Quins fourths bang out draw
Harlequins Cricket Club's fourth team drew against INK 4/Ntuzuma on Sunday.
ALL Umbilo Harlequins Cricket matches were cancelled due to wet conditions with the sole exception of the fourth team’s, which played a 30-over division two match against INK 4/Ntuzuma on Sunday afternoon.
On what seemed a very tricky wicket with all the rain from the previous night, some areas were very soft and other areas were bouncy. Quins won the toss and sent INK 4/Ntuzuma in to bat.
Both teams had good and bad spells throughout the opening innings. Huey Ethan Naicker and Pierre Horn were the pick of the bowlers, with six overs, 17 runs, two maidens and three wickets, and six overs, 22 runs and three wickets respectively. They had added support with the ball from Lennon Singh who bowled exceptionally well to dry the run rate up with six overs, 15 runs for one wicket and a maiden to add.
Quins went in to bat with a very slow start, and after 15 overs were 52 runs for the loss of three wickets. It quickly went sour and in the 20th over they were 58 for six, and a rescue job from Pierre Horn and Sashen Rajbansi brought the game to a nail-biting end. Pierre Horn resurrected the chase with huge blows to the bowlers, getting out on a well-played 36. It ended up a run a ball in the last over when André Potgieter had one of one, but he received a bouncer and pulled it into the air to get caught.
The teams drew the match. Ink 4 scored 114 all out from 28.2 overs, and Quins 4 scored 114 for seven from 30 overs. Pierre Horn received the man of the match for his efforts in pulling the rabbit out from the hat with his batting display.
Umbilo Harlequins’ second team concluded their 40-over schedule on 8 February, ending up winners of the Durban and District Cricket Unions’ Challenge Reserve League. Although the logs have not yet been audited, credit must be bestowed upon captain, Shane Deme, who managed the second squad in a professional manner throughout the season, winning this league with only one loss to UKZN 2.
The sixth team ended their season last week in second position in the division five league. The U11 team and the fourth side are in reasonable stead to win their respective leagues.
Junior coaching sessions will continue on Thursday at 5pm at the Harlequins cricket nets (contact Shane on 083 402 7964 for info), and seniors will practice on Friday at 5pm. Contact Ernest on 031 4673270 for further club information.
