Sunday 22 / June / 2025
Muscat: Relying on its never-say-die spirit, Assarain scored a nail-biting one wicket victory against Muscat in a pulsating Premier Division clash at Oman Cricket grassy ground 1 in Amerat on Friday. Invited to bat first, Muscat was dismissed for 171 in the 49th over, Ashish Odedara topscoring with 67 off 100. Muhammed Nadeem claimed three wickets while Kaleemullah and Sindo Michael took two each.
Assarain got off to a disastrous start, slumping to 59 for 5 and then 95 for 7 in the 24th over before a 34-run 8th wicket partnership between Sindo Michael (21 off 53) and Shakeel Ahmad (31 not out of 62) revived Assarain’s hope for victory.
Shakeel was then involved in a match-winning unbroken last-wicket 41-run partnership with Kaleemullah (13 not out off 31) to steer Assarain to a thrilling win in the 49th over. Captain Zeeshan Maqsood topscored with a vital 43 off 51. Ayaan Khan bagged 3 for 26 while Badal Singh and Munis Ansari took two wickets each.
Brief scores (Premier Division): Muscat CT 171 all out in 48.5 (Ashish Odedara 67 – 5x4, 2x6. Muhammed Nadeem 3-37, Kaleemullah 2-18, Sindo Michael 2-20) lost to Assarain 172 for 9 in 48.2 overs (Zeeshan Maqsood 43 – 7x4, Shakeel Ahmad 31 not out – 2x4, 1x6. Ayaan Khan 3-26, Baadal Singh 2-23, Munis Ansari 2-49) by 1 wicket.
Renaissance victory
Rishabh Verma and Jabin Jabbar powered Renaissance to an emphatic 51-run win over OCT Muscat in an A Division game at OC grassy ground 2 on Friday.
Batting first, Renaissance was bundled out for 185 in the 48th over. Rishabh led the way with a solid 62 off 98 while his fellow opener Faizal Jerome contributed 26 off 35. Akbar Al Balushi and Shaed Ali bagged three and two wickets respectively.
Facing a modest target, OCT Muscat failed to rise to the occasion and secure a vital win, folding up for a paltry 134 in the 38th over. Ali Akbar (29) and Waleed Al Balushi (26) were the main scorers. Jabin Jabbar picked up 3 for 28 while Faizal Jerome claimed 2 for 20.
Brief scores (A Division): Renaissance 185 all out in 47.2 overs (Rishabh Verma 62 – 10x4, Faizal Jerome 26 – 4x4. Akbar Al Balushi 3-41, Shaed Ali 2-11)beat OCT Muscat 134 all out in 37.4 overs (Ali Akbar 29 – 4x4, 2x6, Waleed Al Balushi 26 – 4x4. Jabin Jabbar 3-28, Faizal Jerome 2-20) by 51 runs.
Shetty stars in Al Mada win
Brilliant bowling by Rajesh Shetty (4 for 23) was the highlight of Al Mada Engineering’s thrilling one-wicket victory against Al Mardhuf in a B Division match at Muscat Municipality ground 1 in Amerat.
Al Mardhuf was bowled out for a meager 127 in the 26th over, Nadeem Ashaqtopscoring with a fluent 59 off 46. Abdul Rauf chipped in with a useful 24. Apart from Shetty, ShameerKariadan bowled well too, taking 2 for 16.
Al Mada achieved the target in the 29th over, scoring 129 for 9. Sameer Sheik was the main scorer with an unbeaten 30 while Suraj Rao and Deepak Bhandari contributed 22 and 21 respectively. Abdul Rauf picked up three wickets while Nadeem Ashaq claimed two.
Brief scores (B Division): Al Mardhuf 127 all out in 25.5 overs (Nadeem Ashaq 59 – 10x4, Abdul Rauf 24 – 4x4. Rajesh Shetty 4-23, ShameerKariadan 2-16) lost to Al Mada Engineering 129 for 9 in 28.2 overs (Sameer Sheik 30 not out – 3x4, Suraj Rao 22 – 2x4. Deepak Bhandari 21 – 3x4, 1x6. Abdul Rauf 3-17, Nadeem Ashaq 2-22) by 1 wicket.
PDO win again
PDO beat Mott MacDonald by 29 runs thanks to impressive performances by Shiv Gupta and Mazhar Javed in a C Division game at Muscat Municipality ground 2.
Shiv topscored with 61 off 56 while Rajesh Khetani scored brilliant 54 off 38 as PDO posted 177 for 6 on the board in 20 overs. PrsanthGanapthay and TawsifTambe took two wickets each.
Mott MacDonald was then restricted to 148 for 9 as PDO bowled with energy and discipline. Prakash Kesarkar (47) and Sibramanian (41) were the main scorers. Mazhar javed led the bowling honours, taking 3 for 14 while Fiyaz Kamal took 2 for 22.
Brief scores (C Division): PDO 177 for 6 in 20 overs (Shiv Gupta 61 – 5x4, Rajesh Khetani 54 – 6x4. PrsanthGanapthay 2-20, TawsifTambe 2-22) defeated Mott MacDonald 148 for 9 in 20 overs (Prakash Kesarkar 47 – 6x4, Sibramanian 41 – 3x4, 1x6. Mazhar Javed 3-14, FiyazKamal 2-22) by 29 runs.
