Akshar League 2006 Leading Batsmen and Bowlers

The following are the figures for the top ten batsmen and wicket takers in the Akshar League 2006. Note figures do not include semis, I will post a list incorporating the semis and finals after next weekend:

Top 10 Bowlers by Wickets taken:

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BOWLER..........CLUB..........TOTAL.....5wkts.....4wkts
Ghanshyam.....Akshar.A..........18.............2..............1
Raju.................Diamond..........12.............1...............1
Shanti...............V.O.C...............11..............1..............0

Rakesh..............Eldoret............11...............1.............0
Tejash...............Eldoret............10..............1..............0
Batuk.................V.O.C..............10..............0.............1
Ravi..................Akshar.B..........10..............0.............1
Jogesh..............Akshar.A..........10..............0.............0

Snehal...............Eldoret..............9...............0............0

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Ghanshyam the clear leader there and no small reason why Akshar A are playing this weekend's finals. Surprising to see no player from Kericho feature in the top 10. They did however have 4 players who finished on 8 wickets each, so a team effort rather than individual brilliance from them to top the table.

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Top 10 Batsman By Averages:

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Batsman..............Team.......Innings......N/O............Total.....Average
Jogesh..............Akshar.A...........5.............1................160........40.00
Lalji...................Kericho............4.............2.................78.........39.00
Vishal.................Eldoret............4.............1.................116........38.67
Vimal................Diamond..........3.............1..................76.........38.00
Rakesh..............Akshar.B..........4.............2..................65.........32.50
Jigar..................Kericho............3.............0..................93.........31.00
Rakesh...............Eldoret............3..............2.................26.........26.00
Tushar...............Kericho............1..............1.................26..........26.00

Divyang............Akshar.A..........6............0..................146.........24.33
Armadeep.........Naivasha.........4.............1....................73.........24.33

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Top 10 Batsmen by Total runs:

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Batsman..........Team.......Inngs.....N/O.....HS....Total......Avg........50s
Jogesh..........Akshar.A........5............1.........88.....160......40.00.......1
Divyang........Akshar.A........6...........0.........70.....146.......24.33.......1
Vishal.............Eldoret..........4...........1.........50.....116........38.67.......1
Jignesh..........Kericho..........6...........0........61......116........19.33........1
Pragnesh......Akshar.A.........6...........1.........54......99........19.80.......1
Viral..............Akshar.B.........4..........0.........41......97........24.25.......0

Jigar..............Kericho...........3..........0.........58......93........31.00.......1
Sunil..............Akshar.B.........5..........0.........57......85........17.00.......1
Ketan..............V.O.C.............6..........0.........45......85.........14.17.......0

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No surprises that the four semi finalists were the two Akshar teams, Eldoret and Kericho.

Bhudia On Song As Herning Promoted

I have been poor in covering Kenyans abroad recently for which I apologise. Especially as Kenya's representative in Denmark, Amit Bhudia hit an unbeaten 131 on Saturday to secure Herning promotion to the Elite division next year. A fantastic effort from him to cap off what has at times been a difficult season. Herning will be well pleased with their season having won 10 of the 11 games played so far. Fantastic for Amit that he was able to repay their faith in him with that fine knock. No idea whether he intends to return to Kenya during the Danish winter, but if so should be a prime target for any of the Kenyan clubs. It would probably not be a bad move either considering the selectors are still trying to find a batting line up that is capable of getting Kenya big scores.

If I Were A Sponsor

Tom Tikolo has recently been quoted in the Nation as saying that Cricket Kenya are still finding it hard to attract a corporate sponsor. There are no doubt many reasons for this, not least the image of cricket that remains in Kenya as the legacy of the KCA. With this in mind, I have thought a bit about how I would respond to an approach if I were a sponsor and the questions I would ask before I decided to commit to sponsoring Kenyan cricket.

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First would be a guarantee that the accounts will be made accessible to auditors for random checks to ensure any money I spent was not being misapropriated. After the last regime, this would be high on a list of worries.

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Then comes the matter of exposure. How much will I get as a sponsor of the national team? This really should be a strong argument in favour from CK. They have so far this year ensured a full calendar, and with the WCL, World Cup and expanded Intercontinental Cup, there will be ample coverage of the team and by association its sponsors.

