Ostend CC beat Antwerp CC in League – June 3, 2015
On Sunday we played our 4th league match of the season. On an absolutely miserable day, we won the toss and fielded first. We fielded for the full 50 overs in rain as the big hitting Ostend batsmen took charge. Bowling was difficult, but Abdul Rehman and Amir Iqbal had a field day. Amir missing out on a century, hitting 97, and Abdul hitting quite a few big 6s. They finished on 353. A total that was reduced to 318 off 45 for our innings.
Benjamin and Ilyas got us off to the perfect start. Ilyas hitting a brisk 50. But once they were gone, wickets fell at regular intervals whilst the run rate crept up. Quite a few batsmen hit double figures but no one went on, and in the end we were all out and about 100 runs short. A disappointing end to the weekend but we have to forget about this one and move on. We still have 4 league matches left to play, with Crescent coming up this Sunday. We need to regroup and focus on this match.
Zapperdag and Asian Mela a great success for the club – June 2, 2015
On Saturday, the club was involved in two events. The first one was the Zapperdag, organised by Jespo who we work with. It involved getting over 1000 kids to try out different sports.
Our club was represented by Niaz and Benjamin, who together with quite a few of our juniors, had a great day introducing the game to those who wouldn’t normally find their way to cricket.
Hopefully in the future we’ll have more kids coming into the club through organisations like this! Top top effort by all those involved, and very much appreciated.
While this was going on, Antwerp CC took part in the Asian Mela for the first time. We had two 15 over matches planned.
The first was against Crescent, who batted first. Even though they had some big hitters, we restricted them to 146 off their 15. Ganga taking 3 wickets and Wahid taking 2.
In the chase, Simon hit 33 and Ilyas hit 29 to set up an exciting chase. We always kept on the RRR of 10, and needed 58 off 6 overs.
We lost a few wickets but some destructive hitting by Sabir and Ibrahim took us over the line with a few balls to spare. In fact, the winning hit was a massive 6.
In the second match, we played Greens. We restricted them to 86-8, with Zaker taking 3 wickets. Wahid hit a quick 50 to chase it down for the loss of 2 wickets. A good day and that means we’re into the quarter finals. Winner takes home €1500 so it’s going to be exciting!
For pictures from the Zapperdag and the Mela, click the button belowPictures
Disappointing finish to the match – May 26, 2015
After we won the toss and elected to field, our bowlers started off strongly in the match vs Gent CC.
Dangerman Ali Raza was out cheaply, and wickets tumbled throughout. Again though, the last two wickets frustrated and added an extra 50 runs, which made the difference in the end. Zaker en Wahid both claimed three wickets, while Sabir and Benjamin each took two.
Gent were bowled out for 146. With a pretty low target, Benjamin got us off to a flier. He hit 67 off 41 balls as he set us up nicely to finish off the match. But at 135-6, nerves got the better of us. We couldn’t get the last runs, not helped by the fact that one of our batsmen, who seemingly thought it was done and dusted, had left the ground. In the end, we were 1 run short, 1 batsman short and 1 fully let down team.
I’m not going to waste any more words on what was one of the worst league matches I’ve played in eons.
Topsy turvy match ends in tie! – May 18, 2015
We won the toss on a nice and sunny day in Gent and elected to bat. The lack of pace in the Arcadians attack was troubling from the first ball. We didn’t adapt to it and were through our shots too early.
This lead to Ilyas’s downfall in the third over. Simon was then subject of a horrible umpiring decision, given out caught behind down the leg side. Nowhere near it. So far away that the bowler was laughing at the appeal and looked shocked when the umpire raised his finger.
Benjamin hit 21 before he too gave a simple catch due to the lack of pace. Wickets kept tumbling, while Farooq looked composed for his 40(59). Ali gave good support with his 25 but no one stuck in and dug it out, which meant we were all out in the 35th over for 145. Ganga hit a quick 19 at the end which proved valuable runs.
As we finished early, we had 12 overs to bowl before lunch. We managed to get them 29-3 off 12 at lunch, with Zakir, Wahid and Benjamin each claiming one. Game in the balance as we went off for a curry.
The first and second over after lunch both produced a wicket, which left Arcadians 33-5. That became 45-6 soon after Zakir took his third. He finished with 3-22 off 10 and we were well on top.
