MVP Jeff Black rounded off an outstanding weekend with both bat and ball by helping hosts Taiwan Southerners Cricket Club (TSCC) beat the Pakistan Badshahs in the final of the opening tournament of Taiwan’s cricket season in Chiayi on Sunday.
The Southerners were put in to bat and got off to a quick start, racing to 50 off the first five overs. Opener Graham Terblanche was eventually caught down the leg side off a sharp chance, somewhat putting the brakes as TSCC reached 115 for 5 from their alloted 14 overs.
Black and fellow pace bowler Jared Painter greeted the Badshahs batsmen with a fiery opening spell, restricting the Pakistanis to only 32 off the first six overs. A change of bowling brought some relief to the Pakistani batsmen, but the Badshahs were still left needing to score 15 off the last over bowled by skipper Duane Christie.
PHOTO COURTESY OF MARY MULLAN
Leading by example, Christie restricted the Badshahs to a single run to ensure victory for TSCC.
The tournament, featuring the top four teams in the country, got underway on Saturday with a clash beween the sides that ended up in the final, with Black scoring 51 not out to help his team post a competitive 123 for 4 off 14 overs. The Badshahs in reply could only manage 105 for 9 off their 14 overs, falling away in the last five overs of their chase.
The second match of the round-robin phase was an all-Taipei showdown between Formosa Cricket Club and Pakistan Cricket Club Taipei (PCCT). Formosa could only manage a moderate total of 107 for 5 off their 14 overs but PCCT fell just short as they were dismissed for 93.
Game three saw TSCC win the toss and elect to bat. Formosa took two early wickets, putting pressure on the TSCC middle order, but again Black played a decisive role in hitting 73 off 38 balls.
Christie provided good support with a steady 36 not out, helping TSCC to an impressive 125 for 2 off their 14 overs. Formosa made a slow start and never really looked like reaching the TSCC total, losing wickets at regular intervals as they reached 90 for 9 from their alloted overs.
Game four was an all-Pakistani affair with PCCT posting a very competitive 119 for 5 from their 14 overs. The Badshahs started slowly in reply, but accelerated as ther innings progressed, with Danny Khan leding his team to victory with an impressive half-century.
Sunday’s games began with a showdown between PCCT and TSCC. PCCT won the toss and chose to bat, making a flying start with some streaky shots to reach 50 after just five overs. TSCC eventually did well to restrict PCCT to 123 for 7 before experimenting with their batting line-up, having already reached the final, and being dismissed for 82.
The last game of the round-robin stage between Formosa and the Badshahs was a winner-take-all clash with a place in the final awaiting the victors.
Formosa batted first and found themselves struggling after opener Charl Esterhuizen was bowled early in their innings. Wickets continued to fall and they could only muster 78 for 7 from their alloted overs, after which the Badshahs cruised to victory by six wickets.
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