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Kanbis A are now riding on the crest of a wave in the Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) Twenty20 League following a double victory at the weekend.
On Saturday, Kanbis A defeated home side Ruaraka A by 9 wickets and Swamibapa A by 21 runs at their Eastleigh backyard. Kanbis have over time proved impregnable at home and made maximum use of local knowledge.
But following an eventful and entertaining weekend, the Eastleigh troops now savor a two- point advantage over Swamibapa A (32points) who now dip to the second position on the log. Kanbis’ skipper Dhiren Gondaria nevertheless believes it’s still too early to think about anything and indeed not a time to rest on their laurels.
Reflecting on a flawless but energy-sapping weekend, Dhiren was all smiles: “I think guys played positive cricket while facing good teams this weekend, putting extra efforts and backing their skills, that lead us to positive results towards the end.”
It was a weekend of mixed fortunes for Swamibapa ‘A’ as they beat Sikh Union A by 34 runs.
Asked about Swamis weekend of mixed fortunes, prolific batsman Sachin Gill noted: “Saturday we had a good outing as our batting and bowling worked as planned against the Sikhs.
And Sunday, as I always say, when two teams that are at the same level play it depends on who played better on the given day to get the results they (Kanbis) played better than us on Sunday and we missed our chances.”
Elsewhere, Sikh Union A skipper Sukhdeep Singh was left to rue suffered double tragedy this weekend with loses to Ruaraka A and Swamibapa A.
The Sikhs have now dropped to position four on the T20 log and will be hoping to make amends to race ahead with the front runners.
Sukhdeep explained: “A disappointing weekend it was for us. The pressure moments have had our young squad an opportunity to learn and grow. We lacked a lot in the crucial overs and the moments where the match had to be won.
But great positives as Shubham Patel racked up good runs and our youngster Yug Patel bowling fabulously, sometimes you live to fight another day.” Ngara A played both matches at home this weekend reaping maximum points; by beating defending champions Stray Lions A by 8 wickets on Sunday and Nairobi Gymkhana A by 87 runs.
Like Ngara A, the Gurdeep “Sunny” Singh-led Sir Ali A also savored double victory beating Gymkhana A by 7 wickets on Sunday and Stray Lions A by 11 runs on Saturday. Against Gymkhana, Souvick Ghosh was the man of the match on collecting three wickets, much to his credit. After 11 marches Sir Ali A now holds the third spot on the log with 30 points ahead of Sikh Union (26points) and Samaj A (26 points).
On the bat, Stray Lions’ man Simon Ssesazi still tops the runs score tally with 482 from 10 innings at an average of 53.56, But Kanbis’ Dhiren is closing in as fast in second position with 424 runs in 11 innings at an average of 38.55.
Dhiren scored 51 off 29 deliveries and 47 off 23 balls in both matches for a weekend toral of 98 runs.
On the bowl, Swamis Vaj Patel leads 24 wickets followed by Sikh Union’s Yug Patel on 16.
On fielding, Swamibapa’s Dhwanil Patel leads with a total of 14 dismissals ahead of Samaj’s Ravi Rabadia, Sukhdeep Singh of Sikh Union and Irfan Karim of Stay Lions with 13.
SUPER DIVISION RESULTS 23/02/2025
EASTLEIGH HIGH: Kanbis A 169/8 (20.0 OV), Swamibapa A 148/9 (20.0 OV); Kanbis A won 21 runs
NGARA SC: Stray Lions A 162/5 (20.0 Ov); Ngara A 163/2 (19.2 Ov); Ngara A won by 8 wickets
SIR ALI MC: Nairobi Gymkhana A 129/8 (20.0 OV); Sir Ali A 132/3 (17.3 Ov); Sir Ali A won by 7 wickets
NRB CLUB: SCLPS YL A 187/5 (20.0 OV), Kenya Kongonis A 67/10 (18.4 OV); SCLPS YL A won by 120 runs
RUARAKA SC: Sikh Union A 164/5 (20.0 Ov), Ruaraka A 170/4 (19.1 Ov), Ruaraka A won by 6 wickets
22/02/2025
SIR ALI MS: Sir Ali A 209/5 (20.0 Ov), Stray Lions A 198/5 (20.0 Ov), Sir Ali A won by 11 runs
NGARA SC: Ngara A 196/5 (20.0 Ov), Nairobi Gymkhana A 109/10 (19.4 Ov), Ngara won by 87 runs
SIKH UNION CLUB: Swamibapa A 188/4 (20.0 Ov), Sikh Union A 154/6 (20.0 Ov), Swamibapa A by 34 runs
RUARAKA SPORTS CLUB: Ruaraka A 136/10 (19.0 Ov), Kanbis A 139/1 (10.0 Ov), Kanbis A won by 9 wickets