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Performance would be the worrying factor. So far this has not been great, but we are in a rebuilding phase and this needs to be looked at long term. If we are weak now and I provide sponsorship, can CK tell me how they intend to strengthen the side so they start to win more? CK need to make me understand the difference in expectation when playing Test sides to Associates and that a fighting loss against a Test side can still be seen from a positive light. Also, with enough exposure, even a team that loses lots initially is still attractive to a sponsor so long as it improves. If it could cause an upset, and Kenya's World Cup history indicates this is a possibility, then the sponsor could get a huge amount of publicity by association.

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I would want to know what steps have been taken/are planned to improve the domestic structure. No CEO is going to want to commit money to a venture that does not have a solid support structure and with cricket this means a sound and growing player base. I would want to know when I could expect to see a national domestic comp so that my brand would get nationwide exposure. This ties in with improving the national side as well. I would want my brand to be seen as making a difference.

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Similarly with junior development. Billions are spent annually in marketing to children worldwide and this is a potentially huge incentive for a sponsor. For it to be attractive however, again there would have to be a concrete plan whereby CK could show me how they will spread the game to more children and thus increase my exposure to that market. Kenya has huge potential in its youth, but before I put money towards it, I want to know my investment will give returns.

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Finally, I would want to know how cricket Kenya intend to promote my product once I do decide to sponsor them. As yet, they do not seem to have a promotions officer nor a way of getting my name out there. There is a website, but I would want it regularly updated so that my logo would keep being seen by repeat and new visitors. Static websites attract no traffic and this means me, the sponsor is missing out. I would want to know how CK intend to approach marketing to the media and public and how this will reflect on my company.

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Overall, there are plenty of reasons for me to look at sponsoring Kenyan cricket, not least its potential for growth. It would be great to be associated with that and to have my name at the World Cup. However, there are also plenty of potential pitfalls and I would need a way around these and a plan for future growth clearly mapped out. In short, prove to me you are an opportunity, not a liability and I'll come on board.

Under the microscope

With the recent losses the Kenya team have suffered at the hands of Bangladesh and then the Australian acadamy, there are not surprisingly questions being asked by various members of the media as to why. It is however irritating to see articles such as the one yesterday in the nation attacking Cricket Kenya for allowing the development projects started by the KCA to go to waste, when as Martin Williamson points out in a much more balanced article, the whole of cricket was allowed to do the same under the KCA. Why some in the media are not more supportive of Cricket Kenya and are still trying to promote what was essentially the regime that brought Kenyan cricket to its knees smacks of self interest rather than interest in the game or the common good.

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As Williamson rightly points out, no one claims the new regime under Samir Inamdar has all the answers, but at least they are working hard to try to repair the damage done. I am however interested in what they have so far done in terms of restarting the youth program, for that is what will be they key as to whether Kenyan cricket has a long-term future. Williamson's article states that there has been difficulty getting the game reintroduced to schools. This makes me wonder if the right avenues are being approached.

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As far as I understand, there are a core of private, cricket playing schools in Nairobi and upcountry that play to a fairly high standard. At prep school level these include the likes of Kenton, Banda, Pembroke and Braeburn amongst others. Have, I wonder, CK approached these schools to see what they can do to help grow the game. They already play each other throughout the Christmas term and so the basics of a league are already set up. These schools also have the facilities and staff that could potentially help less well set up schools in their region. It may be that these schools are not prepared to help, but if the games they play could in some way be used to spread the game to other school children, the opportunity should be siezed with both hands.

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Cricket Kenya still have a lot to do, but they would be able to achieve far more if the detractors actually gave them a fair go. It will be a long hard slog to get the game to where we all want it and this will only be achieved if we all work together. Whatever happened to the spirit of Harambee and pulling together?

MSC 'A' Start Well in Coast League

The first two games of the coast league have been played over the last two weekends with MSC A in action both weekends and recording wins over first their B team and then a closer fought victory over Coast Gymkhana by 2 wickets this weekend. The above links should take you to the appropriate stories on the CCA blog which has further details. Credit to Upesh for setting this up, it is great having a second blog out there covering Kenyan cricket and especially one that gives us results and news from the coast. Let's hope it is kept up to date on a more regular basis than Cricket Kenya's has been so far.

