Swamis captain praises teammates after NPCA T20 league title win
Swamibapa players celebrate with the trophy after winning the Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) T20 Super League final match against Sikh Union at the Shree Cutchi Leva Patel Samaj grounds in Nairobi on March 04, 2023.
Swamibapa ‘A’ captain Rushab Patel has praised his teammates following their 2023 Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) T20 League title win.
Swamibapa registered a 45-run victory over Sikh Union ‘A’ in the final played at Shree Cutch Leva Patel Samaj (SCLPS) grounds on Saturday.
Put into bat, the Swamis amassed a decent total of 200 runs for the loss of 7 wickets, with openers Rushab and Alex Obanda anchoring their innings with 52 and 60 runs apiece.
Yash Bhatt (23), Mitesh Sanghani (17) and Harendra Kerai (10 not out) registered useful cameos to help Swamis post an imposing total.
Sikh Union ‘A’ (155-7) won the toss and elected to bowl. The Simba’s, led by their skipper Sukhdeep Singh (34) got off to a flying start with batsman Osama Aslam smashing 53 despite their chase suffering a rapid collapse of wickets at some point.
Rushab said: “Winning a tournament is a great feeling. We came very close, we shared the trophy last year with Kanbis and we deserved to win.”
“My teammates did a fantastic job throughout the season,” he added.
Rushab’s counterpart Sukhdeep said: “We played good cricket throughout the tournament but we did give about 15 extra runs on Saturday.”
About losing in the final Sukhdeep said: “It hurts because we have played some good cricket and our senior club officials, fans and families cheered us on.”
“We won the toss and had planned to bowl. Our team has been chasing well, hence the decision to bowl first. Sikh Union is now back, we are also developing the youngsters."
Sikh Union Club Vice Chairman Hardial Singh Kalsi congratulated his boys saying: “We are on the path of development of our game and I am glad that Sikh Union Cricket Academy under Avtar Singh Kundi is now doing well.”
The T20 season, traditionally a precursor to the 50-Overs Knockout Tournament also saw several players feted for their exemplary performances.
Kenya’s leg-spinning all-rounder in the 2003 World Cup Collins Obuya of Obuya Academy was named the player of the tournament while 10-year-old Kavit Joshi of Sikh Union was named the best youngster.
Ruaraka Sports Club’s Sachin Gill was declared the tournament’s best batsman while Swamibapa’s Yash Bhatt and Dhwanil Patel were named the best bowler and wicket-keeper respectively.
