A Need To Win Driven By More Than Just Revenge

The recent loss to Canada in the Intercontinental Cup was all the more bitter as it came at the end of a thrilling four days of cricket. For Associate Cricket, and Canadian cricket in particular, it was a great success. For Kenyan cricket, it was a serious setback. Not only did we lose the match, but also further standing in the eyes of the rest of the World. In 4-day cricket, there is no way we can still claim to be one of the top Associates. Fifth would probably be closer to to it, behind Canada and the Europeans.

In One Day Internationals however, we do have a better record than the others and are the only Associate currently on the ICC ODI Rankings. Bear in mind that this position is based on our two wins over Zimbabwe this year rather on the semi-finals place in 2003's World Cup. There is plenty of speculation out there that some of the European sides would be able to get similar or even better results. Maybe so, but the difference is that we have actually done it. Our place reflects not only the performance of the team on the field, but also the hard work our administrators have done in securing the matches against Full members. It is a place that we must defend jealously. Winning against Canada today therefore is more important than just gaining revenge. It will stave off criticism and it will protect our position on the ladder, at least for the moment. Can we do it? Assuredly. Will we do it - that will depend.

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There is no secret that Kenya's weak spot is our opening pair. In the Intercontinental Cup, they only managed 9 runs between them, and are one of the major reasons we came up short. Today's match will almost certainly see a change made. To my mind, Timothy Muange is about a year away from being ready to take the step up to the national team. Despite this, I see little choice for the selectors but to choose him to open the batting. Who he replaces is the question - there is no other opener in the squad. Kennedy Obuya made a pair in the I.C game, but Brijal Patel only made 9. Patel has been in better touch recently, but Obuya has shown his class in the past. Form they say is temporary, class permanent and for that reason I would prefer to see Kennedy get one more chance. He is a tough character and will need this to come to the fore as he would be without doubt batting for his career. I hope to see him come good, not just for himself, but because Kenya will need him over the next year. If he doesn't the selectors will have little choice but to look for someone else who can get runs at the top of the order.

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I would also like to see a change made at number 3 with Tanmay Mishra coming in. He has been protected so far by coming in down the order, but needs to be given that chance to use his talent. A bit of a gamble with such a weak opening pair, but one that needs to happen at some stage. Tikolo should stay at his favoured 4, but Collins Obuya should come in at 5 followed by Modi at 6 and Kamande at 7 (in the team in place of Tony Suji). Odoyo has not been in great touch recently with the bat, so should move down to 8. Odhiambo at 9 gives us depth - he has been called by one of the other team members "a much better batsmen than people think...maybe even the next Odoyo, but better" Now that would be good! Ongondo at 10 is still capable of producing quick runs at the end of an innings which only leaves Variaya at 11 as a real tail ender. Provided the opening pair can hold out, we should have a strong batting line up.

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Kenya's bowling attack will be lead by Odoyo and Ongondo. With Nehemiah Odhiambo firing on all cylinders after his 5 wicket haul in the I.C, the top three should provide 30 dangerous overs. Tikolo and Variaya will no doubt take the bulk of the spin overs, but Kamande will give extra variety and Collins Obuya or Hitesh Modi could be called on in if really needed.

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Canada have made some surprising changes to their squad, and the inclusion of several players seen to be 'mates' with the selectors may not have helped team morale. None the less, they will have their tail's up after their win earlier in the week, so Kenya need to play at their best to ensure a win.

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Not sure where will be doing live coverage. I know that Jonathan over at Canadian Cricket will be at the match and posting wickets and milestones from his mobile. No news from either Cricinfo or Cricket Europe. Canada Cricket Online had sporadic updates during the I.C so may also be worth checking out. The BBC seems at least to be interested, it has the match listed (as well as the ones from the European Championship) they may be the best bet. Finally, the ECB site doesn't have anything yet, but came good for the Kenya v Bangladesh matches, so could be worth a try.

CCA Open Season With 6-A-Side

It is all systems go this weekend at the Coast as their season gets underway with a six-a-side tournament to be held at Nairobi Gymkhana tomorrow (Sunday 6th). The league proper is expected to start next weekend after a second Captain's meeting in the coming week. I'm not sure which teams will be taking part tomorrow, but at a guess, there will be: Coast Gymkhana, MSC, Mombasa Jaffery, Coast Institute, SCLYL (msa), Siri Guru Singh Saba and Burhani SC.

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Favourites would be hosts Gymkhana with MSC the most likely to face them in the final. One would expect the same two teams to feature strongly in the league once it starts. Jaffery are the other team that have a strong cricketing history, but may not be as good as they once were. It would be great if the CCA is able to follow NPCA's lead and expand on the overall number of teams taking part in the league this year.

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Gymkhana and MSC are also reported to be looking at the possibility of a longer game or two. This is a fantastic idea and should be embraced by all connected. Maybe some of the Nairobi teams could look at organising the same during the days they have byes. Even if the games are only played as friendlies to start with, they would really help lift the quality of cricket.

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Meanwhile, for those of you who missed Shaneabbas' comment, the final of the Interschool Cricket Tournament was played last week in Mombasa between Mombasa Jaffery and Oshwal Acadamy. No news yet on the winner, but I am digging...