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A shame that only six teams are taking part this year. For the area that claims to be the second strongest cricket playing centre in the country, they are looking in grave danger of being overtaken by Rift Valley who not only have more teams due to play in their next competition, but have also started a program with the local schools to increase the long-term player numbers. The CCA really need to do something similar as they have the potential to produce good players for the national team, but who will never get the chance unless the game is actively grown. This is the region in which cricket was first played in Kenya over 100 years ago and it must be encouraged to get back on track.

Akshar A Cruise into Finals

Two half centuries and some inspired bowling saw Akshar A breeze past their B team and into the final of the Akshar league on Sunday. Akshar B won the toss and decided to field first. They got off to a good start with Ramesh bowling line and length resulting in the removal of both openers in the third over. Unfortunately for the B team, their fielding then let them down as they dropped Pardeep at least three times allowing him to make a quick 53 not out in 55 balls before he retired hurt. Though Ramesh is an excellent bowler to right handed batsman, he just could not bowl against left handed Pragnesh, and ended up bowling 6 wides in the same over he removed the two right handers. Jogesh chipped in with 36 before being trapped lbw by Hiren, but it was Dilip's 51 that put the icing on the cake for Akshar A. They went into the break having scored 266 for the loss of 8 wickets and would have been confident of being able to defend that total.

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Akshar B in truth never looked like being able to get even close to the target as the top order were terrorised by Ghanshayam, who despite his age has still shown himself to be the pick of the tournament's bowlers. Jogesh then got in on the act to destroy the middle order and it was pretty much all over. Raju provided brief resistance at the death to finish top scorer for Akshar B with 17*, but it was too little, too late and they were bowled out for 97. Akshar A will now play Kericho in the final of the tournament to be held at the NAC grounds on Sunday from 10am.

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SCORECARD:
Akshar A Innings:

Harshil............Ct..Kalpesh...........Ramesh.......10
Divyang...........Ct..Viral................Ramesh.......00
Pardeep..........Retired Hurt..............................53*
Pragnesh.........Ct..Hiren...............Kalpesh.......23
Jogesh............LBW.......................Hiren..........36
Aku.................Bowled...................Samrat........05
Dilip...............Ct..Viral.................Ramesh........51
Deval..............LBW........................Hiren..........20
Ketan.............Bowled...................Kalpesh........01
Raju................NOT OUT...................................15
Ghanshyam....NOT OUT..................................00
Extras.................................................................52
Total..for..8..wickets........................................266
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Akshar B innings:
Trushit.............Bowled...............Dilip...............07
Viral.................Bowled..............Ghanshyam....08
Sunil.................Bowled..............Ghanshyam....05
Kalpesh............Bowled..............Ghanshyam....02
Hiren..............Ct..Divyang.........Ghanshyam...02
Rakesh............Ct..&..B...............Jogesh.............13
Samrat............Bowled...............Jogesh.............01
Jalo.................Bowled...............Jogesh.............00
Ravi................Ct..&..B...............Harshil............10
Raju................NOT OUT...................................17
Rameash........St..Deval.............Harshil............10
Extras.................................................................20
Total...All..Out....................................................97

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FINALS TO BE PLAYED ON 10 SEPT 2006 KERICHO v/s AKSHAR A at NAC FROM 10 am

Cricket in The Wild Report

The winning Outram team from the inaugral Cricket in the Wild tournament held at Ol Pejeta conservancy.

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The following is Subash Modi's report on the recently concluded Cricket in the Wild tournament. Congratulations to the winners and the organisers for their efforts. A very worthwhile cause has had a great boost this weekend and it is wonderful that cricket was the catalyst that allowed this to happen.

