Wednesday 17 / April / 2024
Muscat: Enhance’s run machine Khawar Ali perhaps played the most important knock of this season, enabling his side to end Muscat CT’s winning streak as well as pierce an aura of invincibility they were beginning to build with a spade of scintillating victories.
With Khawar’s rock solid 88 and Enhance’s five-wicket win at Ministry Of Sports Ground I, Muscat CT now look beatable, giving other Premier Division sides new hope of laying their hands on the championship trophy.
Calling correctly was the first right decision by Enhance followed by the calculated move to bowl first rather than bat. Muscat would have believed, and rightly so, that they has had their bases covered when they scored a significant 253 for nine in 50 overs.
Enhance chased down the total with five wickets and nearly six overs still in hand. Captain Khawar Ali’s stubborn 88 not out along with a classy 75 by Sanuth Mohammed Ibrahim as well as the usual late order little cameo, once again, by Khurram Khan made Muscat’s fighting total look small. After all, 250 plus targets rarely get chased down in Oman’s Premier Division League.
Muscat had their magical moments too. Just when it looked like Ahmed Fayyaz Butt will run through the most dependable batting line-up this season, Ashish Odedara and Ayaan Khan scored fighting fifties, forging a partnership that lent Muscat score with a lot of weight and authority. In the end, when Enhance batted, a good 44 overs later, this total proved to be insufficient and achievable, throwing Premier Division wide open, once again.
Brief scores: Muscat CT 253 for 9 in 50 overs (Ayaan Khan 73, Ashish Odedara 58, Swapnil Khadye 35, Vaibhav Wategaonkar 26; Ahmed Fayyaz Butt 3/44, Sanuth Mohammed Ibrahim 2/44) lost to Enhance 257 for 5 in 44.3 overs (Khawar Ali 88 n.o., Sanuth Mohammed Ibrahim 75, Khurram Khan 35; Ayaan Khan 2/56).
Renaissance win
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Renaissance all-rounder Ashan Dinura Ranasinghe scored an unbeaten 68 and then bagged five wickets to script a 139-run victory over high-flying Glory Bower Strikers in an A Division match at Ministry of Sports Affairs Ground II in Al Amerat on Friday.
Batting first, Renaissance scored 228 for nine in 50 overs with Ashan top-scoring with a brilliant half century. Nikhil Uttam Shinde (33) and Bermuda (30) batted well too.
Ashan ran through Strikers’ batting order, taking five wickets for 18 as they were bundled out for just 89 in the 27th over.
Brief scores: Renaissance 228 for 9 in 50 overs (Ashan Dinura 68 n.o., Nikhil Uttam Schinde 33, Bermuda 30; Ruban Durai 2/22, Aadil Mohammed 2/41, Vineet Pal Singh 2/43) bt Glory Bower Strikers 89 all out in 26.2 overs (Vijayanand 30, Anup Rajan 29; Ashan Dinura 5/18, Rauf 2/14, Amith Eranda 2/22).
