver much and given LBW for 19, BCC 68/2. At this point came in the brilliant allrounder Khaliq who over the years has proven to be one of the best allrounder in all of Connecticut. He could not control his temperament and tried to go for a big shot against the spin and was caught for 13. The rest of the middle order could not hold together a good start given to them and fell to a score 151 allout. Don 45, Murphy 19, Khaliq 13, Nikhil and Reddy 3 wickets each and Raju 2 wickets.
WHCC started their innings off to shaky start. The fielders could not support the bowlers of their hardwork. When on 7 and 18, Prasad was dropped by newly added Elroy Douglas, two very easy catches, and this would come back to cost BCC. After given the chances, Prasad (50) and opening partner Faisal (14) played well until Faisal was given LBW to Forbes bowling. WHCC 46/1 and looking steady with Prasad still at the crease. In walked Gautam who with Prasad played an excellent knock of 24 and supporting Prasad with a solid partnership of 52 runs, WHCC 98/2 and losing Prasad. After Prasad's wicket, BCC got Gautam, Reddy, and Yadav quickly reducing WHCC to 119/5 and trying to keep the pressure on WHCC. But it wasn't BCC's day as Nagraj and Shankpal had a game saving 28 run partnership in the rain before Shakpal(14) fell at the score of 147. WHCC ended their innings 153/6 in 37.2 overs. BCC bowlers gave the team several chances to win, but the catches could not be held and cost BCC the match. Prasad 50, Gautam 24, Nagraj 20, Murphy and Khaliq 2 wickets each. From this loss, BCC learned a lot and moved on to their next opponent, Norwalk Cricket Club (NCC), which is always a thriller. BCC 0-1
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BCC