Swamibapa 40 overs Champs

Swamibapa A Team under the captainship of Joseph Angara won the Bag and Balers Trophy to-day at Nairobi Gymkhana when they beat their arch rivals Kanbis A by 37 runs in front of a good crowd. The incident free match was officiated by Kenya International Cricket Umpires Subhash Modi and Rockie D'mello.
Scores:1 Swamibapa 113 all out in 33.5 overs . Francis Otieno man of he match batted well for his fine innings of 38 runs and he was supported by Nemiah Odhiambo 20. Bowling honours for Kanbis were shared by Rajesh Varsani 3/17 and Rajesh Bhudia 2/16.
Kanbis were bowled out for 76 runs in 24 overs. Alpesh Bhudia played an entertaining inings of 30 runs and he was ably supported by Rickesh Hirani14.
Joseph Angara 3/9, Lameck Onyango 3/13, Eliza Otieno 2/18 and Nemiah Odhiambo 2/16 spearheaded the bowling attack for Swamibapa. Maurice Ouma, Kenya Captain was brilliant behind the stumps as an agile wicketkeeper.
During the colourful presentation ceremony at Nairobi Gymkhana, NPCA Chairman thanked he main sponsors Bag and Balers for the tremendous support.
Samir Inamdar, Chairman of Cricket Kenya Cricket appreciated the role of NPCA and also assured Kenya Cricket is going o greater heights. The ceremony was also attended by the officials of Cricket Kenya, NPCA, KCU&SA and representatives of most of the NPCA affiliated clubs.

Cubs and Swamibapa win in Nakuru

PBH Royal cubs took on Melvins in Game 11 of the Crown Berger 20-20 Tournament in Nakuru and gave their opponents all sorts of difficulty. Melvins batting first lost regular and cheap wickets yet still managed to reach 118/8 in their 20 overs thanks mainly to a solo effort by Saad (?) who made 40 and the Cubs bowlers who gave away a huge 41 extras. Only one other Melvins batsman made it to double figures.

Wickets for the Royal Cubs were shared around with Bilal ? (1/9), Raj ? (1/12) Jaymin ? (2/19), Harshil ? (1/10), and Divyang ? (1/15) all contributing to the cause.

Cubs reply got off to a shaky start with both openers falling cheaply but then Bilal (41) and Divyang (45*) combined to steer their side to an easy win. Cubs finished on 124/4 with 6 overs still remaining. Pick of Mevins bowlers was Patshi ? who picked up 2 wickets.

In game 12, Swamibapa won the toss and opted to bat against Spinknit. Anil ?, Swamibapa's opener carried hie bat for the innings with a wonderful 67 and combined with 44 from number 3, Jogesh ? a huge total looked on the cards. As it was, Spinknit fought back with a flurry of late wickets, but Anil remained to the end and Swamibapa finished on an imposing 149/6.

Spinknit never looked in the game against the tight bowling ofscrews, they folded to 107 all out.

Swamibapa A are new Super League champions

Swamibapa A went into their final game against Stray Lions A at a well prepared Permier Club ground knowing that a win would finally break the Kanbis strangle hold on the trophy. Acting Swamibapa captain, Peter Ongondo, won the toss and opted to bat with most of the team chipping in with knocks to take the side to a total of 215 all out.

Tony Suji (39), Maurice Ouma (33), Francis Otieno (34), Lameck Onyango (29) and Peter Ongondo (24) all batted well for thir runs against the tight bowling of the Lions lead by Jimmy Kamande (3/49) and Hiren Variya (2/25).

In reply Stray Lions, had little answer to the Swamibapa bowlers with only Collins Obuya (21), Hiren Variya (22) and David Obuya (20) getting going. Pick of the bowlers for Swamibapa were Peter Ongondo (1/17), Nehemia Odhiambo (3/30) and an outstanding James Otieno (4/9). In the end, Stray Lions only managed to score 108 all out in 26.4 overs and Swamibapa clinched a well-deserved title after a long wait.

Swamibapa acting Captain, Peter Ongondo(in place of the injured captain Joseph Angara) praised his team for good show and excellent team work for the success of winning the championship after a lapse of five years and he dedicated this championship victory to Premjibhai Khoda, Swamibapa's long time serving Team manager who was recently hospitalised and wished him a quick recovery.