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The 1st Ol Pejeta “Cricket in the Wild” tournament finished on Sunday afternoon, out of the seven teams playing in the tournament (From the UK Hugh Crossley and Tim Best, from Nairobi David Seagon, and Arnie Mitchell, from Laikipia Batian Craig and Giles Davies, and from Gilgil Chris Outram.) Chris Outram’s team from Gilgil was the team that took home the inaugural trophy - an elephants head carved out of an old cedar post holding a cricket ball in its trunk (carved by a community member).
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The final was between the Outram team and Tim Best’s team from the UK - we are very proud that the first tournament was won by a Kenyan team and the trophy will remain in Kenya for at least another year.
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The matches were carefully umpired by Subash Modi, Eddie Fernandes and Brian Haworth and the scoring was done by Aliya Bauer with Charity, “Jenga” and Wilson managing the score board.
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The event was set up as an opportunity to raise funds for development programmes within the communities surrounding Ol Pejeta Conservancy. Each team was required to raise money to enter the competition. The highest fund raiser was a team from England captained by Hugh Crossley. In total the tournament raised an estimated USD 120,000 – this money will be spent on the development of local schools, dispensaries and other facilities within Laikipia.
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In his closing speech Richard Vigne, Executive Director of Ol Pejeta thanked all the teams for participating and promised to make the tournament an annual event. The MP for Laikipia East and Asst. Minister for Energy, Hon. M Kiunjuri also congratulated all the teams for their fund raising efforts and the Ol Pejeta management team for taking the time and effort to develop and run the event.
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Ol Pejeta would like to thank the following for their kind contribution to the event:
East African Safari Air Express
The Driftwood Beach Club (The Larby’s)
Serena Hotels
Rhino Ark
Lewa Wildlife Conservancy
Lewa Ceramics
Wines of the World
The Glass Gallery
One Way
Sandra & Brendan Hill
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Callum Looman
Local Kenya Media & Nick Deverell
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For catering:
Alpana Patal and Sophie Graten
East African Women’s League (Nanyuki branch)
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For medical assistance:
Nanyuki Cottage Hospital.
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Ol Pejeta Conservancy Cricket in the Wild organizing committee members:
Sandra Hill
Richard Vigne
Brian Haworth
Sue Haworth
Brendan Hill
Batian Craig
Giles Prettejohn
Ali Prettejohn
Paul Leringato
Melissa Duveen

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Aussies Take Series 3-0

Tony Suji top scored for Kenya with 85 yesterday, but it was not enough to prevent the visiting CBCE side taking the final match and the series 3-0. While the result was perhaps not a surprise considering the margins of the visitor's victories over the previous two matches, at least Kenya showed signs of general improvement. We still lost by 59 runs, but that is at least a lot closer than 10 wickets and 200 odd runs.

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Batting first, the Australians set a target of 295 for victory with Voges leading the way with an unbeaten 126. None of the bowlers returned particularly good figures, but Nehemiah Odhiambo will be disappointed to have conceded 100 runs from his ten. Still, these matches are there to give the newer players to the team match experience, and he should have learnt a fair bit about what no to do from yesterday's match. Jimmy Kamande had the best figures with 2/53, but Hiren Variaya was the most economical with his 10 overs conceding 34 runs he can be proud of that comeback after getting some rough treatment the day before. All the other bowlers, with the exception of Ongondo, went for 5 or more an over. Even so, this was a better effort than Saturday and Kenya improved their fielding performance by about 100 runs.

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Unfortunately, the reply got off to a bad start as the openers went back to their troubled ways and were out cheaply. Tony Suji at 3 played well for his 85 and should have done enough now to keep his place there and silence his critics for a while at least. I am happy to be proved wrong, and he is one batsman from Kenya who can come out of this series with his head held high. David Obuya replaced his brother Collins in the team and gave Suji good support with his half century. Mishra chipped in with 23, not really what we need from him, but again an improvement on the last match. Odoyo rounded out the batsmen who made runs with a fighting 38, but in the end Kenya ran out of overs and finished on 8/234. Another loss, but at least this time we made over 200 runs and a couple of batsmen made decent scores.

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Kenya's next opponents are Uganda away and it is a series that we must win convincingly. Who the selectors choose will be interesting as it is a great opportunity to try out a couple of new faces before the Bermuda visit in November. It will also be good practice for the players expected to play in the Intercontinental Cup, so we may well see a strong side heading to Kampala. Whoever goes, let's hope they come back with a bundle of wins. Two 3-0 lost series is pretty bitter medecine to have to swallow, however much it may have improved our players.

