Samaj stun Kanbis as NPCA action enters round 4
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Reading Time: 3min | Mon. 21.07.25. | 10:11
Stray Lions played for a maiden win of the season in a 9-wicket victory over Kenya Kongonis A
Kanbis ‘A’ Team suffered a narrow 1-wicket home loss to visiting Shree Cutchi Leva Patel Samaj (SCLPS A) on Match Day 4 of the Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) 50-Overs League.
Kanbis A clung onto the summit of the competition, but only just.
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The Eastleigh Giants tie on 12 points with Swamibapa A, Nairobi Gymkhana A, Sir Ali A, and Ruaraka A, but retain their place on the log’s apex for the second weekend running on Net Run Rate (of 2.468).
Kanbis A went into match-day 4 missing two of its finest batsmen, Rakep Patel and skipper Dhiren Gondaria, but set an incredible target of 328 for 6 in 50.0 overs when put to bat by hard-fighting visitors Samaj A.
The Kanbis duo is away in Entebbe, Uganda, representing Kenya at the 2025 edition of the Pearl of Africa T20 Cricket Series.
The drama began when Kanbis A’s opener, Pushpak Kerai, smacked a century, setting the tone for a high-scoring thriller,r thus piling immense pressure on the victors.
But giant-killers Samaj A bounced back with an impressive 332 for 9 in 50.0 overs to carry the day contrary to all expectations.
Sachin Bhudia, who was surprisingly dropped for the Uganda series, once again proved his importance in the batting department with a brilliant 97 runs off 91 balls.
He was involved in a 170-run partnership with Pushpak, which laid the foundation for a huge total of 328 runs for the loss of 6 wickets in 50 overs.
Meanwhile, SCLPS A were off to a flyer despite losing wickets, with valuable contributions from opener Aditya Vekaria, scoring 68 runs off 86 deliveries.
The captain, Niraj Patel, then held his nerve to guide his team through a tense chase with a brilliant unbeaten 92 runs off 91 balls to lead his side to a famous victory.
Former champion Ruaraka A also dealt T20 Champions Swamibapa ‘A’ a 1-wicket blow at Ruaraka Sports.
Neelakash Ravindra Tambe’s batting prowess of 78 off 77 balls saw hard-fighting Swamibapa A play second fiddle to immediate former champions Ruaraka A. Swamibapa played minus three of its key players Sachin Gill, Vraj Patel, and Peter Koech, but still put up a good fight to lose to Ruaraka by 1 wicket.
Elsewhere, round one and two leaders Nairobi Gymkhana ‘A’ are back in the groove following a 7-wicket advantage over Ngara Sports Club A, rekindling hopes of winning the 50-overs NPCA title in 2025.
Another notable result though was Stray Lions’ maiden win of the season at the “Lions Den” in Peponi.
The Lions’ spirited fielding performance earned them an exhilarating 9-wicket victory over visiting Kenya Kongonis A Team. .
STANDINGS AFTER MATCHDAY 4
1. KANBIS A 12 (NNR. 2.468)
2. SWAMIBAPA A 12 (NNR. 1.771)
3. GYMKHANA 12 (NNR. 1.097)
4. SIR ALI A 12 (NNR. 0.999)
5. RUARAKA A 12 (NNR. -0.069)
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