Match 1: Hafnarfjorður Hammers (132/10, Chamley Fernando 34, Javed Miakhial 23, S Maduri 3-35, David Cook 2-19) beat Kopavogur Puffins (100/8, Hari Singh 34, Bala Kamallakharan 26, Dushan Bandara 3-25, Sulaman Nawaz 2-14) by 32 runs.
SportZchain Man of the Match: Dushan Bandara
Chamley Fernando provided Hammers another excellent start as he started to hit boundaries at will and was always in control. He scored 34 at a strike rate of over 200, with four 4´s and two huge 6´s. Once Botha got Fernando out bowled in 6th over, and Sai Padamata got dangerous Dushan Bandara out with a gem of a delivery which rose up viciously from the good length, Puffins were able to get things under control. Although everyone from the Hammers middle and lower order contributed after the dismissal of their two big guns, Puffins took wickets at regular intervals to get Hammers out for 132 in 18.4 overs. In reply, Puffins started well despite a first ball duck from M Kareem and raced to 48 for 1 in 9th over. However, Dushan Bandara´s two overs changed the game completely as he first got Bala out for 26 and then got through the defences of Jackob Robertson and Keenan Botha, getting them for ducks. Puffins couldn’t revive themselves from this vicious spell from Dushan Bandara and eventually could score only 100 for 8 in their allotted 20 overs.
Dushan Bandara was adjudged SportZchain man of the match for his game changing bowling spell.
Match 2: Vesturbær Volcanos (77/4 in 12.3 overs, Sebastiaan Dreyer 17, Lee Nelson 17, W Mahagoda 3-26, Ramesh Eddum 1-11) beat Reykjavik Vikings (76 all out, Lakshitha Bimsara 12, Sreejith Jayabhavan 3-18, Ram Gujappan 2-12) by 6 wickets
SportZchain Man of the Match: Sreejith Jayabhavan
Volcanos lost the third toss in a row and asked to bowl first again. However, they were ruthless against a depleted Vikings side and got rid of their top order quite easily in the first 10 overs, conceding only 32 runs. Only Bimsara showed some resistance against the likes of Gujappan, Kathir Narayanan and Mohit Kotian and the situation did not change post the drinks break. Vikings innings lasted for only 17 overs as Jayabhavan and Anandgaonkar (2-25) ran through the middle and lower order, while only Ravi Rawat was able to hit a few boundaries. In reply, Volcanos started with all guns blazing as Sebastiaan Dreyer, playing his first game this season, scored 12 runs from the 1st over and then with help from Lee nelson, scored another 11 in the next. Although Dreyer go out in the 3rd over, Nelson continued with the hitting spree. However, things slowed down once he go out in the 5th over, as stand-in-captain Avik Ghosh (16*) and Mohit Kotian (12) played watchfully to make sure that the target was reached. Despite the slow-down, Volcanos chased down 76 in 12th over, getting a boost in their net run rate.
Sreejith Jayabhavan was adjudged the SportZchain Man of the Match for his bowling effort.
Match 3: Vesturbær Volcanos (141/7, Lee Nelson 66*, Sebastiaan Dreyer 23, Sai Padamata 3-40, Jackob Robertson 1-19) beat Kopavogur Puffins (96/10, Sathiya Rupan 22, Keenan Botha 12, Vaibhab Anandgaonkar 4-17, Kuldip Jha 3-23) by 45 runs
SportZchain Man of the Match: Vaibhab Anandgaonkar
Volcanos won the toss in the first evening match (6.30 PM start and played under sunlight) of this season and decided to bat first. The outfield was wet due to the rain during the day and Puffins bowlers found it hard to grip the ball in the first few overs. Sebastiaan Dreyer took the advantage by scoring 16 runs in the second over and Volcanos cruised to 30 for no loss in 4 overs. Although they lost Dreyer, Avik Ghosh and Abdul Saif in quick succession, Lee Nelson continued with his good form and rebuilt the innings with Mohit Kotian. The duo added 26 runs in 5 overs, before David Cook got Kotian out LBW for 20. Nelson, however, carried his bat through the innings, scoring his second half-century this year in four outings and helped Volcano to post 141, the highest score so far in this season. Puffins had a disastrous start of their innings as Bala Kamallakharan was run out for 6 in the 2nd over. Although Ram Gujappan had to leave the ground after bowling only 2 overs due to a leg injury, Volcanos kept the pressure on and Kuldip Jha and Kathir Narayanan wiped off the Puffins top order, leaving them struggling at 58/5 after the first 10 overs. The game was all but over once Vaibhab Anandgaonkar found his rhythm and ran through the rest of the Puffins batters. The highlight of this part was a loopy David Cook-alike off-break from Anandgaonkar to dismiss David Cook himself. Sathiya Rupan showed some resistance, but it was too late, and he was out stumped in the 16th over, trying to score quick runs. Eventually, Volcanos were able to dismiss their opponents in 17th over in two matches in a row and Puffins were 45 runs short of their target.
Vaibhab Anandgaonkar was adjudged the SportZchain Man of the Match for his bowling effort.
Standings as of Week 3
Fixtures list : https://www.krikket.is/matches
Live Telecast : https://www.youtube.com/c/IcelandCricket