MUSCAT: Filling in the mighty shoes of his team-mate Ahmed Fayyaz Butt who is away on national duty in Namibia, left-arm paceman Mazhar Alam rose to the occasion with a five-wicket match-winning show as Enhance continued its march towards Muscat Pharmacy-sponsored Premier Division title, beating Passage to India (PTI) by two wickets in a narrow win at the Ministry of Sports grassy ground 1 in Al Amerat on Saturday.
All the top three teams have now played 11 games each with Enhance on top of the table with 31 points due to better net run rate while defending champion Assarain is currently second with 31 points and Muscat CT close behind with 27 points. With one more match each left for the top three, it’s anybody’s game from now on and an intense battle for the championship is likely to ensue in the coming days.
Opting to bowl first, Enhance dismissed PTI for a paltry 158 in 46.2 overs thanks to Mazhar’s magical spell in which he claimed 5 wickets for 35. Sanuth Ebrahim bowled equally well, taking 3 for 22. Syed Amir Ali (33), Arbaz Qureshi (31), Pruthviukumar Machhi (28) and Syed Amir Kaleem (27) were the only notable scorers.
PTI made Enhance sweat for runs but failed to keep it from crossing the line as the table toppers scored 159 for 8 in 32.5 overs to secure a hard-fought two-wicket win. Unnikrishnan Nair (33 not out) forged a 56-run seventh-wicket partnership with Khurram Khan (28) to pull Enhance out of deep trouble after it was reduced to 84 for 6 in 18 overs. Opener Noorul Riaz contributed 22. Ihsan Ullah Khan claimed four wickets while Mohammed Zahir Siddiqui bagged two.
Brief scores: PTI 158 all out in 46.2 overs (Syed Amir Ali 33 – 1x4, 1x6, Arbaz Qureshi 31 – 2x4, 1x6, Pruthvikumar Machhi 28 – 3x4, Syed Amir Kaleem 27 – 3x4. Mazhar Alam 5-35, Sanuth Ebrahim 3-22) lost to Enhance 159 for 8 in 32.5 overs (Unnikrishnan Nair 33 not out – 2x4, 1x6, Khurram Khan – 4x4, 1x6, Noorul Riaz 22 – 3x4. Ihsan Ullah Khan 4-56, Mohammed Zahir Siddiqui 2-51) by two wickets.
7-wicket Munis destroys
Al Turki
Earlier, seven-wicket Munis Ansari ran through a bewildered Al Turki Enterprises batting line-up as Muscat CT collected vital points in a 99-run victory in another Premier Division clash at the same venue on Friday.
Asked to bat first, Muscat posted a significant 251 for 6 in 50 overs thanks to superb fifties by its top three batsmen Sudeep Chavan (77), Shoaib Khan (70) and Ayaan Khan (51 not out). Gopendra Bohara bagged two wickets.
Reeling at 15 for 4, Al Turki was dismissed for 152 in 42.1 overs as Munis, swinging the ball at will, proved too hot to handle, returning remarkable match figures of 9.1 overs, 3 maiden, 7 wickets for 16 runs. All-rounder Ayaan Khan claimed 2 for 34. Only Gulam Shaikh (48), Jigneshbhai Patel (31) and Suraj Kumar (30) were able to offer some resistance.
Brief scores: Muscat CT 251 for 6 in 50 overs (Sudeep Chavan 77 – 8x4, 1x6, Shoaib Khan 70 – 9x4, 1x6, Ayaan Khan 51 not out – 3x4. Gopendra Bohara 2-40) beat Al Turki 152 all out in 42.1 overs (Gulam Shaikh 48 – 4x4, 2x6, Jigneshbhai Patel 31 – 5x4, Suraj Kumar 30 - 2x4, 1x6. Munis Ansari 7-16, Ayaan Khan 2-34) by 99 runs.
Abbas shines as OCT Seeb claims C Division crown
Riding on the all-round brilliance of Abbas al Balushi, who claimed three wickets and then slammed unbeaten 93, undefeated OCT Seeb trounced New Prism International to claim Al Ansari Group-sponsored C Division crown at Muscat Municipality ground 1.
Thanks to a series of superlative performances by its star players, specially Sufiyan Mahmood, Yousuf al Balushi, Issa al Balushi and Abbas, OCT Seeb did not lose a single game this season to claim C Division title.
Batting first, New Prism was bundled out for 126 in 19.3 overs. Hardik Patel topscored with 32 off 24 while Sanket Santosh Kumar contributed 23 off 18. Issam al Balushi bagged 4 for 17 while Abbas claimed 3 for 15.
OCT Seeb overhauled the target in 17.1 overs, scoring 129 for 6 thanks to brilliant unbeaten 93 off 57 by Abbas. Kamal Kaladharan took two wickets.
Brief scores: New Prism International 126 all out in 19.3 overs (Hardik Patel 32 – 7x4, Sanket Santosh Kumar 23 – 3x4. Issam al Balushi 4-17, Abbas al Balushi 3-15) lost to OCT Seeb 129 for 6 in 17.1 overs (Abbas al Balushi 93 not out – 10x4, 1x6. Kamal Kaladharan 2-20) by 4 wickets.
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