The match was played in excellent sportsmanship and was umpired by Subhash Modi and Rockie D'Mello

All down to the final game

Convincing wins from both Kanbis A and Swamibapa A (no news yet from the Stray Lions camp...) mean that the NPCA Super Division Title will be decided on the final day of the competition.

Kanbis A kept alive their title bid with a professional dismissal of Sir Ali A. Sir Ali captain Mujib Ashraf won the toss and elected to bat first with his team scoring 211 all out in 50 overs thanks mainly to Shiraz (?) 58, Farhan (?) 49 and Abdul (?) 44. Bowling honours were shared by Rikesh Hirani who snared 5 wickets for 23 runs and Rohit Varshani (2 wickets for 25 runs).

Kanbis Sports Club had no problem in scoring the required runs (213 for the loss of 3 wickets in 18.5 overs). The batting heroes for Kanbis were Rakeb Patel (78), Alpesh Bhudia (68), the evergreen Ramesh Mepani (35*) and Captain Arvind Halai 18*.

Swamibapa also kept themselves on track for their first League title in 6 years with Elijah Otieno leading the way with a devastating spell in which he took 4 wkts for 6 runs as Swamibapa a bowled out Shree Cutchi Leva for just 74. Peter Ongondo (2/14) and Nehemiah Odhiambo (1/25) were the other bowlers of note.

Swamibapa had little trouble running down the total with main contributions coming from Francis Otieno (22) Nehemiah Odhiambo (22) and Tony Suji (15).

Swamibapa A play their final game next week against Stray Lions A knowing that a win or even a full quota of bonus points will seal the title. Stray Lions for their part can now no longer win the League after Swamibapa's win but victory in their final game could see them take second place if Kanbis slip up. The defending champions however should breeze past SCLYL 'A' at Pindolia Academy and so will keep the pressure on Swamibapa.

At the bottom end of the Super Division it will similarly come down to the final game to see who is relegated with both Sir Ali A and Simba Union A hoping a last gasp win will save them from the chop.

It is great to see such a competitive season in the NPCA with no fewer than four teams still in the running going into the last month. Hopefully this competitiveness will transfer itself across to competition for places in the national side.

Swamibapa closing on title after thrashing Telca

Swamibapa A are one step closer to the Premier Division title after handing fellow title hopefuls Telca a 10 wicket thrashing that has effectively removed the latter from contention, for this year at least.

Telca won the toss and elected to bat first at the Ngara ground in a match officiated by International umpire Subhash Modi and Shanti Patel.

Peter Ongondo(1 wicket for 1 run) made a statement to the national selectors who left him out of many of the recent games in Zimbabwe with a masterclass of new-ball bowling and Nehemiah Odhiambo impressed with 3 wickets for 13 runs as Swamibapa sent Telca packing for just 72 runs. Lameck Onyango also picked up 2 wickets while tony Suji, Shem Obado and Elijah Otieno too 1 each. Maurice Ouma also impressed behind the stumps. Telca's innings lasted just 29.2 overs with fast bowler, Alfred Luseno top scoring with 25 runs.

Swamibapa's opening batsmen, Maurice Ouma(41 not out) and Francis Otieno (26 not out) batted well with a fine unbeaten and match winning partnership of 73 runs to give Swamibapa an emphatic and timely victory. With Stray Lions dropping points due to their match last week vs the struggling Sir Ali washed out, the title race is still very much open to the top 3 sides. All will be hoping that weather and international duty allow cricket to decide who will emerge 2009 champions.

Khalsa XI and RVSC take first blood in Crown Berger 20-20

Khalsa XI and Rift Valley Sports Club (right) started their RVCA Crown Berger 20-20 campaigns with convincing wins over the weekend.

Khalsa took on Melvins in he first game of the tournament and looked in control right from the start. Winning the toss, they opted to bat and put on an imposing 218/3 with all of their batsmen getting starts. Guniskar ? (30) and Nilesh Meta (29) laid the foundation before Kulveer ?(63) and Hassan ? (64*) put the foot down to leave them firmly in control going into the break.