The event has been organised annually since 1994 by Jafferys. Anyone who knows any more, get in touch!

NPCA Fixtures For Sunday 6th August

Teams in bold are my picks to win. Last week, I was right in 7 out of 11 matches. Not bad, but room for improvement. Last weeks picks were based on the 2005 season standings, so it is good to see that some teams seem to have improved since last year.

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SUPER DIVISION:

There will be no Super Division matches played this week as the two scheduled games have been put back until 20th October. Not sure as to the reason for this, but it could well be due to many of the players being away on national duty. The two matches concerned are:
Kongonis ‘A’ versus Swamibapa ‘A’ at Nairobi Club
Aga Khan S C ‘A’ versus Nbi Gymkhana ‘A’ at Aga Khan Sports Center.

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DIVISION I:

Division I sees a full complement of games due to be played:
Kanbis Sports Club 'B' vs. Parklands Sports Club - Rhinos at Eastleigh Sec Sch:

Kanbis defeated Ruaraka last week and won the division last season so go into the match hot favourites. Rhinos had last week's match called off due to a wet pitch, so this is the first outing of the season for them. They finished second in Div II last season, so as the second promoted team will have a tough assignment against Kanbis.

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Ngara Sports Club vs. Swamibapa Cricket Club 'B' at Ngara S.C:

Both teams had wins last week, so will come in with confidence. Swamibapa won on the strength of their bowling attack, while Ngara chased down 287 on the back of a Jay Solanki century. It should be a cracker of a game - my pick Swami's as they were not really stretched with the bat last week so look to have more in the tank.

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Shree Cutchi Leva Youth League vs Kongonis Cricket Club 'B' at Pindolia Academy:

Kongonis surely favourites to win this after SCLYL's mauling at the hands of Swamibapa's bowling last week. Kongoni's play their first match this weekend so should be raring to go. Hopefully, SCLYL will bounce back after last week.

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Premier Club vs. Ruaraka Sports Club 'A' at Premier Club.

A toughie to pick as both lost narrowly last week, but I will go for Premier as Ngara only earned promotion last season. Could well be the match of the round.

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DIVISION II:

Nairobi Nookers Cricket Club vs Simba Union Sports Club at Nairobi School: Nookers lost to Stray Lions last week despite heroics from Ronald. Simba Union are the promoted team from Div III, so should be the underdogs. Never the less, they are my pick - it would be good to see them continue the march up the divisions.

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Stray Lions C.C 'A' versus Aga Khan Sports Center 'B' at Simba Union: Both teams surprised me by winning their matches last week, but the Aga Khan batsmen look to be in too good form to go past.

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Nbi Institute get a bye after last weeks defeat by Qutbis.
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DIVISION III:
Golden XI vs. Oshwal XI at Highridge Pr Sch: Debutantes Oshwal gave Parklands Ndovu a real scare last week, but Golden XI's bowlers seem to be in good form despite their loss to Ruaraka. Another toughie, but I'll go with the more experienced side.

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Nbi Jaffery Sports Club 'B' vs. Stray Lions 'B' at Nbi Jaffery S.C: Two teams that started in vastly contrasting styles. Jaffery defeated Telca fairly comfortably, while Stray Lions were annihilated by Sir Ali. Hopefully Jaffery will keep up the winning ways and make up for the withdrawal of their senior team.

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Parklands Sports Club - Ndovu vs. Telca Cricket Club at Parklands S.C: Ndovua won last week despite being run close by Oshwal. They should have enough experience to account for the newcomers, Telca. It will be interesting to see how the latter's bowler, Odoyo goes. He took 3/17 last week - I wonder if he is a younger brother to Thomas (anyone who knows, please drop me a line).

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Ruaraka Sports Club 'B' vs. Sir Ali Muslim Club 'B' at Ruaraka S.C: Sir Ali put on a very impressive display against Stray Lions B last week while Ruaraka beat the Golden XI thanks largely to 5/30 from Nguru, the best bowling figures from last week. It will be interesting to see how Sir Ali's prolific batsmen go against what seems to be a stong attack, but they would still be favourites to win.

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So ten matches in action and plenty of cricket going on in Nairobi this week. I will post a results round up as soon as it comes through from the NPCA, but any players out there who would like to send me match reports sooner are more than welcome. My email address can be found via the link in 'profiles'.

Bangladesh Matches To Be Shown Live

Bankelele first alerted me to this a couple of days ago, but I was too busy (and strung-up) with the Canada match to say anything about it. It has now apparently been confirmed that Supersport will be showing the matches live on ss6 as well has broadcasting highlights packages. This is great news as it means that the games will be seen in pubs and bars across the country as well as in those homes that can afford it. I'm assuming that this means that tv rights will also have been sold to Bangladesh tv so there will be plenty of interest from there as well. This is a definite victory for Cricket Kenya, and one would also assume that it means they have tied up sponsorship deals for the series as well. Hopefully, we will hear more soon.