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SCORECARD:

CBCE innings:
A Crosthwaite..........Ct..K Obuya............Ongondo......0
T. Paine....................Bowled....................Odoyo..........35
A. Voges....................not out.......................................126
A. Finch....................lbw..........................Kamande.....26
C. Ferguson..............Ct..K Obuya............Kamande.......8
G. Gailey...................run out.........................................42
B. Dorey...................Ct..Odhiambo..........T. Suji..........39
C. Bailey....................not out...........................................5
Extras........................(lb-2, nb-6, w-4)..........................12
Total......for 6 wkts, 50 overs........................................293
Did Not bat: G. Sullivan, B. Hilfenhails, D. Doran

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FoW: 1-8 (Crosthwaite), 2-50 (Paine), 3-123 (Finch), 4-143 (Ferguson), 5-222 (G. Bailey) and 2-276 (Sullivan).

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Kenya Bowling:

T. Odoyo..............10-1-57-1

P. Ongondo..........9-0-37-1

N. Odhiambo......10-0-100-0

H. Varaiya............10-?-34-0

J. Kamande..........10-0-53-2

T. Suji...................1-0-12-1

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Kenya innings:
K Obuya...........Ct..Paine............Sullivan..........4
M Ouma..........Ct..Paine............Hilfenhaus......0
T Suji...............Ct..Paine............Doran............85
D Obuya............lbw.....................Dorey............50
T Mishra..........Ct..Doran............Sullivan........23
T Odoyo............Bowled..............Hilfenhaus.....38
J Kamande.......lbw....................Hilfenhaus.......2
N Odhiambo....lbw....................Hilfenhaus.......2
M Patel.............not out.......................................6
P Ongondo.......not out.......................................3
Extras............(nb-3, nb-1, w-16).......................20
Total...for 8 wkts, 50 overs).............................234
Did not bat: H. Varaiya

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FoW: 1-10 (K. Obuya), 2-10 (M. Ouma), 3-115 (D. Obuya), 4-155 (T. Mishra), 5-214 (T. Odoyo), 6-220 (T. Suji), 7-223 (N. Odhiambo) and 8-230 (J. Kamande)

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Bowling:

B.Hilfenhaus................10-2-31-4

G. Sullivan....................8-0-25-1

D. Dorey.......................7-0-27-0

C. Bailey.......................8-0-58-0

D. Doran......................10-0-59-2

A. Voges.........................7-0-31-0

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Umpires: Ebrahim Fidahussein and Rocky D'Mello

Cricket In the Wild a Great Success

The inaugral Cricket in the Wild Tournament at Ol Pejeta Consevancy sounds like it has been a great success. The main aim of the event is obviously to raise money for a very wortheile cause, but great to see some competetive games being played in the right spirit as well. Subhash Modi, Kenya's leading umpire sends the following report from the initial couple of days:

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The three day prestigious Ol Pejeta Conservancy Cricket in the Wild Cricket Tournament started at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy yesterday with seven teams participating namely:- Outram, Crossley, Seagon, Davies, Craig, Mitchell, and the Best XI. Patels XI withdrew at the last minute as they could not raise the team.

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Richard Vigne, Executive Director of Ol Pejeta Conservancy and Sandra Hill - both members of the organising committee are really delighted with the progress and success so far of the tournament as all the teams are fighting for the top honours.

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The finals of the the tournament will be played tomorrow and a reasonably good crowd is expected to turn up.

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The Official umpires are:-
Subhash Modi, Brian Haworth, Eddie Fernandez and Martin Hamilton and the official scorer is Aliya Baurer.

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Results so far:
Davies(96/4 wkts) beat Seagon 95/4 wickets.
Craig(120/4 wickets) beat Outram 109/6 wickets
Davies 150/7 wickets beat Crossley 129/7 wickets.
Outram 99 for no loss beat Seagon 98/6 wickets
Best XI 131 /6 wickets beat Davies 113/9.

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All the officials and players as well as the spectators were pleased to see the clear view of the World Famous Mount Kenya from the cricket ground. The tournament is played in good spirit and the cricket ground, pitch, matting and the scoreboard are in good condition.

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The organisers of the Ol Pejeta Conservancy Cricket in the Wild Fund Raising Committee deserve pats on their back for excellent organisation and tremendous efforts for the noble game.

