Kyambogo Oval
Ceylon Lions 151/10 in 31.2 overs beat KICC 113/9 in 32 overs by 18 runs
Toss won by Ceylon who opted to bat
Batting Ceylon: Arnold Otwani 50(53), Simon Ssesazi 45(66)
Bowling KICC: Davis Karashani 5/32 in5 overs, Frank nsubuga 3/24 in 6.2 overs
Batting KICC: Arthur Ziraba 30(57), Fahad Sadiq 24(31)N.O
Bowling Ceylon: Arnold Otwani 2/13 in 5 overs, Lawrence Ssempijja 2/19 in 7 overs
Man of match: Davis Karashani 5/32 in 5 overs
Entebbe Oval
Strikers CC 200 All out in 48.5 beat Challengers CC 160/10 in 43.4 overs by 40 runs
Toss won by strikers who opted to bat
Batting Strikers: Ivan Thawi 52(72), Derrick Bakunzi 33(50),Rogers Olipa 31(30)
Bowling Challengers: Asadu Seyiga 4/38 in 9 overs, Aneef Mohamad 2/31 in 10 overs
Batting Challengers: Hamu Kayondo 44(66),Sharzad Khamal 44(53)
Bowling Strikers: Frank Akankwasa 4/25 in 8.4 overs, Siraje Nsubuga 3/35 in 10 overs
Man of Match: Frank Akankwasa 11(50), 4/25 in 8.4 overs
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A wet wicket nearly denied Ceylon Lions a great start to new beginnings and could have earned KICC some precious points but that wasn’t to be as Lions claimed a famous win on their first outing the season.
KICC fell to Challengers in their first game of the season and needed to beat up on Ceylon Lions to at least stay away from early relegation fears.
Ceylon Lions (formerly Charity Cricket Club) added Arnold Otwani from Damani and Abraham Alema from Challengers to an already gifted side.
Otwani delivred in his first game scoring a half century and picking up 2 wickets which helped the Ceylon Lions post a competitive 151 in 31 overs. He was supported by the on form Simon Ssesazi who scored 46, with former Cricket Cranes captain Davis Karashani (5/32) of KICC picking up a fiver.
However, KICC couldn’t only manage 113 in the chase falling to some disciplined bowling by Ceylon lions who claimed a 37 run win.
KICC have some soul searching to do as this is their second loss of the season and will need to get their act together before they are in relegation trouble.
In Entebbe, the youthful Strikers got a precious win against their sister club Challengers. In a master vs apprentice battle, Challengers the more experienced side were expected to win the game but their former captain Ivan Thawithemwira came back to haunt his former teammates with a match winning knock.
Strikers posted a competitive 200 in 48 overs, with Ivan Thawithemwira (52) supported by Derrick Bakunzi (33) and Roger Olipa (31).
Challengers looked on course for the win at 121/3 after Hamu Kayondo (44) and Shahzad Kamal (46) had given them a steady start. However, Strikers captain Frank Akankwasa (4/25) snared the crucial wickets with his bowling derailing the Challengers’ chase who could only manage 160 all out.
The win for Strikers makes the top flight interesting but for Challengers who have set their sights on winning the league in this season, those were important points dropped.