Cricket Kenya Website

Finally, after what seems like an interminable wait, Cricket Kenya's website is up and running. I'm not sure quite what took so long as the site is not huge, but none the less, it is great to have it there. Some parts of the site are not yet complete, with the 'domestic' and 'Kenya' links still dead, but others look like they could turn out well.

The 'about us' page carries Cricket Kenya's mission statement which includes some promising statements and gives targets against which the administration can be marked. A definite step in the right direction towards transparency and accountability.

Friends Of Cricket Kenya are included in the 'fans' page giving the opportunity to join and show support for Kenyan cricket. It is good to see this initiative supported by Cricket Kenya, and hopefully it can be broadened to FOCK international rather than just FOCK-UK. Watch this space.

Unfortunately, no link yet to here, but I have put in a request for this to happen, so we shall see.

There is an interesting article about Kenyan women's cricket in the 'Development' Page, but nothing there yet about school cricket. Still, to be fair, the site is only just up, so we can afford to give them a bit of time to get all the information up.

There is also a poll on the homepage concerning Roger Harper's effect on the team and some pics from the Canada match as well as a write up. A couple of games for kids are included as well, so it is good to see they are trying to include something for everyone.

I have put a post in the forum for people to put in their thoughts about the site, so if you have any comments, please post them there.

NPCA Results Week 1

SUPER DIVISION:

Kanbis Sports Club 'A' versus Kongonis Cricket Club 'A' at Eastleigh Sec. Sch.

Kanbis batted first and showed why they are not only defending champions, but also many people's favourites for a consecutive titles. A wonderful century from National team hopeful Malhar Patel (109) would certainly have caught the selector's eyes and he was well backed up by Ramesh Mepani who fell just short of his half century. Pick of Kongoni's bowlers were Dominic with 4-53 and Moses Otieno who weighed in with 2-36. Kanbis finished on 7-275 and were always going to make Kongoni's struggle to chase. None of the Kongoni batsmen really got going, and incisive spells from Rohit Vekaria (4-21) and Arvind Halai (3-16) kept Kanbis in firm control. Kongonis finished on 141 all out with their top scorers Singh (19) and Duncan Okinyo (13).

A comfortable 134 run victory for Kanbis to start the season. Kongonis will need to regroup before their next game.
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DIVISION I:

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Kongonis Cricket Club 'B' versus Parklands Sports Club - Rhinos at Nairobi Club: Match abandoned due to damp pitch.

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Ngara Sports Club versus Premier Club at Ngara S.C.

Premier Club batted first and set a target of 287 All Out thanks mainly to Brijan G Patel (55) and Rahul J Patel (49). Ngara's bowlers were spearheaded by Jagit Patel (3-26) and Rajan (2-60). In reply Ngara's Jay Solanki (103) hit the second century of the competition ably supported by Jagit Patel's 45. Vijay took 2-30 for Premier, but their next best was Snehal Patel with 1-34 and Ngara ended up winning by 3 wickets.

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Swamibapa Cricket Club 'B' versus Shree Cutchi Leva Youth League at Pindolia Academy:

Swami's fielded first and put the screws on right from the start. Sailesh Patel (5-9) and Narendra Vekaria (3-3) both finished with figures that they are unlikely to duplicate and SCLYL ended up all out for 72. Only Paresh Kerai (15) made it to double figures. Chasing such a low total was never going to put too much strain on Swamibapa and they cruised to victory with 8 wickets still intact. Maxwel Otieno 29* and Narendra Vekaria 18* the batsmen to take them home. Nishant Vaghjiani (2-18) the only player to come out with anything to show for SCLYL.

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Ruaraka Sports Club 'A' versus Kanbis Sports Club 'B' at Ruaraka S.C:

Kanbis batted first and made 226 before being bowled out. Rajesh (65) and
Ramesh (36) led the way with the bat while Kapil Josh (3-50) and Amit Shukla (2-35) were the pick of Ruaraka's bowling. Chasing what looked like an achievable total, Ruaraka looked good with all-rounder Amit Shukla making 69 and Hitesh Gohil 37. It was another all-rounder, Rajesh (2-27) who swung the balance back to Kanbis, and together with Rikesh (3-39) made sure that both Kanbis teams finished on a winning note. Ruaraka ended up 188 All Out giving Kanbis 'B' a 38 run victory.

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DIVISION II:

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Aga Khan Sports Center 'B' versus Nbi Gymkhana Sports Club 'B' at Aga Khan S.C:

Ravindu Shah returned for Nairobi Gymkhana and made a welcome 72 after so many months out injured. A welcome sight for Kenya's selectors even if it was in Div II. Shashank chipped in with exactly 50 as the visitors set a target of 237 for the loss of 7 wickets. It was a family affair with the ball for Aga Khan as Moez Popatia finished with 3-32 and Asif Popatia took 1-17. Aga Khan's reply was lead by another Kenyan team hopeful, Ashish Karia who posted a fine 122, the highest score of the day. Mohsin Ali added 50 and the hosts ended up cruising to an easy 8 wicket victory. Gymkhana's wickets came from Rajesh Patel (1-33) and Rakip Patel (1-55).

