Lugogo Oval
Strikers CC 317/9 (Derrick Bakunzi 63(66), Rogers Olipa 61(48)) in 50 overs lost to Premier CC 321/6 (Rajesh Nair 140*(101), Ronald Opio 39(52)) in 48.1 overs by 4 wickets
Man of match: Rajesh Nair 140*(101), 2/37 in 10 overs
Premier CC finally caught up to their ever elusive win with a record breaking run chase that left their opponents bewildered and feeling bewitched.
Premier won the toss and to the joy of Strikers, they elected to field first. Strikers started the innings off in the only way they know how, getting 18 runs in the 1st over. They looked on course to score it big but the fall of Zephania in the 2nd over spelled doom for the Strikers as they quickly collapsed to 130 for 6 in 25 overs. It was however Derrick Bakunzi 63(66) and Rogers Olipa 61(48) who got the Striker back on track, combining well to see their team past the 250 mark.
With 317 runs to win, no one would have ever imagined that Premier would win this one. Little did the Strikers know that the Premier boys had an ace up their sleeve. Opener Ronald Opio 39(52) skillfully guided his team to 70 runs in just 10 overs before he fell. Man of match Rajesh Nair 140*(101) then took the reins, struck with such precision that the Strikers had no reply to his brutish style of batting. Premier then went on to win their 1st game of the season by doing the unthinkable – chase down 317 runs. A record chase never witnessed before.
Kyambogo Oval
Challengers CC 302/7 in 50 overs (Aneef Mohamed 100(92), Arthur Kyobe 70(85)) beat Ceylon Lions 270/10 in 46.1 overs (Arnold Otwani 89(91), Simon Ssesazi 51(32), Narinder Singh 47(50)) by 32 runs
Man of match: Aneef Mohamed 100(92), 2/32 in 10 overs
Challengers bounced back in fashion to grab a much deserved win against a Ceylon Lions side that just could not gel together to
Challengers CC found inspiration in Aneef Mohammed 100(92) and Arthur Kyobe 70(85) who showed class and maturity to make light work of Ceylon Lions. Challengers came into the game on the back of a miserly showing in their last game against Aziz Damani that saw them cave easily to sheer strength. It seems they picked a leaf from that game's victors to apply the same mentality against the Lions. Scoring 302, they knew they could rely on their bowlers to do their job to grant them the win.
Needing 303 runs and an inspiration, the Lions might have found one in on form batsman Simon Ssesazi 51(32) who got his team off to a flying start. As events followed, the runs kept pilling, but the same was said of the wickets, for they kept falling in droves. Arnold Otwani 89(91) and Narinder Singh 47(50) stood firm to forge a meaningful partnership which unfortunately did not last. The death of their partnership ushered in a spell of fine bowling from Challengers that easily tore through the Lion's defenses.
Entebbe Oval
Aziz Damani 278/8 in 50 Overs (Damani: Riazat Shah 108(105), Saudi Islam 58(56)) beat KICC 192/10 in 42.3 overs (Pankal Shatpute 80(74)) by 86 runs
Man of match: Riazat Shah 108(105), 2/18 in 5 overs
Aziz Damani maintained their 100% start to the league with yet another win against KICC at the lakeside oval in Entebbe.
Damani won the toss and elected to bat first, amassing a total of 278 for the loss of 8 wickets in their 50 overs. On form batsman Saud Islam 58(56) starred again with the bat but he did not steal the spotlight this time round as it was stolen by Riazat Shah 108(105). Shah showed great patience in dealing with the deadly spin trio of Frank Nsubuga, Davis Karashani and Irfan Afridi, all of whom had no response to his batting guile.
When KICC came on to bat, the offered little resistance to the bowling might of Damani that has so often overwhelmed and intimidated the batmen on the receiving end. One man, Pankal Shatpute 80(74) however stood out for his KICC side and offered a bit of resistance. This eventually proved futile as his team was bundled out for 192, 86 runs short of reaching their goal.