Chasing such a big target, Melvins needed quick runs but instead lost both quick and regular wickets as the struggled to come to grips with the Khalsa bowling. Maulik ? (29) and Bhavesh ? (24) were the only batsmen to get into double figures as Guniskar completed a fine all round performance taking 5/24 while Vikash ? finished with figures of 3/12. Melvins were all out for 91 giving Khalsa a thumping 127 run win to start their season.

In the second game of the tournament, also played at the RVSC ground, the home side were simply too good for Swamibapa who only managed 99 batting first after winning the toss. The mysteriously named D.K was the best of Swamibapa's batsmen with 33 with the next highest score a mere 13. Sahil ? (3/7), Sterling ? (2/18) and Arfan ? (2/24) doing the bulk of the damage with the ball.

RVSC's reply never looked in doubt with Rahul ? (31*) and Luke (Nightingale?) (62*) easing the home side to victory without losing a wicket.

If any Rift Players read this, please note the number of players recorded in the scorecards and hence reports without their full names. Please try to encourage the scorers to include these as it makes it much easier for the rest of us to follow who has done what.

Swamibapa A beat Kanbis A to consolidate lead

Early reports in see Swamibapa A beating Kanbis to strengthen their claim on this year's title. we do not yet have details of the game, but a Swamibapa win will take them that little bit closer while Kanbis will really have to pull out some big results to avoid what could well be a finish outside the top 2 - something hard to imagine even as recently as last year.

batting first, Kanbis gtwere bowled out for 197 with Nehemia Odhiambo taking 2wkts for 21 runs, Tony Suji, 3wkts for 22 runs, Shem Obado 2wkts for 43 runs, James Ngoche 2 wkts for 29 runs and Lamek Onyango 1 for 26.

.Swami started on a good note with Maurice Ouma 37 and Francis Otieno 32 but Kanbis kept up the pressure taking some cheap wickets. Nehemia Odhiambo rallied with 37 runs and Lameck Onyango scored 34 to bring Swamibapa closer to the target which Elijah Otieno (16*) reached with a boundry with 2 overs to go.

In other games, Jimmy Kamande (pictured right v Ireland in the IC), captain of Stray Lions A (20) lead his team to a fabulous win over Simba Union (3) at Peponi School Ground when beating them by a massive 224 runs. The match was officiated by Subhash Modi and David Odhiambo.

Stray Lions won the toss and elected to bat first and scored 388 runs for the loss of 7 wickets in 49 overs thanks mainly to Jimmy Kamande who lit up the proceedings with a remarkable century (127). He received very good support from David Obuya 78, Peter Kituku 45, Hiren Varaiya 39 , Nadeem Ahmed 25 and Steve Tikolo 20. Bowling honours for Simba Union were shared by their captain Gagandeep Singh 2 wickets for 66 runs and Chetan Sangrakar 2 wickets for 32 runs.

Simba Union were bowled out for 164 in 34.3 overs with fine resistance coming from a Sri Lankan born left handed Shezad Nizar with a commanding and strokeful 74 and Lucas Olouch 36. For Stray Lions Steve Tikolo (3/25), Darshit Shah (3/43) and Hiren Varaiya 2/29 were the most impressive and successful bowlers.

SCLYL A also won chasing down 264 to beat Sir Ali A.

Telca won their game v Kanbis B to complete a horror weekend for Kenya's most successful club. This win puts Telca in clear second place behind Swamibapa, though with games in hand against weak sides, Stray Lions A could still mount a challenge for the title in what is developing into the most close fought NPCA League in years. With 4 teams still in with a very possible chance of winning the tournament, could this be the year that domestic cricket finally gets its lustre back?

Swamibapa consolidate with win over Simba Union

Swamibapa Cricket Club (18 points) outclassed Simba Union(nil point) by 9 wickets yesterday at Premier Club in the ongoing NPCA Super League to consolidate their position at the top of the table. The match which was reduced to 35 overs due to heavy overnight rains was umpired by Subhash modi and Shanti Patel.