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Qutbis Sports Club 'A' versus Nbi Institute at Seifee Park:

One of the closer matches of the round saw Quitbis (166 all out) defeat Nairobi institute (144 all out) by 22 runs.

Top scores for Quitbis were Huzeifa Najmi (47) Burhanudin Nana (29) while Institute's were Khuzeima (29) and Salim (25). Pick of the bowlers were:
John (N.I) 4-18, Ritesh (Qut) 3-15, Huzeifa (N.I) 3-27 and Bilal (Qut) 2-19.

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Stray Lions Crcket Club 'A' versus Nairobi Nookers Cricket Club at Simba Union.

National team reserve, David Obuya (74) led the way for for Stray Lions as they set a total of 231 for their 9 wickets. Mohamed Faruk added 46. Nooker's best bowlers Ronald (2-19) and Earnest (2-29) can probably feel a tad aggrieved that the rest did not give them better support. Despite Ronald (54) making a half century, Nookers never really looked in the hunt and the Lions bowlers kept the lid on. Shinaz Abdul took 3-27 and Bharat Halai 3-43 to ensure Nookers were bowled out for 146. Rajesh Patel was their second highest scorer with 20.

Stray Lions win by 85 runs.

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DIVISION 3:

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Golden XI versus Ruaraka Sports Club 'B' at Highridge Pr Sch:

Ruaraka B batted first in their debut game and were able to set a target of 202 all out. No batsman really dominated for them, it being more of a team effort, but the two picks were Ravji R (28) and Rajesh N (28). Golden XI's Amit N took the first five wicket haul of the competition with 5 - 34 to keep them in the game and he was supported by a fiery Sanish with 3-19. Not to be out done, Ruaraka's Nguru returned the favour with the day's best figures of 5-30. Ritesh took 4-20, and their effort was enough to give Ruaraka a 46 run victory despite 33 from Somba and 22 from Pratik.

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Parklands Sports Club - Ndovu versus Oshwal XI at Parklands S.C:

The closest game of the round saw the visitors batting first and reduced to 172 all out after a fine bowling display by Ravilal Manji (3-23) and Mansuk Hirani (3-43). Mehul Gada (45) will no doubt be disappointed to miss out on his fifty by 5 runs. Oshwal's next highest scorer was Primal Chandaria with 22. Ndovu's reply stuttered thanks again to the bowlers, the pick of whom was Chirag Pattani (3-34). Again, no batsman really dominated but 29 from Hitesh Varsani and 24 from man-of-the-match, Ravilal Manji was enough for the Parklands boys to scrape home by 1 wicket.

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Sir Ali Muslim Club 'B' versus Stray Lions 'B' Sir Ali Muslim Club:
This was reported on previously, but just as a reminder: Sir Ali made 292 For 8 (Abdul 64, Akber 62, Nadeem 62), Pradip 4-63 and Ashwin 2-39. In reply, Stray Lions were bowled out for 60 with Nadeem (4-11) and Tariq Alvi (3-15) doing the damage. Sir Ali by 232 runs.

The Highs and Lows of the Loss To Canada

It is always painful disecting lost matches, especially when they are ones that could and should have been won. The Intercontinental Cup match against Canada was such a loss, but pain of losing aside, it did have some bright spots for Kenya.

Day 1:

Canada ended the day on top thanks to 91* from Qaiser Ali and a top order collapse from Kenya. Bright spot for us were Peter Ongondo taking 4/49 and both of the debutants - Variaya and Odhiambo also getting wickets. Not so bright spots were the way we failed to mop up the tail effectively. their last three batsmen each scored 13 runs, and provided valuable support for Ali. a couple of quicker wickets and we could have been chasing a much lower total. Dark spot - our top order's capitulation. Both Kennedy Obuya and Brijal Patel out for ducks really highlighted Kenya's opening blues. Suji and Tikolo both out cheaply compounded things.

Day 2:

A good fightback by Kenya. Tanmay Mishra's innings was a definite plus from this match as it gives him his best ever score for the national side and shows that he can live up to potential. Support acts from Collins Obuya with 43 and Nehemiah Odhiambo with 38 also heartening as all are young and have years ahead of them playing for Kenya. What was disappointing was our inability to get those extra 5 runs we needed for a first inning's lead. Put this down to inexperience, but you can't help but feel that had we got their tail out sooner, or even a few runs from the top order, things would have been very different.

Day 3:

Again Canada's day, and more specifically Geoff Barnett's. His century really gave Canada a good target to defend, and at one stage they looked like running away with it. Enter Nehemiah Odhiambo who not only removed Barnett, but ended up taking 5 for the innings as Kenya did what they failed to do in the first innings: mop up the tail. Hiren Variaya chipped in with a confidence boosting 3/27 that also augers well for the future. All in all, I would say that our bowlers pretty much did their job. 235 and 286 are not fantastic scores, and should have been well within the grasp of our batsmen. It would have been nice to see Collins Obuya have a couple of overs at some stage unless he is going to focus entirely on his batting in the future. Again the day ended with the Kenyan openers letting us down. Kennedy Obuya was reinstated for this tour at the last minute - a move many, including myself, thought would strengthen the batting. How wrong we proved to be. He made a pair, and with Brijal Patel only managing 9, this leaves us with a real worry as to who will open for the two ODIs.

