Edinburgh CC 154 all out (33.3 overs)
Greenock CC 155 for 7 (38.4 overs)
GREENOCK defeated Edinburgh CC by three wickets in the final of the Cricket Scotland Challenge Cup on Sunday at Stenhousemuir’s ground in Larbert.
The club’s last Scottish wins came in 2007, when it won both the Scottish National Cricket League (SNCL) Premier League title and the Scottish Cup (against Carlton), and then in 2009 when it was victorious in the Murgitroyd 20/20 Final (against Corstorphine).
Greenock captain Aryan Sanghera won the toss and invited Edinburgh to bat. With just the third ball of the match, it looked a fine decision as opener Kashif Hussain was comfortably caught at backward point by Mubi Ahmadzai off the pace bowling of Fahim Dinarkheil.
Mateen Butt and Sohail Butt quickly established a very productive second wicket, century partnership which propelled Edinburgh to 103 early in the 18th over. But, with just the second ball of new bowler Mubi Ahmadzai’s first over, an attempted quick single led to Sohail Butt being run out from a very smart piece of fielding by Will Jenkins. He had scored 42 runs.
As often happens when a good partnership is broken, a third wicket was captured just two balls later when Ahmadzai had new batsman Umair Farooq caught by Harry Briggs without any addition to the score.
A fourth wicket fell just seven runs later when Edinburgh’s main run scorer Mateen Butt became the second batter to be run out. He had scored 57 runs
And from that point, wickets fell regularly as Edinburgh failed to find another partnership of any size. From 110 for the loss of four wickets, the team collapsed to 154 all out after just 33.3 overs of the 40 available.
Mubi Ahmadzai was the top wicket-taker for Greenock with four wickets for 18 runs from eight overs.
Greenock’s reply was almost a mirror image of the start of the Edinburgh innings earlier. With only the fourth ball, Aryan Sanghera had his stumps knocked back as he was beaten by the pace of Hazrat Bilal.
There was to be no 100-partnership for the second wicket, however, as Greenock’s star batsman of the season, Cal Henry, was adjudged leg-before-wicket to Bilal with the last ball of the third over and with the score on just 16. Henry had looked in good form and had scored 12 runs from 11 balls faced. His dismissal was a huge blow to Greenock.
Harry Briggs and Will Jenkins steadied the innings with a battling 45-run partnership as Edinburgh sought to gain a third wicket. It did eventually come in the 18th over when Briggs was caught by Mateem Butt off the bowling of Farooq having scored 23 runs.
Edinburgh looked to be taking control as the wickets of Cammy Calder, Sam Sanghera and Sehmat Pandher were all captured in a period of just six overs which saw Greenock stumble to 97 for the loss of six wickets.
Greenock needed another 58 runs with just 12 overs remaining but were seemingly unable to score more than two or three runs an over against some fine Edinburgh bowling.
And when Will Jenkins was caught off the bowling of Daud Ahmed for a very important innings of 35 runs, it looked as though Edinburgh might have gained the upper hand. Just under nine overs remained and with Greenock’s lower order now exposed, 36 runs were still needed and seemed a distance away.
But Greenock’s number 8 batsman Chirag Pandher was the man for the moment as he took charge, supported by number 9 batsman Mubi Ahmadzai.
Pandher, who had scored two boundaries and a six just before Jenkins was dismissed, changed his tactics and skilfully beat the Edinburgh field with a series ones and twos which took Greenock to the brink of victory towards the end of the 39th over.
With the scores tied and eight balls remaining, Ahmadzai perfectly clipped pace bowler Ahmed high and long over the square leg boundary for a six only later to discover that the umpire had given a no ball for a front foot infringement by Ahmed which, in fact, had ended the game.
For Greenock’s sizeable support, the sight of Ahmadzai’s shot flying well over the boundary sparked scenes of jubilation.
Pandher was unbeaten on 38 and Ahmadzai was also unbeaten on just six runs as his ‘maximum’ did not count as the match ended with the umpire calling no ball.