Swamibapa Captain Morris Ouma won the toss and elected to field first, a decision that paid dividends as they bowled out Simba Union for only 86 runs in 23.3 overs thanks to fine bowling performances by Elijah Otieno (pictured right in action V Ireland) who took 4 wickets for 19 runs, Nehemaiah Odhiambo (3/17), and James Otieno (3/28).
Simba Union's top scorers were Vijay Jotangia with impressive 28 and Sukbinder Sigh 14.

Swamibapa's opening batsmen Morris Ouma(43 not Out) and francis Otieno(31) put on the match winning first wicket partnership of 84 runs. Swamibapa scored the required runs - 88 for the loss of one wicket.

An incident free match was watched by Kenya's New Cricket Coach,Eldine Baptiste, CEO of Cricket Kenya Tom Tikolo, NPCA Secretary John Moyi and IT Manager of CK(Analysist) Tota Srinivas along other cricketers. Premier Club Groundsmen must be given credit for their hard work by ensuring the game takes place despite wet patches on the pitch and square early in the day.

We are still waiting to hear further results and will update accordingly.

Swamibapa edge Kanbis as bowlers dominate Super Division contest

Swamibapa Cricket Club A Team (16 points) edged Kanbis Sports Club A Team (4 points) by 15 runs in a nail biting finish at Premier Club yesterday in a top of the table clas umpired by by Subhash Modi and Rockie Demello.

Swamibapa Cricket Club won the toss and elected to bat first, but only managed to score 161 runs, all out in 43 overs. The top scorers for Swamibapa were Maurice Ouma (53), Shem Obado (34) and Peter Ongondo (28). Pick of the bowlers for Kanbis were Harish Jesani who took 3/27, Nilesh Varsani (2/25) and Rajesh Varsani who finished up with a very tidy 2/5.

Having done the hard work with the ball, Kanbis should have put Swamibapa to bed, but an inspired effort in the field saw them for just 146 in 41 overs - 15 runs shy of Swamibapa's total.

Rakep Patel (57) pictured followed up his century from last week well but other than Arvind Halai (30) who also batted well for Kanbis, did not receive the support needed against an attack boasting 7 seamers. Bowling honours were shared by Swamibapa with Elijah Otien0 (3/29) picking up the most wickets, though Lameck Onyango (2/21), Peter Ongondo (2/19), and Joseph Angra (1 wicket for 1 run) all impressed.

This win puts Swamibapa in a commanding position at the top of the table as Stray Lions did not play this weekend. It is still early in the season and Kanbis are not the sort of team to just fade quietly into the sunset, but just maybe will this be Swamibapa's year?

Odhiambo again the man for Swamibapa

Super League:

Nehemiah Odhiambo turned in another fine all round performance as Swamibapa trounced Simba Union by 228 runs in their second convincing win of the NPCA season. Batting first, Swamibapa scored an imposing 358 with several batsmen chipping in with Half Centuries: Maurice Ouma 62, Nehemiah Odiambo 66 and Tony Suji 67 while Mitesh Sangani top scored with 80. Odhiambo then took 3 for15, Shem Obado 3 for 13 and Elijah Otieno 2 for 19 as Simba Union were bundled out for 130, only Runish Shah (51) making an impression with the bat. Shah earlier stood out with the ball for Simba picking up 3-69.

Report – Joseph Angara

Stray Lions(18 points) captained by Jimmy Kamande registered their second win this season when they beat Sir Ali Sports Club by nine wickets at the Peponi School Ground on Sunday in their NPCA Super League match which was umpired by Subhash Modi and Daniel Macdonald.

Sir Ali Sports Club won the toss and elected to bat first and were soon in trouble against the tight bowling of Darshit Shah (4-22) and Hiren Varaiya (4-24). Sir Ali Sports Club were bowled out for 94 runs in 35.3 overs. Their top scorers were Faraz Bhutt 37 and Aslam 14.

Stray Lions did not have much problem in scoring the required runs - 98 for 1 wicket in 11.5 overs thanks mainly to David Obuya 34, Jimmy Kamande 31 Not Out and Peter Kituku 23 not out.