Day 4:

A day we could and should have won but didn't. Steve Tikolo looked like he was set for a match winning innings, but fell on 50. Hitesh Modi chipped in with a valuable 41 and Toni Suji added 33. Collins Obuya provided the best innings for Kenya with 89, a personal best in First Class cricket. He is rapidly developing into a very handy middle order batsman indeed for Kenya. Unfortunately, no one could quite manage that extra step up that Barnett could, and in the end, that was the difference. That and Umar Bhatti's six wickets. Kenya need to find some way of coping with him before Saturday. Take nothing away from Canada, they deserved the victory, but it was close, oh so close and is all the more difficult to swallow because of it.

Kenya Lose By 25 Runs

Despite a fighting 89 not out from Collins Obuya, Kenya have gone down to Canada by 25 runs in their International Cup tie at the Maple Leaf Ground. Needing 291 to win, Kenya resumed at 2-45 in the second innings, but were finally bowled out for 265. It is a disappointing end to what has been a fascinating 4 days of cricket. To be fair to the Canadians, other than the first morning, they have mostly been on top and thanks to superb bowling efforts from Umar Bhatti did enough to stay there. There is no full scorecard online yet, so no word on how any other players went. I will do a more detailed post mortem of the match when they become availabe.

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The long and the short of it is that we were outplayed by the better team on the day, but the ramifications for Kenyan cricket are deeper than that. We went into this match both as favourites and needing to win, as we did against the Netherlands, and both times have come up short. Instead of topping this group as expected, we will now have to play off against Bermuda to avoid the wooden spoon. Sadly, progression in this year's Intercontinental Cup has eluded us, though we still need to win against Bermuda to keep some pride. Next year's challenge will be a different format in which we will play each of the other top 7 Associates. That will give a complete ranking of the top 8 Associates and at the moment, we would not even be in the top half. Rebuilding must start now, and it must start with a domestic league that supports the longer format. Organising fixtures against other countries and sponsorship deals are important for the growth of cricket in Kenya, but for them to stick around, Kenya need to be competetive on the field. We cannot simple rely on natural talent to get us through in the Intercontinental Cup, we must prepare our players for it. The only way for them to do this is to play 4 day games domestically. This will in turn also strengthen our one-day play. Lets hope we see some action soon from Cricket Kenya on this.

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On a more positive note, there are still two One-Day Internationals to be played this tour, so there is still time to exact our revenge. Losing to Canada in the just concluded match was a setback, but not a disaster. Several players, and importantly they were junior members of the team, came out of this match with fine personal performances. They need to take these through into the ODI's and maintain their confidence. Of the senior players, there should be enough experience to know that a defeat in one match can be avenged just as easily in the next. They have the ability to do this, so again must remain focussed and confident in themselves. We may be slipping down the Associate ranking in the 4-day game, but are still ranked top in ODIs. It is imperative that we defeat Canada in the two upcoming games if we are going to keep this position. I believe we can do it, it is important that the players do too.

Youth Leads Kenya's Fightback

Just glancing over the scorecard from the first three days of this Intercontinental Cup match, I noticed one very exciting feature. That is that both Kenya's fightbacks have been lead by the younger players in the side. With the bat it was 19-year old Tanmay Mishra with 83 not out who top-scored, then still reletively young Collins Obuya (25yrs old) with 43 and thirdly young bowler Nehemiah Odhiambo (22, turning 23 next week) with 38. In short, it was the youth who rescued the Kenyan innings after the experienced players had mostly slipped up.

In the first Canadian innings, all the bowlers chipped in, but in the second it was the two youngsters who really stood out. Nehemiah Odhiambo stood up and repayed the selectors faith in him by not only bowling centurion Geoff Barnett, but also running through the rest of the line up to finish with 5-54. A great effort, and one that should cement his place in the team for a while at least. Not only was Odhiambo amongst the wickets, but also Hiren Variaya on his First Class debut who played a vital support role taking 3-27. That these two players were able to bring the match back within Kenya's grasp cannot be understated. Where so much criticism of Kenya has questioned what would happen without the senior players, it seems that the younger players have, this match at least, provided a satisfactory answer.

In a couple of hours, we will see Kenya's most experienced player step out to attempt to win us the match. It is way beyond time for the older members in the team to pull their weight this match, and there is none better than the captain. If both the youth and experience can fire on day 4, we may yet taste victory.

Kenya Need A Further 246 To Win

Finally, a report on the close of play on Day 3 of the Intercontinental Cup tie between Kenya and Canada. Despite losing two early wickets as the opening blues continue for Kenya, captain Steve Tikolo has steadied the ship and added a further 24 runs with Tony Suji since the last bulletin. Other than Barnett's 136, Canada also had a good innings from Ashish Bagai, who scored 57. No scorecard yet, or news on who took the wickets. Tikolo is currently on 22, while Suji is on 13. Kenya need a further 246 to win with 8 wickets in hand.

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Tomorrow will be a riveting day's play and it is a criminal shame that the scores are not being carried live. I strongly believe the ICC should help facilitate this, after all they have the personel on the ground and the website available.

