GT20 Canada: Brampton Wolves snatch an exciting win to move to top of table
Exciting win for Brampton Wolves with a wicket and a ball to spare.
Cricket is a game that gets you to the edge of your seat upon reaching its climax. It happened on Saturday at the CAA Centre, the venue of the GT 20 Canada cricket bonanza, where the local favourites Brampton Wolves recorded an exciting win in a nail-biting finish.
Wolves won with a wicket and a ball to spare.
Still playing without their star player Harbhajan Singh (India), Brampton Wolves have now climbed to the top of the table in the six-team contest with a maximum of four points with two wins from as many matches.
At one stage, the win looked comfortable as the Wolves needed 6 runs from 13 balls with four wickets in hand. Toronto Nationals, like their win in the first game, fought back gamely and had their opponents struggling to get the last three runs in the last over bowled by evergreen Shahid Afridi. It was only on the fifth ball that the winning boundary was hit to give Wolves not only a sigh of relief but also a finish that was relished by thousands of spectators who had a heartful of cricket throughout the day on Saturday.
It may be a heartbreak for the Toronto Nationals who came so close but ended up a close loser. It was Jan Frylinck, who after being tied down by Shahid Afridi for three balls, hit a beautiful cover drive on the fifth ball to give Wolves a tremendous win.
Shahid Afridi in his last two overs almost snatched a certain win from the Wolves who at one stage were sitting pretty at 137 for six. He finished with two for six.
For Brampton Wolves, the hero was Hussain Talat who scored 44 off 33 balls and hit two towering sixes and as many fours while Rizwan Cheema came as a major support with his knock of 35 off 28 balls. He hit a six besides two boundaries in his innings.
Zaman Khan was the most successful Toronto team bowler with three for 24 while earlier for Wolves, Logan Beek had a good spell as he claimed three wickets for 27 runs.
Cricket is an exciting game of uncertainties and can swing in favour of those who take their chances and keep fighting. The Toronto team lost a close battle to Brampton Wolves who will now take on Surrey Jaguars in their third game tomorrow. Harbhajan Singh is expected to join the team for Sunday’s game and is expected to be a good crowd-puller.
In fact, the second day of the event was double the delight for fans as two thrilling clashes were witnessed.
The first encounter was reduced to 15 overs a side, following a delayed start due to a wet outfield. Toronto Nationals (151/3) defeated Vancouver Knights by 9 runs in a final over thriller. In the second match Montreal Tigers after electing to field first comfortably chased the Surrey Jaguars’ score (138/6) with more than an over to spare. The Montreal Tigers’ Shakib Al Hassan registered a spectacular all-round performance of 3/18 besides scoring 26 runs.
Toronto Nationals got off to an explosive start, after Vancouver Knights’ skipper, Rassie Van Der Dussen, won the toss and elected to field first. After the five-over powerplay, the Toronto Nationals were in a formidable position with 56 runs for the loss of Captain, Hamza Tariq (12). The opener, Colin Munro (78*) came out with all guns blazing reaching his half-century in just 30 deliveries. His unbeaten innings was a concoction of power-hitting and innovative batting with 12 boundaries as he found runs in all areas of the park. He was supported by Nicholas Kirton (22) in their 76-run partnership. Shahid Afridi (23) announced his arrival at the marquee tournament with 23 runs in just 12 deliveries to help the Nationals finish at 151/3.
In response, Vancouver Knights started well despite the loss of an early wicket as Reeza Henricks (0) was scalped by Fazalhaq Farooqi. At the end of the powerplay, the Knights were well poised with 46 runs for the loss of one wicket. Fakhar Zaman (36) made his intent clear from the get-go before he was outfoxed by Gerhard Erasmus. Vriitya Aravind (31) also dealt primarily with boundaries before his blazing assault was derailed in the seventh over. Skipper Rassie Van Der Dussen (51) engaged in a blitzkrieg with his bat, completing his half-century in just 18 balls. With 27 runs needed in 18 balls, the Knights looked all set to cruise home, but a phenomenal exhibition of death bowling by the Nationals led by Zaman Khan, Saad Bin Zafar and Fazalhaq Farooqi in the final three overs, ensured a maiden victory for Toronto.
In the second match, Montreal Tigers won the toss and put the Surrey Jaguars into bat on a considerable wicket that had been slowed down by the previous evening’s rain. At the end of the powerplay, the Jaguars had accumulated 50 runs but had already seen the departure of Alex Hales (1), Litton Das (9) and Jatinder Singh (27). Coming in at number five, Captain Iftikhar Ahmed toiled his way to the end of the innings, finishing unbeaten with a crucial knock of 40 runs in 44 balls. Dillon Heyliger also chipped in with an unbeaten knock of 18 runs, but the Jaguars struggled to accelerate and find boundaries through the middle and death overs. Shakib Al Hassan was terrific with the ball, finishing with figures of 3/18, while Abbas Afridi also picked up two scalps (2/25), limiting the Surrey Jaguars to 138/6.
The Montreal Tigers looked to make a quick meal of their target, blazing their way to 54 runs for the loss of Muhammed Waseem (12), within the powerplay. Chris Lynn (22) and Shakib Al Hassan (26) unleashed a barrage of strokes upon the Jaguars’ bowling. However, both batters failed to convert their quick starts, disrupting the Tigers’ momentum. Dilpreet Singh (28) and Dipendra Singh Airee (28) showcased great composure to weave together an all-important partnership before Carlos Brathwaite cleared the rope twice to secure the win for the Tigers with nine deliveries and five wickets to spare.
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