Rakep Patel meanwhile showed why he should be given more responsibility for the National Team as he stroked a chanceless 138 in the battle between the two Kanbis sides, the only century of the round. Kanbis A went on to win by 48 runs, Rajesh Bhudia also chipping in with 60 runs.

Telca recorded their first win of the season as they coasted to a 193 run thumping of Sir Ali. Thomas Odoyo (60) and Newton Muthee (59) were the stars with the bat while Alfred Luseno took 4-16 and Vikram Thampy 3-27 in an easy run in the field.

Division 1:

Kongonis Development side turned around their first week loss with a solid 69 run win over Ruaraka. Batting first, Kongonis made 246 with the main contributors being William Rudd (76), Chris Childs (49), Duncan Allen (21), dominic Wesonga (19) and Hugo Norman (18). Manoj (A...?) 3-30 and Aashit (...?) 3-38 were the best bowlers for Ruaraka. In restricting Ruaraka to 177, Allen was the pick taking 3 for 35 off 9 while Bernard (O...?) took 3 for 42 off 9.3 and Wesonga was most economical with 2 for 20 off 10.Luv Hirani top scored for Ruaraka with 40.

Report – Dominic Wesonga

Division 2:

Golden XI won yesterday against Sir Ali 'B'. Sir Ali won the toss and elected to bat, they scored 132 all out with Tariq top scoring on 25. in reply Golden X1 easily reached the target with some aggressive play from the opening batsmen Mitesh(24) and Kamlesh(29)

Report - Charles Kariuki

The Ladies XI cricket side lost their opening match of the season by 143 runs to Aaryans on Sunday. But despite the loss the girls put a spirited fight to resctrict the hosts to 220 despite being on 76 for 0 at one stage. Ruth Mwihaki stared with 4 wickets. But the batting was the let down once again. Hope we will see improvement in the next match when they face Ruaraka. Report - Dun Okinyo

Keep the results coming in please, we will update as we can - Full results are out and will follow in a separate post

Odhiambo leads way as Swamibapa win

Early reports coming in from the first round of the NPCA League:

SUPER DIV:
Swamibapa starts on a high note beating Kanbis B by 173 runs: Nehemiah Odhiambo hitting a deserved 101 with 8 sixes and 5 fours with a supportive 60 from Kenya Captain Maurice Ouma and Shem Obando’s 25 helping Swamibapa to 254. Bowling honours for Kanbis were shared by Captain Gopal Vekaria 3/59 and Rohit Vekaria 2/53.

Odhiambo (pictured during the recent Intercontinental cup match v Ireland - photo courtesy Cricket Europe) then went on to take 6 wickets for 26 as his brother, James Ngoche, picked up 3 for 10 runs as Kanbis B faltered to 81 all out. Mansukh Jessani (16) and Jagdish Khetani (16) were the best of the Kanbis batsmen.
Report – Joseph Angara (Swamibapa), Subhash Modi (Umpire)

Simba Union won against Sir Ali by 7 wickets. Sir Ali won the toss and elected to bat scoring 127, a total that Simba chased down in just 19 overs.
Report – Abdulqadir Najmi (Simba Union)

Straylions A played its first match with Sri Cutchi Leva Patel Samaj in the Super League at Peponi School. SCLPS won the toss and elected to field first. David Obuya and Steve Tikolo opened the batting and they made a huge opening partnership of 266 in 36 overs. David Obuya got out for 77 and Steve Tikolo 170. Stray Lions' other main contributor was Peter Kituku who scored 29. Stray Lions ended with 346/6 in 50 overs. SCLPS started the batting after lunch and were all out for 142 in 23 overs. Darshit Shah took 5 Wickets, Hiren Varaiya took 3 wickets, Josphet Ababu and Andrew Mboya took one each.
Report - Thota Sreenivas (Stray Lions)

Kanbis A 252 (Rajesh Varsani 59, Arvind Halai 37, Ramesh Mepani 32, Vikram ? 2-44, Paul Anjere 2-50, Alfred Luseno 2-52)
beat Telca 206 (Thomas Odoyo 43, Newton Muthee 33, Prasanth ? 33, Rakep Patel 3-13, Rikesh Hirani 3-36, Ramesh Mepani 2-24)
by 46 runs
scorecard - Kanti Rabadia (Kanbis)