Time is on Kenya's side as there is a full day's play scheduled and good weather expected, plus the fact that our players have been here before and have the ability to reach targets like this. On Canada's side is the fact that they made two early breakthroughs to remove Kenya's openers and the fact that it will be a fourth day pitch to help their strong bowling attack. Hopefully the experience of the Kenyans, and the class of our top batsmen will be enough to take us to victory. After losing two first innings leads in this competition so far, we are really in desperate need of a win. At the end of the day, that will count for everything if we can achieve it. All the best to Steve Tikolo and the lads in bringing us home.

Sir Ali 'B' Romp To Victory

This is the only news I have been sent so far from the NPCA matches over the weekend, I expect to recieve a complete round up shortly.

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Sir Ali 'B' took on Stray Lions 'B' at home in the Division III:

With Sir Ali 'A' not playing, two players from the senior team were brought in: Abdul Rehman who has also played for Kenya 'A' and Abid Moughal. Sir Ali batted first, and led by a very good 64 from Rehman and backed up by two other half centuries from Akbar (62) and Nadeem Butt (62), went on to set an imposing 8-292. Other players to get runs were Moughal (controversially out with the umpire George Ayieko over ruling the leg umpires no-ball decision) 10, Tariq Alvi, who scored a very quick 30 before getting caught at mid wicket and Asif Khan who made 23 before being caught behind.

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In reply, Stray Lions were torn apart by man-of-the-match Nadeem Butt who took 4 wickets and Tariq Alvi who took 3. Ali Rehman and Abdul Rehman also chipped in with one a-piece as Sir Ali bowled their opponents out for a mere 58 with 32 overs to spare.

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From Sir Ali's point of view, a very satisfying performance, for Stray Lions 'B', a tough welcome into the league. Still, they should not be disheartened, as they will have learnt from the experience and will be stronger next time for that. Sir Ali take the full 20 points on offer for the match and will go into next week's clash with Ruaraka 'B' in high spirits.

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Please note that this report was sent to me by a player from the match, and my thanks for that. If you are a cricketer (or supporter) and would like to see a detailed match report featuring your team, all you have to do is email me using the link in profiles.

Canada Set Imposing Target

A century by Geoff Barnett (136) took Canada to 4/259 before Kenya were able to strike back and pin their hosts down to 286 all out. This is proving to be a fascinating game that has so far swung both ways. Kenya's reply has not started well, losing 2 quick wickets with only 21 of the 291 required on the board. Tomorrow's weather at the ground is expected to be warm and sunny, so it should be fine for batting provided the pitch holds up. No news yet on who the Kenyan batsmen out are yet, nor a complete scorecard from the Canadian innings with the wicket takers. I will update as soon as I find news. Thanks to Andrew and Jonathan for their updates - much appreciated.

Intercontinental Cup: Kenya Vs. Canada Day Two Scorecard 30/07/06

Canada 1st Innings: 235 all out.
Kenya 1st Innings:
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K.Obuya………Ct..Davidson………Osinde……...0
B.Patel………...Ct..Davidson………Bhatti…..…..0
A.Suji………….Bowled……………....Osinde…...…4
S.Tikolo……….Ct..Dhillon…………Bhatti….....…6
H.Modi………..Ct..Heaney………Puvendran.…26
C.Obuya……….Ct..Barnett………..Osinde….....43
T.Mishra………NOT..OUT…………………......….83
T.Odoyo………Ct..Dassanayake…Bhatti….....…3
N.Odhiambo…..Ct..Barnett……..Osinde…......38
P.Ongondo….Ct..Dassanayake…Maxwell.....….6
H.Variaya……Ct..Dassanayake…Bhatti……......8
Extras…………………………………………….............14
Total…All…Out…87.2..Overs…………….....……231
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Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Obuya), 2-0 (Patel), 3-10 (Tikolo), 4-14 (Suji), 5-65 (Modi), 6-98 (Obuya), 7-101 (Odoyo), 8-167 (Odhiambo), 9-190 (Ongondo), 10-231 (Varaiya)
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Canadian Bowling:
Bowler……........Overs…..Mdns…..Runs…..Wkts…..Econ
H.Osinde…….......26….…..13……..…51…..……4…......1.96
U.Bhatti……........23.2…….6……..….82……….4…...…3.51
D.Maxwell…..........6…….…2….…….10…….….1…....…1.66
R.Puvendran........18……...4………..40……..…1……....2.22
J.Davidson…........12.……..4………..33………...0…..….2.75
Q.Ali…………..........2…….…0….……..9…...…….0…..….4.50
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Canada 2nd Innings:
G.Barnett………….NOT..OUT…..............…………………20
J.Davidson………..Ct..Variaya….....…….Odoyo....…….22
U.Bhatti……………NOT..OUT……………...............……….2
Extras…………………………………………...................……...8
Total…For.1..Wkt…………………………...............………..52
To Bat: A.Bagai, P.Dassanayake, H.Dhillon, Q.Ali, D.Maxwell, S.Heaney, H.Osinde, R.Puvendran.
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Kenyan Bowling:
Bowler……........Overs….Mdns…..Runs…..Wkts…..Econ
T.Odoyo………......7………...1………...22…….…1…..…..3.14
P.Ongondo……....6……..….2…….….20…….…0…..….3.33
N.Odhiambo…....1………....0…….…..6…….….0……..6.00
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Canada lead by 56 runs with 9 wickets in hand.