Humbled Again

Shaun Marsh dominated with the bat yesterday hitting 207 not out as the visiting CBCE side again handed Kenya a major belting. This time the Aussies batted first, and it looked initially as though things may be different from the first match as Odoyo had them reeling at 2/12. Marsh and George Bailey (152) then combined to give the Kenyans a lesson in how to build an innings and make big scores. Their effort took the total to 3/404 by the close (Ongondo finally clean bowled Bailey) and it was always going to be a formidable total.

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Kenya's reply got off to a better start than it has done recently with both openers actually getting into double figures. However, Kennedy Obuya fell for 17 with the score on 40, and Maurice Ouma perished shortly after for 23. Tony Suji again came in at 3 and this time he top scored for Kenya, though his 48 off 93 looks pretty meagre compared to the aussies' efforts. Malhar Patel made 33 and Nehemiah Odiambo a quickfire 41 as Kenya struggled to 199 all out in 49.1 overs.

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It is hard to keep being positive about losses, especially ones of this magnitude against a nation's third string side. Mind you going by Kenya's football international loss yesterday, if Harambee Stars played Brazil's 3rd or even fourth side, the result would probably be a loss of similar magnitude. At least there are signs of improvement in some areas. For a start we batted out almost the entire 50 overs. True, the runs required were miles away from what we reached, but at least it is an improvement on the last game. Suji did well at 3, but I am still yet to be convinced he is the man for this position. Rakeb Patel brought into the side as an all rounder batted at 8 and was only given 2 overs. Somewhat mystifying as he was no more expensive than any of the other bowlers who also went for 7+ an over. The idea of matches like this is that they give the players experience against top quality opposition. One would have thought that a youngster like Patel would be more in need of overs than an experienced player like Suji. That said, it is good to see the latter used as a bowler, his figures not withstanding, as I do not see him justifying a place in the side with his batting alone, despite his 48 yesterday.

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Today sees the final match of the series being played, and Kenya will be hard pushed to get a result that gives the aussies anything other than a 3-0 whitewash. Results aside, if the team members can each show improvement, then that at least will be something. January and the WCL is not far away now, and beyond that looms the World Cup. Both are tournaments in which it is vital Kenya perform well and we are running out of time to find a team that can do that consistently.

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SCORECARD:

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CBCE innings:
Tim Paine..........Ct..Odhiambo..........Odoyo..........13
Shaun Marsh......Not out......................................207
Adam Voges.......Bowled.....................Odoyo...........0
George Bailey.....Bowled.....................Ongondo....152
Extras:.....................(lb 4, w 6, nb 7).......................17
Total:............For..3..Wickets in 50 overs.............404

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FoW: 1-12 (T Paine), 2-12 (A Voges), 3-286 (G Bailey).
Did not bat: D Doran, A Finch, A Crosthwaite, G Sullivan, B Drew, B Hilfenhaus.

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Bowling:

T Odoyo...........10-1-73-2

P Ongondo......10-2-72-1

N Odhiambo.....9-0-93-0

H Varaiya........10-0-74-0

T Suji.................9-0-75-0

Rakeb Patel.......2-0-13-0.

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Kenya innings:
K Obuya................Ct..Crosthwaite..........Finch........17
M Ouma................Ct..Crosthwaite..........Finch.......23
T Suji.....................Bowled...................Hilfenhaus...48
M Patel..................LBW............................Voges.......33
T Mishra................Ct & B.........................Voges.........2
C Obuya.................LBW............................Doran........0
T Odoyo.................St..Crosthwaite...........Voges........11
R Patel...................Ct..Voges.....................Finch..........1
N Odhiambo.........Bowled.....................Hilfenhaus...41
P Ongondo............St..Crosthwaite........Hilfenhaus.....1

H Varaiya..............Not out............................................1
Total.......All Out in 49.1 Overs.................................199
FoW: 1-40 (K Otieno), 2-46 (M Ouma), 3-102 (M Patel), 4-104 (T Mishra), 5-105 (C Obuya), 6-123 (T Odoyo), 7-133 (R Patel), 8-179 (T Suji), 9-196 (N Odhiambo), 10-199 (P Ongondo).

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CBCE Bowling:

A Voges.......................10-2-25-3

D Doran......................10-0-25-1

T Paine........................4-0-24-0

B Drew.........................7-0-38-0

B Hilfenhaus................8-1-29-3

A Finch.......................5.1-0-22-3

C Ferguson...................2-0-24-0.