DIV 1:
Swamibapa B 250-8 defeated Kongonis Development XI 244-9 by 6 runs.
Report - Dominic Wesonga (Kongonis)

DIV II:
Straylions B played their first match with Golden XI in their Division B match at Highridge Primary School. Batting first, Golden XI were all out for 77. Ramesh Shamji took 5 wickets, Nadeem took 4 wickets and Girish Nair took one wicket. In Stray Lion's successful 77 run chase, Anand Ranganathan top scored with 45 runs.
Report - Thota Sreenivas (Stray Lions)

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31 teams prepare for NPCA League this weekend

As the national team return home to lick their wounds, there will be plenty of opportunity for them to prove why they are in the team and for pretenders to challenge for spots as the NPCA League gets underway this weekend.

There are 31 teams split across 4 division and while the nation's best players will doing battle in the Super Division, competition will be equally fierce all the way down to division III.

SUPER LEAGUE ENTRIES 2009.
Kanbis 'A'
Stray Lions 'A'
Swamibapa 'A'
Telca XI
Sir Ali 'A'
Simba Union 'A'
Kanbis 'B'
SCLYL 'A'

DIV I ENTRIES 2009
Nbi. Nookers 'A'
Swamibapa 'B'
Ruaraka 'A'
Premier
Ngara
Kongonis Dev
Nbi.Jafferys
Nbi.Gymkhana

DIV II ENTRIES 2009
Golden XI
Aga Khan
Qutbis
Goan Institue 'A'
Simba Union 'B'
SCLYL 'B'
Stray Lions 'B'
Sir Ali 'B'

Div III ENTRIES 2009
Parklands
Nbi.Nookers 'B'
Oshwal XI
Ruaraka 'B'
Aaryans
Goan Institute 'B'
Women's XI

Cutting off the nose to spite the face

Swamibapa are a club with a history of contributing a great deal to Kenyan cricket and with the bulk of the Kenyan national team playing for them, they should be one of the flag bearers for the game in the country. Instead they have allowed petulance and selfishness to get in the way of duty and in doing so have done great damage to the game and to their own players in the process.

This season should have provided a three way battle for the title with Kanbis, Swamibapa and new comers Stray Lions all battling out for the top honours in Kenyan cricket. At the beginning of the season the clubs met with the NPCA and the issue of players away on national duty was raised. It was decided then that no matches would be postponed and the teams would have to delve into their lower grades to make up sides. Everyone was happy with this until Swamibapa started to lose matches because their players were away representing the country. They requested other matches be delayed and when the NPCA refused, they withdrew their team from the Super Division in protest.

What short sighted idiocy. Kenya's top cricketers get little enough cricket at is is, but now the Swamibapa players, who make up the bulk of the national team will go into the series against Canada and Bermuda with hardly any cricket under their belts since the 20-20 world Cup. Instead of biting the bullet and putting out the best side they could under the circumstances, Swamibapa have tried to hold the game to ransom. The NPCA, quite rightly, have stood their ground and all that has been achieved is that the players (whom both the club and the administration are essentially there to serve) once again get the raw end of the deal. Worse is that Kenya have two must-win Intercontinental Cup games coming up and go in under prepared as well as having no national coach. The latter is certainly no fault of Swamibapa, but the lack of cricket certainly is and if the team lose because of it, I for one will hold them largely responsible. It must be tempting for the selectors to look elsewhere at the players who have been in action and have shown good form. Harsh on the Swamibapa players perhaps, but maybe they should have prevailed more upon the club to do the right thing.

Swamibapa's stand is just the latest in a series of poor and selfish actions made by a variety of cricket administrators in Kenya over the last year. When will the buffoons that make these sorts of decisions realise that all they are doing by them is hurting an already fragile game. As administrators of the game, they are there to serve it, not the other way round. If they cannot grow up and do their job properly, they should not be running a bath let alone what should be Kenya's premier team sport. It is high time that politics and personal pride was kicked out of Kenyan cricket. There should be no space in the game's set up for it and the sooner those responsible grow up and realise where their priorities should be, the sooner the people that play and love the game can get on and do just that without senseless interference.