That seventh wicket though, put on almost 50 runs as we dropped about 6 catches. Some really bad, some harder. But they should have been all out at that point. The seventh finally fell with the score at 92-7. That soon became 100-8 and with 46 runs to win, it looked a difficult task for the Arcadians. But frustrating lower order partnerships got them close. The 9th fell at 119-9. So one wicket needed for us, 27 runs for them. It was like Edgbaston 2005 all over again, minus the high quality cricket.
A few lucky and good shots got them close. Ali brought himself on with Arcadians needing 8 to win. They take a single and then the number 11 smacks a six over square leg. Could’ve gone anywhere but the scores were level. Ashraf to bowl the next over. Everyone is in, saving one. The ball is straight, on leg stump. Alvandre goes to flick it, but flicks it towards square leg, where Wahid is waiting to take a diving left handed catch to tie the match! Incredible scenes!
Emotions were obviously running high which caused some words to be exchanged at the end which was unfortunate. But it was a frustrating day for us, as we really should have won it. But to tie it is better than losing, and it will hopefully not dent our title hopes!
Full scorecard is here.
Gent CC in Gent on Saturday is next, let’s take them!
Wahid stars as we sweep past Exiles – May 10, 2015
After a few friendlies against RBCC, ACCB and CCC in which some of our second team players and juniors got their first chance of the season, it was time to get to business with our first 50 over league game.
Ostend Exiles were the opposition, a team we’ve beaten more often than not, but one that can be dangerous if a few of their key players come off.
Ali lost the toss but as we were going to bowl anyway, it wasn’t a big deal. We were a bit wayward to start off with, a few too many wides, but Zakir got a wicket in the first over, a great catch by Ashraf on the boundary. Yes. A catch on the boundary in the first over of a 50 over game. I know, it beggars belief. Exiles started strongly after that, but once Wahid came on to bowl, the game changed.
The batsmen were unable to deal with the inswinging ball. Benjamin kept it tight at the other end but Wahid took 4(!) caught & bowled’s. An amazing achievement, and each wicket seemed to be a carbon copy of the previous one.
Once Wahid had gotten started, Exiles just lost wicket after wicket. The last wicket frustrated us as they added another 36 runs, but was eventually ended by Zakir as the Exiles finished on 139.
So our target was 140 in 50 overs. Ilyas and Benjamin got us started. It was a good start but Ilyas got bowled with the score on 29. Simon came in and together with Benjamin, took the score to 54. He spooned a backfoot drive to cover after the ball stopped on the pitch.
Farooq was next in, and first with Benjamin, then with Wahid, he took us above the 100 mark. Benjamin finished on 36 and Farooq on 18. Wahid and Niaz took us home with 20 overs and 5 wickets to spare. Wahid finishing on 32 not out.
A great performance really. Definitely room for improvement but the result is all that counts. Next week we are playing away at the Arcadians, another very winnable game. We just need everyone to perform and we’ll be fine!
Come on Antwerp!
Disappointing loss ends T20 hopes – May 2, 2015
On a rainy Sunday, we had our last T20 against Mechelen Eagles. Losing the toss, we were put in. Benjamin, Ilyas and Simon all hit 30s to set a great platform for the final 10 overs. But we slipped from 104-1 to 117-6 pretty quickly to leave us in some trouble. Wahid and Sabir rebuilt for a few overs, before Wahid took charge. He hit a quick 56* which included 6 big 6s to propell us to 184.
A challenging target but Vrijbroekpark has some small boundaries so still gettable.
We restricted the Eagles and when they were 7 down, they needed 14 an over. I think that’s when we got complacent. Add to that 2 consecutive overs that went for 20+ runs and all off a sudden they needed 10 off 12 balls. The game had completely shifted and changed for the worse. In stead of bowling full and straight, we were giving them too much room. We need to learn that short balls hardly ever work in Belgium, there just aren’t any fast bowlers or fast pitches.
The Eagles got the target with some balls to spare. One bright spot was young Saqlain again, who bowled 2-24 off 3.3 overs, taking his tally to 10 wickets already, in only 3 matches. Fazil, and other people of the selection committee, keep an eye on this young lad. He needs coaching but could have a very bright future.
We start our 50 over campaign next weekend after some friendlies this weekend. I truly believe we can challenge for the title. We have a strong batting line up and varied bowling line up. There’s experience and youth, and we will definitely be up there at the end of the season, I guarantee that.
First win of 2015! – April 24, 2015
RBCC are our first victims!
After the disappointing opening weekend, we had set our eyes on beating RBCC at their home ground.