Mishra Keeps Alive Hopes Of Win

In this morning's post, I hailed Peter Ongondo as being the find of the year for Kenya as far as bowling is concerned. This evening, it is another player who deserves just as much, if not more praise. Tanmay Mishra is only 19 years old, but he batted like a veteran yesterday to take Kenya to within a whisker of a first innings lead. At he close of play on day 1, we were in all sorts of bother at 4-14. After a gallant fightback by our middle order and tail, we ended our innings only 4 runs short of Canada's 235. Credit is due also to Collins Obuya (43), Nehemiah Odhiambo (38) and Hitesh Modi (26) for the part they played in getting Kenya out of trouble, but it is Mishra who can look back on today as his coming of age. True, he has shown potential for Kenya before against Bangladesh and for the A team, but this is the one that matters: A big score when Kenya really needed it. Sadly, he ran out of partners before he could take Kenya into the lead and bring up a well deserved century. Surely he must now be moved up the batting order to where his strokeplay can be most effective. There is a well known saying: Come the hour, come the man. Today that hour was well and truly upon us, and a boy did indeed become a man. Whatever happens to Tanmay Mishra in the future for Kenya, his innings to keep Kenya in touch on day 2 against Canada will be remebered as the one where he made his mark.

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After the Kenyan innings, there was a brief shower of rain before the Canadians took to the field. Though they started well, a late strike by Thomas Odoyo keeps Kenya in the hunt. At the close, Canada were 1-52, some 56 runs ahead with 9 wickets in hand. Kenya can still win this match, but it will need a fantastic effort in the field tomorrow to restrict Canada to an attainable total. Good luck to the boys in achieving this - Kenya is behind you and willing you on!

Kenya Fight Back

I have no way of confirming this, but an anonymous post tells me that with one hour to play of Day 2, Kenya have fought back to be only 45 runs adrift at 9-190. There is still a recognised batsmen at the crese in Tanmay Mishra who is batting with Hiren Variaya. I will of course confirm this or update it if I can find more before I leave for work.
If it is correct, it is a good effort by us to at least get back in the match. Hopefully, Tanmay and Hiren were able to hold on long enough to get us those crucial first innings points too. Fingers crossed!

Kenya Vs Canada Day 2

Well there seems to be a strict silence being kept by those in the know as to what went on. Not one site has anything more than the score from the close of day 1 which leads me to assume one of the following:

a) Kenya played as badly with the bat as on day 1 and having failed to get another 22 runs, were made to follow on. We then lost the match before lunch, and no one has bothered reporting it as it was such an embarrasment to the game.

b) Kenya have come back from the brink of disaster to not only avoid humiliation, but to actually get a first inings lead. Canada are so put out by this that they have ordered a complete shut down of all communications.

c) The Vortex Goat that had taken up residency in the Indian Ocean to intercept all cricketing communications has now moved to Canada. It is currently scratching its ear on the boundary and eating any information about the game in progress.

d) Aliens landed, abducted all the players and officials. Mars will now be applying to be the next Test nation and expects to win the 2011 World Cup.

Intercontinental Cup '06: Kenya vs. Canada Day One Scorecard

Canada First Innings:
J.Davidson….....….Ct..Tikolo……….Ongondo….10
G.Barnett……….....Ct..Tikolo……….Odoyo……...12
S.Heaney……….....Ct..K.Obuya…….Ongondo…...2
A Bagai……….........LBW…….………Odhiambo….21
P.Dassanayake…..Ct..&..Bwld……..Odoyo.....….26
H.Dhillon……....…Ct..Tikolo……....Odhiambo…..2
Q.Ali………......……NOT..OUT………......…………...91
D.Maxwell………..Ct..K.Obuya….…Ongondo….....3
U.Bhatti…………..Ct..K.Obuya……..Tikolo….....…13
H.Osinde………....Ct..K.Obuya……..Ongondo…...13
R.Puvendran…….Ct..Ongondo……..Variaya…....13
Extras………………………………...............…………….29
Total…All…Out…73.3…Overs……..........………….235
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Fall of wickets:
1-16 (Davison), 2-21 (Heaney), 3-38 (Barnett), 4-60 (Bagai), 5-78 (Dhillon), 6-95 (Dassanayake) 7-102 (Maxwell), 8-147 (Bhatti), 9-186 (Osinde), 10-235 (Puvendran).
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Kenyan Bowling:
Bowler…………....Overs…..Mdns…...Runs…..Wkts…..Econ
T.Odoyo………...….16…...……1……..…..49…….…2……..3.06
P.Ongondo………..19………...3……...….49…….…4……...2.57
N.Odhiambo……..13……...…0……......60…....…2……...4.61
A.Suji…………...……7……....…1..……….44……….0……...6.28
H.Variaya…………5.3……......1…..……..28………..1……...5.09
S.Tikolo…………....13……....…2……......28…….….1………2.15
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Kenyan First Innings:
K.Obuya………....Ct..Davidson……..Osinde…….…….0
B.Patel…………...Ct..Davidson……..Bhatti……..……..0
A.Suji………….....Bowled………...…..Osinde………..….4
S.Tikolo………..…Ct..Dhillon…..……Bhatti…..………..6
H.Modi………..….NOT..OUT……………….......…………4
T.Odoyo……….....NOT..OUT…….......……………………0
Extras…………….............……………………………………..0
Total……For…4…Wickets…………...........……………..14
Still To Bat: T.Mishra, C.Obuya, P.Ongondo, N.Odhiambo, H.Variaya.
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Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Otieno), 2-0 (Patel), 3-10 (Tikolo), 4-14 (Suji).
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Canadian Bowling:
Bowler……….....…Overs…..Mdns…..Runs…..Wkts…..Econ
H.Osinde……….......4.1…….…3……..….5……..….2……...1.20
U.Bhatti……….....…4……..…..2…….…..9……...…2……..2.25

