A shot away from glory....

 

After getting the better of Britannia SV 1892, we were up against the defending champions SG Findorff in the semi-final of the German Championship. However, this time it would be a home again in familiar conditions. With no rain in sight, Blackcaps skipper Venkat won the toss and chose to bat, notwithstanding the heavy outfield, thanks to some overnight dew.  Despite a shaky start, Blackcaps finished with a formidable score of 285/9 from the stipulated 50 overs, mainly powered by a blazing innings of 132 of 114 by O Ahamed (Polash). Polash was aided well by Venkat and Rafi who scored 33 and 39 runs respectively. Iftikhar Khan was the pick of the bowlers for Findorff, claiming 4 for 49. Hamid Wardak picked up 2 wickets while A Dawodzy, A Khalid and G Haidri returned with a wicket apiece for Findorff. 
 

Facing a stiff target, SG Findorff were never quite in contention as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals, eventually folding up for 174 inside 36 overs. Hamid Wardak top-scored for Findorff with 39 off 46. Venkat, Tarun and Kashif picked up 2 wickets each for the Blackcaps, while Rafi and Arun claimed a wicket each. All in all, a clinical performance by Blackcaps.  We thank SG Findorff for a good game played in the right spirit.
Looking forward to the Grand Finale now! Action resumes on 24th September 2017 at Düsseldorf Nordpark, 11 am sharp!!

 

Complete scorecard:
https://www.crichq.com/matches/564396/1st_innings