Being put in to bat, an all round solid batting display propelled us to a challenging total of 176-5 off our 20 overs.
Ilyas and Benjamin hit 30 and 25 to get us started. Farooq and Ashraf hit 30 and 38 to finish off the innings. Gregg Hawson and Brighton Watambwa got the worst punishment, going for over 10 an over.
Brussels never really got going and lost too many wickets along the way to be able to mount a proper chase. Especially the top order collapsing put pressure on their middle and lower order. Saqlain continued his impressive start of the season with 3-19, whilst Benjamin and Sailan chipped in with two wickets each.
Next up is Mechelen Eagles on Sunday in our last T20 from the group stages. We need a win to stand any chance of progressing. Come on Antwerp!
First day of matches in 2015 – April 14, 2015
Two T20s end in disappointment
Our first match on a beautiful spring day was against Gent CC. Whilst Ali Raza got them off to a lightning start with a quickfire 78 but we pegged them back with regular wickets.
Benjamin especially was impressive with his 3-16 off his 4 overs, but Ashraf and Jawad chipped in with 2 wickets each.
Simon broke his finger two overs in and new guy Ganga got hit on his eyebrow and required 6 stitches. Not the greatest start but we restricted them to 156.
Chasing 157, Ilyas (61) and Simon (27) built the innings and set a great platform. Wickets started to fall but runs kept flowing. With 8 needed off the last over, we lost Jaggy straight away. But it was the second last ball that was controversial. Ganga got hit on the pad as he was swinging but still made contact with the ball. They went for a run but somehow, due to pressure from the fielders, it was decided it was a dead ball. We had no umpires obviously. This left us needing 3 off the last one in stead of 2. We ran one so in our eyes we tied, in Gent’s eyes they won by one run.
It has been sent to the League Committee for them to decide what will happen but without umpires, things like this always happen.
Liege narrowly defend total
In our second match, we were chasing a total again. We restricted Liege to 153, with 17 year old Saqlain taking a very impressive 5-13 on his debut for the senior side. It was a very gettable target.
Openers Niaz and Benjamin fell cheaply but Simon hit a quick 81 and Ali gave good support with 16 to really get us going. After these two fell, only Jawad scored 24, but we only needed 10 off 12 balls with wickets in hand. Stupidly, the batsmen were aiming for the boundary in stead of just knocking the singles off. We lost by 3 runs.
A very disappointing cricketing day BUT Ilyas and Jaggy had organised a great barbecue which lifted spirits. The meat was good, the atmosphere lovely and the company great. Hopefully we’ll repeat these evenings but preferably on the end of a couple of wins, and not a defeat and an unknown result.
Onwards and upwards though, RBCC on Saturday next up!
Fixtures updated – February 28, 2015
Changes for this season include:
- 50 over matches for Division one
- Pink balls in the T20 league
- Each club must provide umpires for 4 league matches and 4 T20s or will face fines
- Results sheets need to be sent in by Monday evening and CricHQ needs to be updated before Friday
Looking forward to the new season! Time for Antwerp CC to bring home the championship!
Antwerp CC to offer cricket lessons – January 26, 2015
Antwerp Cricket Club have been in discussions with Jespo (http://www.jespo.be/home) to offer cricket lessons to children from the age of 8 to 13 starting next September. This will be outdoors at first, indoors during the bleak mid-winter and then outdoors again. Jespo will add these courses to their programme.
The programme is distributed to thousands of homes and schools in Antwerp. Jespo will run these cricket courses but ACC will provide the coaches and equipment. The coaches will be paid by Jespo! The registration, insurance etc will be handled by Jespo. There will be just one lesson a week, generally on Wednesday afternoon.
This is a great initiative which will hopefully bring more youngsters in to the game.
2015 Subscriptions due now! – February 3, 2015
As the 2015 season is around the corner, your membership fees are now due. The full fees structure can be found by clicking the button below.
Special offer!
If you pay your subs before 1/03/2015, you receive a 10% discount.
That means that for the full membership you will only pay €135 in stead of €150.
Students & the unemployed pay €65 in stead of €75.
Fees for juniors remain the same as these are extremely low as they are.
Benjamin Mukasa passes coaching course – January 10, 2015
Benjamin Mukasa, our highest qualified coach, has attended and passed an ECB course for coaching children’s cricket.
Congratulations to him. This will be invaluable in the years to come as more and more kids come in to learn cricket.
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