Kenya End Day One In Deep Trouble

It has been a long day at the office, and not just for me it appears. When I left for work this morning, Kenya were looking in good shape. We had Canada reeling at 5-85, and were contemplating a first innings lead. I have come home from work to find out that not only did Canada get themselves out of jail thanks to an unbeaten 91 from Qaiser Ali, but then went on to take 4 Kenyan wickets for 14 runs in 8 overs of play before the close. Bloody hell! Pardon my French, but that is as about as polite as I can be about it.

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To be fair, it was only Ali who managed to get on top of the Kenyans, and at least we did not make the mistake of the Dutch match and let him get completely carried away, nor any of the other batsmen to join him scoring runs, though the tail provided enough resistance for a couple of vital partnerships. Behind him, the second highest scorer was Extras on 29 - way too many no-balls for my liking.

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I'm getting tired of taking positives from dire situations, but here goes: Peter Ongondo continues to improve with each outing, his 4-49 off 19 overs easily the stand out effort from the bowlers. He is clearly relishing being given the new ball, and should be commended on a fantastic effort. Good also to see Nehemiah Odhiambo and Hiren Variaya get amongst the wickets. Odoyo's 2-for was also useful, but he needs to work on that front foot. All those being noted, it is exceedingly frustrating to see a last wicket stand of 49 from Canada. Couple that with the 18 no-balls, and they are sitting 67 runs further ahead than they really should be.

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Not that 235 is such an imposing first innings target, or at least it should not be. When you lose your two opening batsmen without a run on the board however, the complexion changes somewhat. Add potentially the most dangerous batsmen in the competition out for 6 and then either the night watchman, or an inexplicable selection at number 3, also in the pavilion and we are in a World of hurt. Not only do wee seem to be up that creek, but the boat is made out of rice paper and dissolving fast.

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Tomorrow is another day, and yet again Hitesh Modi will be asked to dig deep to save the side. All is not yet lost, and we still have batsmen left who can steer us to a first innings lead, but one or more of them are going to have to produce the innings of their career so far to do so. All of the following batsmen are capable of big scores: Modi, Odoyo, Collins Obuya and Mishra. More than ever, do we need one of them to deliver.

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Before I end, there are a couple of questions I feel need to be asked at the end of day 1:

We have two bowlers in the team who were not used. Not even for one over. Both Brijal Patel and Collins Obuya must have been selected in the team for more than their batting alone. Even if the pitch was not spinning, even if they have not been in great form, surely they should have at least been tried. After all, Tony Suji got 7 overs and he was dispatched at more than a run-a-ball. In a 4-day game. Why were not Brijal Patel or Collins Obuya given even a couple of these 7 overs?

Tony Suji came in to bat at three again. Someone please tell me it was an attempt at a night watchman. Please. I have nothing against him as a player, but I will keep saying this until I am blue in the face - there are better options at number three. How often does this experiment have to fail before it is shelved and someone like Mishra given a real go in a position he could potentially hold for quite some time?

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Finishing on a positive note, Kenya have at least had one question answered today: Who will take over from Martin Suji as our main bowler? Peter Ongondo has been the find of the year so far in terms of bowling. He has rediscovered himself after a fairly ordinary start to his career to be Kenya's go-to man with the ball this year. Long may his improvement continue and may it lead to others following his example. Especially with the bat and starting tomorrow.

Kenya Start Well Against Canada

Play is underway in Toronto between Kenya and Canada in the Intercontinental cup and the good news is it looks like Kenya have finished the morning on top. At lunch we have them 5/89, so someone is obviously bowling well. Cricket Europe and the Canadian Cricket website seem to be the only places keeping up to date.

Going on the fact that Canada had said pre match that they would like to bat first, I'm assuming they won the toss. No idea who has taken the wickets, but the two top scorers so far are Pubudu Dassanayaka - 25 not out and Ashish Bagai - 21.

This is a very positive start from Kenya, and if things continue to go this way, we could potentially have them all out for less than 150. So far so good, but lets hope we can keep up the momentum in the after lunch session.