Oman Cricket: Al Turki down PTI, Salman Stores beat MPE

Sports Sunday 31/December/2017 17:28 PM
By: Times News Service
Oman Cricket: Al Turki down PTI, Salman Stores beat MPE

Muscat: Al Turki NMC showed they can be a force on their day with a thrilling 31-run victory against a resurgent Passage to India (PTI) in a Muscat Pharmacy-sponsored Premier Division match at the Ministry of Sports Affairs (MOS) Ground I in Al Amerat on Saturday.
Invited to bat first, Al Turki recovered from a precarious position of being three down for 67 to post a healthy 239 for eight in their quota of 50 overs.
A 61-run fourth wicket partnership between opener Yogesh Patel (68 off 78) and Jayam Sunil Singh (71 off 101) brought Al Turki back on track. Singh was later involved with solid partnerships with Suraj Kumar (28 off 51) and Adnan-ul Haq (27 not out off 21) to lead his side to a fighting total.
Bilal Khan and Muhammed Bilal took two wickets each.
Reeling at 42 for four, PTI were stabilised by a 54-run fifth wicket partnership between Zeeshan Ahmed Siddiqui (32 off 57) and Rana Safeer Tariq (50 off 100). Aftar Rana’s fall, Syed Amir Ali (62 off 55) batted brilliantly to bring PTI in sight of a probable win before Gopendra Bopara dismissed Ali to end his valiant effort. PTI was then quickly dismissed for 208 in the 48th over.
Bohara and Ajay Lalcheta claimed three wickets each while Jay Odedara bagged two.
Brief scores: Al Turki NMC 239 for 8 in 50 overs (Yogesh Patel 68, Jayam Sunil Singh 71, Suraj Kumar 28, Adnan-ul Haq 27 n.o.; Bilal Khan 2/38, Muhammed Bilal 2/58) bt PTI 208 all out in 47.2 overs (Syed Amir Ali 62, Rana Safeer Tariq 50, Zeeshan Ahmed Siddiqui 32; Ajay Lalcheta 3/35, Gopendra Bopara 3/35, Jay Odedara 2/45).
Jahanzeb, Tauseef shine
Salman Stores rode on brilliant performances by Tauseef Ahmed and Jahanzeb Asghar Ali to beat Muscat Projects and Environment (MPE) for a thrilling one-wicket victory in the Khimji Ramdas-sponsored A Division game at MOS Ground II on Friday.
Deciding to bowl first after winning the toss, Salman Stores bundled MPE out for 150 in the 41st over. Captain Jason Delboy top-scored with 74 off 118 balls. Tauseef Ahmed claimed four wickets while Muzammil Ilyas and Imran Haider bagged two each.
With an excellent bowling unit, MPE floored the strong Salman Stores batting, reducing them first to 84 for four and then 149 for nine before Imran Haider slammed a six to seal a nerve-wracking victory for his team.
Jahanzeb batted superbly to bring his team to the verge of victory before falling for 81 off 109. Vijeesh Velunni was outstanding with the ball, taking five wickets for 45 in his spell. Muhammed Waqas bagged two wickets.
Brief scores: Muscat Projects and Environment 150 all out in 40.1 overs (Jason Delboy 74; Tauseef Ahmed 4/35, Imran Haider 2/19, Muzammil Ilyas 2/33) lost to Salman Stores 155 for 9 in 33.2 overs (Jahanzeb Asghar Ali 81; Vijesh Velunni 5/45, Muhammed Waqas 2/42).