UMUKATE CRICKET CLUB 101/10 in 17.4 overs (Javid 35, James 23, Mohsin 4/11) lost to City A MCA 105/6 in 19.3 overs (Irfan 37, Imran 21, Mahmad 2/18) by 4 wickets
After two dull finals in the B and C division, finally the cricket fans in the beautiful city of Lusaka got a game they deserved. City A MCA defeated UMUKATE CC in close game at the MCA, Lusaka ground. The A division final was played in the evening, after the conclusion of lower division finals.
6 teams who made it to the A division, participated in the league in a format of double round robin followed by knockouts. UCC entered the finals as favorites as they finished the league stage on top of the points table; on the other hand City A finished the league phase at number 4.
Back in April, UCC defeated City A MCA in a close game by 6 wickets. But that was over four months ago. Cricket has found a new world champion in between the two games. India has added one more victory against Pakistan in a Cricket world cup and what not. So many things can change in 4 months and that’s the beauty of these leagues which go on forever.
It was a new day, a new game for both the teams. UCC won the toss and elected to bat first, just like they did in April, unaware of the facts that the seasons have changed and conditions too. The pair of Irfan and Asif got rid of the openers in the very first over and soon they lost third in the 3rd over. At 12/3, they needed a batsman who can put the ego aside and clean the mess.
Babu (12 off 18) and James (23 off 26) tried to hold the fort for UCC. They added a 27 ball 33 but just when things started looking well for the tournament favorites, they got a triple blow. Imran removed Babu but it was Mohsin who crushed the back bone of their inning in the 8th over with a double blow. He removed Zakir and Mahmad on the first and last deliveries of the over to leave UCC hanging by a thread at 51 for 6.
Just when things looked like bleak for the UCC, Javed entered the arena and with the help of James and some lower order batsmen, he took the team past three figures but despite his courageous efforts, the UCC were bundled out with 14 balls still left in the tank. Their inability to protect the wickets and rotate the strike came back to haunt them later in the game.
City A MCA were in pretty much similar condition through half of the second inning as their opposition. They lost Asif in the very first over and Javed departed soon after. With both of their openers back in the hut with a single digit score, the memories of April started flowing in the brains of City A fans. Abid (14 off 15) and Imran (21 off 26) tried to stabilize the inning with some cool head and steady batting but they lost the patience midway. With 42 for 5 in the 10th over, it looked like that the UCC have successfully implemented the tactics of a champion.
The brief resistance of Imran ended with the score on 61 in the 15th over. The target was still 41 away and the tail exposed, the game was moving quickly in the favor of UCC but Irfan had other plans. Great players are born under most difficult circumstances and City A MCA were able to unearth a hero in Irfan in the last 30 minutes of the game. After rotating the strike for first 15 minutes of their partnership, Irfan and Mohsin opened their hands up. The celebrations began as Irfan smashed the third ball of last over into the cover boundary.
