Templars won the toss and chose to bat first on the Kai Tak astro-turf wicket. A low scoring match was anticipated with advantage to the bowlers but the ensuing day’s play was far from expected.

Saumil and Sunny opened the innings and provided a solid start. The first wicket fell at the score of 32 with wickets then falling consistently as Templars batsmen failed to adequately manage the accurate bowling and difficult bounce. Majority of wickets were out caught with batters playing across the line. Only five batsmen achieved double figures; Saumil 17, Dylan 22, Kinchit 15, Waqas 14 and Waqar 10. A low score of 10 for 125 was posted of 30 overs. A superb bowling effort was needed to defend this total.

Afzaal took the new ball with Aditya and both immediately took a wicket each. Millenium were suddenly under pressure at 2 for 4 runs. Although fielding pressure was maintained, the opposition reached 2 for 68 without further loss of wickets. After lunch Templars continued to strive for wickets while containing runs. Waqar and Ninad were introduced and this was the turning point for the match. Combined with excellent catching, fielding and applied pressure on the Millenium batsmen, 8 wickets fell for 38 runs. Ninad and Waqar completed with figures of 4 for 8 and 3 for 30 runs, respectively. The opposition was bowled out 10 for 106 off 22 overs with the Templars recording a notable victory.


Submitted by Dylan Dearing